Get reliable rangeland science

Over the last quarter of a century a small part of the northern Australian rangelands has been converted to cropping for fodder, fibre and food production. The expansion of cropping onto rangelands has been slow and still is small in percentage terms (0.04%) when compared to the area of northern Australia (300 million hectares). Much of the cropping area is being used to grow fodder crops, however, cotton, grain sorghum, table grapes, citrus, watermelons, sweet corn, potatoes and vegetables are also being grown. State and Territory governments are encouraging development in cropping and horticulture on rangelands by undertaking research into water and soil resources and funding feasibility studies for development of new regional infrastructure such as cotto n gins and water supplies. This paper analyses the changes that are happening, specifically in rangelands, and is based on a broader study that has assessed all cropping, horticulture and plantation forestry across northern Australia in 1999 and 2023 using Sentinel and Landsat imagery as well as other publicly available information. Irrigated cropping, horticulture and sandalwood plantations on northern Australian rangelands occupied 5,393 Ha in 1999 expanding to 17,481 Ha in 2023, a three-fold increase over 24 years, a net annual increase of 504 Ha or an annual compounded growth of 5%. Rainfed cropping and forestry occupied 11,878 Ha in 1999 expanding to 94,963 Ha in 2023, an eight-fold increase over 24 years, a net annual increase of 3462 Ha or an annual compounded growth of 9%.