01-10-2003

A key conclusion after 10 years of salinity research investment by Australia's National Dryland Salinity Program (NDSP) is that there is no one salinity problem, according to NDSP National Manager Richard Price.

This conclusion is drawn largely from new application of traditional science, which shows that salinity expresses itself in the Australian landscape in many different ways. But Dr Price will further argue at a major salinity and water quality conference tomorrow in central Queensland that there is no one salinity problem for other reasons. These reasons, he suggests, are socially based and show that different individuals will see salinity differently according to their context and perspective.

In his keynote address to the 9th Productive Uses and Rehabilitation of Saline Lands (PUR$L) conference, Dr Price suggests that the dilemmas we face in managing salinity may be attributed to the many different perspectives of looking at salinity. He used only three examples, which he called 'positivist', 'interpretivist' and 'critical theorist'.

"Different people have different perspectives on the salinity issue, depending on their world view and the context in which they have an association with the problem," he said. "For example, a local government in Rockhampton, a football club in central Victoria and a farmer in the wheatbelt of Western Australia may all look at the salinity problem in entirely different ways. But so might the different Councillors in Rockhampton, the different football players in central Victoria and the different farmers in the wheatbelt.

"We cannot deal with salinity as though it were the same problem - the difference will lie in not just geography, but also the range of values each individual has, their personal circumstances and the priorities for them in dealing with the issue.

"Similarly, we cannot expect everyone to have the same thoughts and feelings about salinity because, as individuals, we interpret issues differently - depending on where we come from, what the problem means to us and a range of other factors that can influence our perspective.

"Understanding these different perspectives people have is imperative; in salinity management, decisions and responses are made on a daily basis, subject to individuals' perception of their 'big picture'. In fact it's not the size of the 'big picture' that counts but what meaning it has for those that care to interpret it."

Dr Price noted that Australia's National Dryland Salinity Program (NDSP) reported this year that an analysis of more than a decade of salinity research had lead to six key messages:

• Salinity costs are significant and rising: Protection must be strategic.
• Profitable options for reversing the trend are lacking (but under development).
• There is no one salinity problem: As the ultimate in diffuse pollution, it challenges us to look beyond the traditional policy instruments.
• Integrated catchment management must be seen as only one approach to deal with dryland salinity.
• Vegetation management remains the key to managing water resources, although the benefit-cost of revegetating catchments requires careful analysis.
• Lack of capacity is an important, but secondary constraint, to managing salinity.

In his address, Dr Price outlined how different individuals might interpret these messages, largely driven by their perspective.

"These significant messages from the NDSP offer an opportunity to test how an appreciation of multiple perspectives might lead to more robust means of analysing their implications," he said.

"For example, the 'positivist' interpretation might suggest that the first NDSP key finding relating to costs of salinity indicate cost-benefit analysis should be the tool for determining future salinity expenditure. The 'Interpretivist' interpretation of the same message might be that resource allocation should be on the basis of negotiation after a range of values and perceptions are revealed, while the 'criticial theorists' might interpret it as being a government agenda to deal with salinity at least cost!"

Dr Price commented each of these views was equally valid and needs to be the basis for discussion in any decision-making process.

"There is an increasing need to more critically think about what it is we perceive when we come to salinity management," he said. "While some may present these messages as 'the big picture' for dealing with salinity in the future, the messages do two other things - they question current notions about others' views of the 'big picture' and also challenge us to interpret what they will mean within different contexts."

For further information please contact:

Please contact Land & Water Australia
Email: land&wateraustralia@lwa.gov.au
Phone: 02 6263 6000