Landcare GIS: Evaluating Land Management Programs in Australia

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Agricultural Science
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Background:

• Land degradation is a significant national issue in Australia.
• Government initiatives like the National Landcare Program (NLP) aim to address this problem.
• The NLP has funded numerous projects since 1990.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of the National Landcare Program (NLP).
• To analyze the spatial relationships between NLP projects, land condition, and land use.
• To inform resource allocation for land degradation mitigation.

Main Methods:

• Development and application of the LANDCARE GIS spatial information system.
• Integration of diverse datasets: project details, land condition surveys, landcare group data, management practices, and socio-economic data.
• Analysis of spatial patterns and farmer perceptions related to land degradation.

Main Results:

• LANDCARE GIS provides an integrated analytical approach for program evaluation.
• The system identifies spatial relationships between NLP activities and land resource status.
• Preliminary assessment includes NLP activity descriptions, targeting effectiveness, farmer practice comparisons, and perception analysis.

Conclusions:

• LANDCARE GIS is an innovative spatial information technology for evaluating Australian government programs.
• The system offers insights into program effectiveness and strategic resource allocation.
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are increasingly adopted by government departments for management and policy evaluation.