Suchergebnisse

Reports on developments in politics in New South Wales, Australia, Jan-June 2001. 1 Reference. Adapted from the source document.

Reports on developments in politics, in Queensland, Australia, Jan-June 2001. 2 Charts.

The Western Australia Wheatbelt contains the largest area of dry-land salinity in Australia, with major economic, social, & environmental consequences. In recent years, salinity has been widely recognized as the state's worst environmental problem. Yet, the historical record shows that this crisis, which has taken half a century to fully materialize, was largely foreseen by contemporary agricultural scientists. In examining the origins of the salinity crisis, the article examines the reasons why this scientific advice was ignored. It locates the schemes to open up the area for agriculture in the period 1900-1980s within the ideology of developmentalism, which became the major plank in the policy of successive governments. The article identifies the key elements in the way developmentalism was applied to agriculture & discusses its populist appeal; the separation of science from policy; & the institutionalization of the developmentalist ethos in the administrative arms of government. Adapted from the source document.