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Objective

Recommendation

Key issues

Actions taken

Objective

To maintain the productivity of soils and conserve biodiversity.

Recommendation

It is recommended that Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries, in conjunction with the Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association, relevant government agencies, farmers and other stakeholders, develops and implements an Agricultural Code of Practice.

Key issues

This information is available from Volume 2 of the last SoE Report (SDAC 1997), which can be downloaded. The final objective, final recommendation, and a summary of key management actions are detailed below.

Actions taken

The development of an Agricultural Code of Practice has not taken place since the previous SoE Report (1997). However, there has been some progress made in addressing the objective of this recommendation on productivity of soils and conservation of biodiversity, including the following.

• A set of 'Soil Management Guidelines' has been prepared and published by the Department of Primary Industries, Water and Environment and the Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association (Hamlett 2002). These voluntary guidelines are a broad set of best management practices relating to the use of soils for agriculture and include details on planning, maintaining soil structure and organic matter, reducing soil erosion, managing soil salinity, avoiding soil contamination, and managing riparian land. The guidelines complement a number of technical documents relating to land management published by the Department of Primary Industries, Water and Environment including 'Managing Tasmania's Cropping Soils' (Chilvers 1996).
   
• Within forestry areas, the main soil types have been defined and keys for their identification developed. The Forest Practices Act 1985, through the Forest Practices Code, requires that management of forests (e.g. use of machinery, cultivation procedures, slope limits for harvest) is modified to take into account soil factors like erodibility. New (January 2003) guidelines have specified increased soil protection next to headwater streams in the forestry estate and these are being trialled.
   
• A Natural Heritage Trust supported project entitled 'Minimising Land Degradation and Salinity Risk using Resource Information' is investigating degradation risks including soil structure decline due to intensified land use at three pilot areas around the State.
   
• A number of research studies into soil compaction in forest soils have been undertaken at the Warra Long Term Ecological Research site in the Southern Forests.
   
• The National Heritage Trust 'north facing slopes project' has provided over 100 km of fencing materials to fence off 1,890 ha, to encourage improved sheep grazing management on highly erodible north facing slopes. A mulched rip lines erosion control technique has been used in sloping land in north-west Tasmania to protect 400 ha in 2001 and 600 ha in 2002.
   
• Understanding acid sulphate soils in Tasmania has improved since the survey, mapping and report undertaken by Shivaraj Gurung (2001).
   
• The comprehensive, adequate and representative (CAR) reserve system under the Regional Forest Agreement (RPDC 2002) has resulted in 458,000 ha of new reserves containing 293,000 ha of forest. A framework has also been established through the Regional Forest Agreement to retain 80% of the 1996 area of forest Statewide. Within each bioregion, 50% of the 1996 area of each forest community needs to be retained.
   
• The Private Forest Reserves Program has protected about 30,000 ha of forested land, and the Protected Areas on Private Land Program has protected a small number of threatened non-forest communities. The Tasmanian Regional Forest Agreement (1997) established a Permanent Forest Estate Policy that sets minimum thresholds of forest communities to be retained; the Scientific Advisory Group for the Comprehensiveness, Adequate and Representative (CAR) Reserve System reviewed the current policy thresholds and recommended a revised framework to determine retention levels (CARSAG 2001).
   
• Land clearance is being addressed through actions such as the Vegetation Management Policy Framework and measures taken by the Forest Practices Board.
   
• The Forest Practices Board introduced a moratorium on the clearing of Rare and Endangered forest communities in 2002, and in 2003 the State Government announced that all Rare, Endangered and Vulnerable forest communities would be protected using the Forest Practices System which will protect 107,000 ha.
   
• The Threatened Species Strategy and the Nature Conservation Strategy were prepared. A Nature Conservation Strategy was prepared by the State Biodiversity Committee in 2001, and the State Government has formally responded to each of the recommendations in the Strategy.
   
• A Tasmania-wide assessment of biodiversity health was undertaken as part of the Australian Natural Resources Atlas (Audit) (Gouldthorpe & Gilfedder 2002).