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Text SizeDryland includes all private land not owned or managed by irrigation farmers. Dryland accounts for almost all privately owned, non-urban land outside the Torrumbarry, Pyramid-Boort and Rochester-Campaspe Irrigation Areas.
Dryland condition and threatening processes
The condition of dryland and the value of services it provides are threatened by a range of landscape processes and cultural practices. Several of the threatening processes and their impact on dryland condition are salinity, pest plants and animals and soil health issues.
Dryland Salinity
Dryland Salinity has long been recognised as one of the main threats to natural resources condition, water quality and agricultural production in the north central region of Victoria.
Almost 32,000 ha of land have been mapped as being affected by dryland Salinity within the north central region. Around half of this is located in the Avon-Richardson catchment. While the area currently affected by dryland Salinity comprises just 1% of the north central region, over 10% is considered to be at risk of developing shallow water tables and salinity.
Pests, Plant and Animals
Pest plants and animals impact on agricultural productivity and the cost structure of managing dryland properties. Pest plants displace native species from patches of remnant vegetation. Overgrazing by rabbits has, in the past, contributed to erosion and sedimentation and the loss of native species. Foxes and domestic pets hunt and kill native fauna and may threaten populations in some areas.
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