3.1.3 Key Events Australian History Flashcards
Gold rush- Increasing population
The gold rush, massive.
Population of Victoria doubled 1851 (first discovery) to 1858.
Increasing population, huge strain on resources
The natural environment always suffer
PEOPLE = DESTRUCTION
•Deforestation/land clearing – Timber needed quickly for housing, fuel, tools, mine shafts and agriculture.
•Redirection of water – Water is needed for panning, cradling, cooking, washing and drinking.
•Sedimentation – When miners throw dirty water into rivers/creeks they become cloudy and polluted.
•Erosion – Whenever trees are chopped down, erosion inevitably follows.
•Habitat loss – Nothing really lived on the goldfields, save for rats, flies, dogs (pets) and horses.
•Infrastructure – People require housing, sewage, shops, roads, paddocks for livestock, rubbish dumps and public spaces. All of these (especially in the early days of settlement) was built on existing natural environments
•Introduced species – people bring new species to ‘improve’ their lives and in the settlers case to survive.
•Foxes & rabbits were introduced so wealthy land owners could continue the pastime of hunting. These have caused massive damage.
•Rabbits were first introduced at Colac for ‘sport’ and rapidly spread across the entire nation.
Management strategies
- Are actions/strategies put in place by land managers to ensure sustainable development and growth.
- Gold rush – The ‘diggers’ were not subjected to any laws or restrictions when came searching gold.
- Pay for your license (30 shillings) be on crown (government) land and you were in business.
- Population growth – By 1858 147,000 people in Victoria’s gold fields searching gold.
- Natural life cycles around the diggings were obliterated and the advent of the gold rush caused more damage than just about any other activity in Australia’s history.
Diggers relationships
-wrong to think all gold miners/ first settlers deliberately destroyed nature for fun.
Factors:
•Education – no research/ environmental scientists to study natural world, nobody knew any problems.
•Religion – European settler’s believed that world was made by god for mankind, any major problems fixed by God.
•Government policy – Very important need to drive new economy, make money. Government was quite happy to sacrifice environment to keep people in work (the same as in the Amazon today).
+Abundance of land – Australia is big place (fifth largest country in area on the planet.) new settlers had come from U.K which, no bigger than Victoria, were under misconception that the land never ended.
•Mastery – Settlers felt they were improving land by introducing new species. Victoria actually had an ‘Acclimatisation Society’ to introduce new species. For example Baron Von Mueller (see Mt Baw Baw) introduced blackberries.
•Survival – If didn’t farm sheep, crops or redirect water for dams in new colony, you died, so in many cases (as it still is round the world today) controlled nature or you died
Industrialisation
Pre WW1, Australia was a farming nation. Wool in particular was a massive export the phrase ‘Australia rode on the sheep’s back’ is still relevant today.
•Basically Australia supplied the U.K with wool and produce such as grain and they supplied us with manufactured goods from factories as we didn’t have many factories.
+Before the great war, new machinery (because of the industrial revolution), new farming techniques and improved shipping and transport made farming very profitable. However things were soon to change forever
+After WW1, farmers did fairly well supplying food to Europe, however much of Europe had been destroyed and due to shortages many things such as chemicals, paints, musical instruments and clothing began to be manufactured in OZ.
•Factory jobs were considered to be quite decent as they were regular hours, well paying and fairly stable (i.e the weather didn’t affect them or your take home pay)
Unions managed to decrease working hours, 8 hour day started to be introduced and the standard of living increased. What affect do you believe this had upon recreation?
•# Urbanisation of Victoria (and the peninsula)
•# Coastal development for tourism (peninsula)
•# Some small efforts at conservation
Enviro as resource- profit
Enviro in danger- protect
Irrigation used foster intro crops, cotton and rice
Conservation through national parks began
Recreation developed, less work time, bushwalking and skiing
Forestry, mine, graze, agriculture grew
Erosion, destruction, loss habitat
Salinity
Pollutioneee rivers waterways
Excessive use water
Change water flow from irrigation
Positive effect of first national park
Mornington
- A deep port meant that Morno was a popular tourist destination. Kirks and The Royal hotel were developed to accommodate tourists.
- Many arrived for day trips by ‘steamers’ which were popular at the time.
Nation building
It was during this time that much ‘nation building’ occurred. The best example of this is the construction (by many returned diggers) of the great ocean road.
Enviro seen as canvas on which to paint a nation
Be,if that humans can control nature
Nation building takes place after federation-large-scale developments
Conservation through national parks continued
Post war projects and infrastructure projects included building of GOR (WW1) and Snowy mountain hydro scheme (WW2)
Major dams built
Cities continued to grow with most of the population residing gin major centres
Excessive farming created dust bowls in some parts of southern Australia
Dry land soil became a major problem
Water, soil and air pollution continued to grow, especially around cities
Conservation movement grew and protected areas increased
Introduced species began to threaten biodiversity and agriculture
The Great Ocean road
Part of nation building was the Great Ocean road. It was built by 3,000 returned soldiers from 1919 – 1932. It is 243 km’s long and runs between Torquay and Warnambool.
It was initially built as a memorial but also had the purpose of connecting isolated communities to tourism (such as Lorne) and giving a leg up to the timber industry.
All construction occurred by hand (such as pick and shovels) and explosives were frequently used.
Mornington Peninsula
The Mornington life saving club was founded in 1914. It’s central purpose was to keep the increasing number of holiday makers safe whilst swimming at Mills beach.
Pt Leo SLSC formed in 1963.
Mt Martha SLSC was formed in 1986 as the region developed.
Impacts:
Life saving clubs, whilst a great community service, attract more people (= destruction) and the fact they are constructed on the foreshore area means they have a significant impact.
Post WW2 boom
In the years following WW2 Australia experienced an economic ‘boom’ like never before. Europe had been annihilated as a result of the war and this left a void that Australia filled. For the first time people’s perceptions (as a whole) began to change and the land was viewed as a valuable source of recreation.
Changing perceptions
In the years following WW2 Australia experienced an economic ‘boom’ like never before. Europe had been annihilated as a result of the war and this left a void that Australia filled. For the first time people’s perceptions (as a whole) began to change and the land was viewed as a valuable source of recreation.
Factors increased population
Shorter working hours. The eight hour working day and the five day working week were new. As a result people had more leisure time to recreate as opposed to 6 day 12 hour a day week and church on Sundays.
Increased participation
The motor car- The car opened up much of Australia as it was quick, convenient and above all, comparatively fast. Following ww2, most families for the first time ever, purchased a car and day trips became hugely popular.
Increased recreation
Improved roads – Not only were cars common, but obviously roads improved access to many areas such as the Mornington Peninsula. This opened up many natural environments (such as Arapiles) for the first time.
Increased disposable income – Disposable income is the money you have left over after expenses (such as food, rent, grog) and people had a lot more as wages were very high due to a labour shortage.
Increase population – The arrival of so many immigrants after ww2, led to an economic boom as all of these people need to be fed, clothed etc. More people also means more people travelling to natural environments to try new activities, it’s basically the law of averages
How these influences changed the ways in which humans related to a specific OE
Industrialisation- industrialisation saw extensive industrial processes take place, as the environment was seen as a resource that could be harnessed and used in the process of timber harvesting. This encouraged perceptions of the environment being subservient to humans. Interactions such as logging and land clearing occurred in the Otways and these materials were used to generate profits. Impacts such as pollution from industrial smog, general waste and chemicals leechin into the waterways of the Otways would have occurred and reduced the health of the environment.
Nation building was a period where Australia was viewed as a canvas on which to build and establish a nation. This encouraged perceptions that the environment was ours and we had to take care of the raw materials of the Otways in order to build and develop a nation. The creation of the Great Ocean Road, Otway Lighthouse, Otway National Park and the roads and infrastructure damaged some parts of the environment. But it also resulted in greater access to, and further protection of, significant parts of the Otways.
Industrialisation
Nation building
- Phillip island, Wilsons prom
Pos- good work hrs
Increase recreation
Neg-
-GOR, Peninsula link
Pos-
Neg-
