Chapter 8 Relationships with Australian environments in

the past decade

Key knowledge
• Indigenous peoples’ custodianship of outdoor environments
including the formation of land and water councils and Registered
Aboriginal Parties (RAP)
• conservation, recreation and economic relationships with outdoor
environments
• methods used by individuals and groups to influence decisions
about two conflicts over the use of outdoor environments, and
the processes followed by land managers to resolve said conflicts,
including at least one from the following list:
- feral species in the Alpine National Park
- commercial logging in Victoria
- establishment of new mountain bike parks
- Southern Ocean whale hunting
- Murray–Darling Basin water allocations
Key skills
• compare different human relationships with outdoor
environments, including Indigenous and non-Indigenous
peoples’ relationships
• describe two conflicts and evaluate the methods used by
conflicting parties to influence decisions in their favour,
and the processes followed to resolve or potentially
resolve said conflicts
• analyse differing environmental politics in Australia
• analyse the influence of social debates about
environment issues on relationships with outdoor
environments.

• an environmental issue in Australia and related policy from two

federal political parties or representatives, including at least one
of:
- Labor party
- Liberal-National Coalition
- The Greens

• the influence of social debates on relationships with outdoor

environments, including one of:
- climate change
- renewable energy
- water management.
8.1 Indigenous peoples’ formal custodianship
KK: Indigenous peoples’ custodianship of outdoor environments, including the formation of land and water councils
KS: compare different human relationships with outdoor environments, including Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples’ relationships

• Custodianship is the care and management of land and is related to Kinship.

• Custodianship is the process of the formal recognition of Indigenous peoples’ custodianship of land or land and water.
• The five requirements for Traditional Owners to gain formal recognition are Right People, Right Country, Decision Making, Capability and Incorporation
• There are three processes for Traditional Owners to pursue formal recognition:
- by becoming a Registered Aboriginal Party (RAP) as approved by the Aboriginal Heritage Council
- through a native title determination by the federal government (Native Title Act 1993)
- through a Victorian Recognition and Settlement Agreement under the Traditional Owner Settlement Act 2010 of Victoria, created as an alternative and more direct Victorian pathway to
native title.
• Examples of formalised Traditional Owner groups caring for outdoor environments include:
- consulting with landowners including mining activity, employment and development, including in national parks
- designated Aboriginal positions
- water management
- traditional burning practice and education
- bush food and medicine identification and promotion
- sacred site identification and management
- working within other organisations to maintain and enhance Aboriginal culture, identity and heritage.
8.2 Three types of relationships
KK: conservation, recreation and economic relationships with outdoor environments
KS: compare different human relationships with outdoor environments, including Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples’ relationships

• There are three types of relationships with outdoor environments. Each needs to be considered individually but can occur simultaneously by an individual.
• Conservation includes the perception that nature needs our help.
- interaction – revegetation, weed and pest control, protests/activism and clean-ups, etc.
- impacts – generally positive for the environment but can be negative for other users or users with economic goals
- can simultaneously overlap with an economic relationship in an eco-tourism activity.
• Recreation includes the perception that nature is our gymnasium:
- interaction – outdoor activities
- impacts – damage to outdoor environments from activity and high user numbers, and can affect
other users’ experiences
- can lead to a person becoming involved in a conservation relationship with an outdoor environment as they begin to appreciate its natural qualities or their activity is at risk of being ‘cancelled’ or
‘locked out’ due to damage or poor practice
- can simultaneously overlap with an economic relationship in an eco-tourism activity or paying an activity provider.
• Economic includes the perception that nature is a resource to benefit us with money, sometimes despite the impacts caused:
- interaction – grow, dig, harvest or provide tourism
- impacts – can be localised or ‘climate change’ scale in damage
- can be well intentioned and can also be positive (e.g. Patagonia).
8.3 Conflicts over the use of outdoor environments
KK: methods used by individuals and groups to influence decisions
about two conflicts over the use of outdoor environments, and the
processes followed by land managers to resolve said conflicts,
including at least one from the following list: feral species in the Alpine
National Park, commercial logging in Victoria, establishment of new
mountain bike parks, Southern Ocean whale hunting, Murray–Darling
Basin water allocation.
KS: describe two conflicts and evaluate the methods used by conflicting formed, as community consultation led both the government and
parties to influence decisions in their favour, and the processes
followed to resolve or potentially resolve said conflicts
• A conflict occurs where two different user groups of an outdoor
environment have opposing views on how the location can be used.
• Individuals and groups use multiple methods to influence decision
makers. The most common methods are:
- formal petitions
- public campaigns
- street protests
- development of collective action networks (e.g. environmental
groups)
- media-based activism
- lawsuits
- alternative knowledge creation (e.g. scientific research)
- blockades
- Environmental Impact Assessment objections
- alternative proposals.
• Decision makers use processes to inform and make their decisions.
Examples include:
- community consultation following the Millennium drought. In 2018, the MDBA was criticized
- use of court systems for failing to meet the needs of water allocations in a catastrophe that
- legislation (creating laws) involved water allocations being granted to the end of the river at the
- management plans South Australia border, resulting in the flooding of forests at the
- use of the political system Barmah Choke en route, with water also being unavailable to farms
- referenda. along the way. This conflict is unresolved but is being influenced by
• The Great Forest National Park conflict resulted in the park not being both agricultural and environmental groups, with the federal
government to review the Basin plan, which is ongoing and begins in
opposition to choose not to support it. 2023 with Federal legislation amendments around buybacks.
• The removal of feral horses from the Alpine environment conflict was
resolved through judicial (court) involvement and resulted in a
compromised removal that allowed some horses to remain in the east,
with shooting to be carefully managed but not disallowed.
• The creation of the Warburton Mountain Bike Destination faced one
of the most thorough approval processes in Australia. It produced an
environmental effects statement that, when coupled with extensive
community consultation and submissions, resulted in the government
approving the park with amendments of no trails in the Yarra Ranges
National Park to protect the Leadbeater’s possum and Mount Donna
Buang wingless stonefly.
• Southern Ocean whale hunting has ceased by Japan’s research vessels
due to the Australian and New Zealand taking them to the International
Court in 2014 and having the hunting ruled illegal. Although Japanese
whalers continued to hunt, tireless direct action by the Sea Shepherd
organisation meant that the whale harvest was seriously decreased and
eventually Japan chose to cease its operations in 2018.
• Murray–Darling Basin water allocations are managed by the Murray–
Darling Basin Authority (MDBA), formed under the Water Act 2007
8.4 Environmental politics in Australia
KK: an environmental issue in Australia and related policy from two federal political parties or
representatives, including at least one of: Labor party, Liberal-National Coalition, The Greens
KS: analyse differing environmental politics in Australia

• Environmental politics began in the late 1960s and its first true spotlight was the 1983 federal election involving Bob Hawke’s Labor Party being elected partly on a platform of stopping the Franklin Dam.
• Australian politics is positioned left and right of centre of the political spectrum (from left to right: Greens, Labor, Liberal and Nationals).
• International treaties impact Australian politics – the most recent being the Paris Agreement of 2015 and its pressure on governments to act on greenhouse emissions.
• Climate change is caused by an increase in greenhouse gas emissions since the Industrial Revolution by developed nations, and more recently also developing nations.
• Native forest logging continues to be practised in Australia and has detrimental effects on species that are endemic to them. Furthermore, the pressures of urbanisation reduce habitat for native flora and fauna and
introduce pests and weeds.
• As one of the driest continents on Earth, our nation is constantly faced with challenges of drought and water supply. We therefore require sophisticated systems of water management, the largest being the Murray–
Darling Basin Plan. We’ve also seen desalination and pipelines to transport water proposed and become political issues.
• The Great Barrier Reef is an outdoor environment unique to Australia and one of the best showcase reefs on the planet. It faces pressures of coral bleaching, pollution from agricultural runoff and damage by tourism. Its
rescue is a galvanising issue.
• The Australian Labor Party is positioned on the centre left of the political spectrum and is more in favour of a more socialist society. It has policy for Australia to be net zero by 2050, and to reduce Australia’s emissions
by 43% by 2030.
• The Coalition of the Liberal Party of Australia and the Nationals is positioned as right-leaning on the political spectrum, and is in favour of a more capitalist society. They pledged net-zero emissions by 2050 (through
technologies, not taxes) and to reduce Australia’s emissions 26–28% by 2030.
• The Australian Greens Party is positioned to the left of the Australian Labor Party on the political spectrum and is an environmental-based party with four pillars: ecological sustainability, grassroots participatory
democracy, social justice, and peace and nonviolence. They pledged net zero emissions or net negative Australian greenhouse gas emissions by 2035 or sooner.
• Helen Haines is an independent ‘teal’ Member Of Parliament
8.5 Social debates about environmental issues
KK: the influence of social debates on relationships with outdoor environments, including one of: climate change, renewable energy, water management
KS: analyse the influence of social debates about environment issues on relationships with outdoor environments

• A social debate may include points of view, conversations or arguments that are expressed through different media – such as conversations, tweets, blogs and social media pages – by an individual or group on a
particular topic by an expert of just someone with an interest.
• Climate change debate:
- Temperatures have increased in Australia by 1.4°C since 1910, causing increased frequency and intensity of heat extremes, rising sea levels, dangerous fire weather and bushfires, and severe floods.
• Climate sceptics versus climate activists debate
- We either stop climate change or we don’t, but in the process we are affecting human relationships with outdoor environments by spotlighting their dangers due to climate change. This creates a positive feedback loop
where fewer people visiting outdoor environments means fewer people to care for outdoor environments.
• Water management debate:
- Water management is a response to a dry continent with persistent droughts and our insistence that we continue to grow food the way we do. Water for urban areas has been addressed in the past by the North-South
pipeline and Victorian Desalination Plant.
- Social debates involve a city versus country divide. The city has ways of getting water that the country doesn’t.
- The management of the Murray-Darling Basin has led to water allocations going to the highest bidder, pricing many irrigators out and causing mass movements of water transfer across the system inundating the
Barmah. At other times, lower flows are contributing to mass fish deaths.
- Water for Indigenous peoples’ cultural flows is a new area of debate where concerns are that this represents another user of already scare water resources, which might otherwise be allocated to farmers.
• Renewable energy debate:
- This involves whether to adopt clean alternatives for electricity production and phase out old fossil-fuel-fired power stations. Australia has emissions targets that need to be met by renewable energy targets.
- The potential net reduction in CO2 emissions would help to avoid catastrophic climate change.