Indicator: Landuse

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What the results tell us for Tumut

See also: | Ecosystem diversity |

For a map showing the various landuses in Tumut Shire, Contact us for details of the full report for the Australian Capital Region (available only on CD-ROM).

Native vegetation (forest) conservation is the most extensive landuse within Tumut Shire (see Table 1). Managed by Kosciuszko National Park, these lands constitute approximately one third of the area of the Shire. Other timbered areas include both native and pine forests. They cover almost 22% of the Shire and they are mostly managed by NSW State Forests.

The Tumut and Batlow areas have been found to be particularly well suited to timber production because of a favourable combination of cool temperatures and relatively reliable rainfall. Because of NSW State Government policy, which now precludes the conversion of native forest to pine plantation, increases in the area used for production forestry have generally occurred through the conversion of agricultural lands. However, it was not possible to determine the actual sizes of the areas concerned.

Agriculture is an important landuse within the Shire. Cattle and sheep grazing predominates, and the production of horticultural crops such as apples and stone fruit, particularly nectarines and peaches, is also important.

As reported in SoER-1997, it is estimated that the area utilised for grazing has reduced from its 1981 level of 149 000 ha (Australian Bureau of Statistics Census data) to a 1989 level of 131 545 ha. In this report, it is estimated that only 115 066 ha have been cleared for agriculture, with a further 32 560 ha of bushland that could be grazed if they were private or leasehold land.

Tumut Shire Council's records suggest that as much as 142 041 ha is classed as rural. This total includes both cleared and forested lands (or bushland), and possibly some areas of plantations outside the State Forests boundaries.

Although the current landuse of converted agricultural land is not known accurately, it is known that the areas used for forestry, orcharding and cropping have all increased from the 1981 census to the 1989 data available for State of the Environment-1997 and this report.

Some vegetable crops are grown in restricted areas. Produce includes potatoes, sweet corn and pumpkins for supply to the Sydney markets and peas, beans and sweet corn are supplied for canning, bottling and freezing at Batlow. About 350 ha were devoted to vegetable crops in 1981 and clearly the area devoted to cropping has increased since then.

Mineral resources that have been identified in the Shire of Tumut include gold; chromium, copper, lead and zinc deposits; construction materials such as marble, slate and granite; sapphires and rubies. A number of mining exploration licences are current for the Shire.

About the data

Data for urban landuse have been sourced from the LIC DCDB and includes land within the Tumut LGA which is rated as Residential or Business and other land within urban zones. The database is updated annually.

Description: What does 'landuse' measure?

Which data are collected?

• the area (in hectares) and proportion of land subject to each landuse type

Why do we report this indicator?

The way we use our land affects the health of ecosystems and our quality of life. Changes in the intensity of landuse over time indicate changes in the pressure of landuse on the people and their environment. In some cases, landuse changes can also indicate the environmental and economic sustainability of landuses, if a landuse stops due to environmental degradation, for example.

For this report, landuse types of specific interest include:

• agricultural (including pasture/grassland, horticulture, cropping)
• forestry (as area used for timber production)
• water supply and storage
• urban (including the proportion of urban land used for residential, commercial and industrial purposes and urban green space)
• conservation (including national parks, heritage places)
• mines/quarries
• energy easement
• transport.

Depending on the data available, any of the categories within each landuse type may be presented separately or together.

The area of land devoted to conservation values is an indicator of the condition of our natural and cultural heritage, and the commitment by society to providing adequate protection, conservation and management of heritage places.

It is important to disaggregate the area designated as "urban" residential, commercial and industrial uses as well as urban green space. The amount of land used for each affects the nature and extent of impacts of urbanisation on the environment and the demands for infrastructure such as energy and water supply systems. The way land is used in urban areas also impacts on the quality of life for residents as it affects the amount of privacy, space, and noise experienced by the residential population, resulting in a range of effects on human health.

The area of urban green space should be further disaggregated into the area of urban land devoted to native vegetation, parks, gardens, recreation and other open spaces, relative to the total urban area, and whether this green space is accessible to the public. This is because urban green space that is not easily accessible for all does not contribute as much to the overall quality of life for an urban population.