Relative acceptance of traditional and non-traditional rural land uses: Views of residents in two regions, southern Australia

Abstract

This paper reports research undertaken to examine the relative public acceptance of rural land uses in two regions of southern Australia. Participants from Tasmania and southwest Western Australia completed a questionnaire about their views on the acceptability of ten traditional and nontraditional land uses in rural areas (n= 2167). Participants made clear evaluative distinctions between traditional agricultural land uses (cropping, grazing, horticulture, dairy), non-traditional 'green' land uses (wind farms and revegetation), plantations and rural residential development. Analysis of distribution of views suggested strong positive consensus regarding traditional agricultural and nontraditi..