INFFER (Investment Framework for Environmental Resources) was developed to helpinvestors of public funds to improve the delivery of outcomes from environmental programs.It assists environmental managers to design projects, to select delivery mechanisms, and torank competing projects on the basis...

Oil mallees are one of the preferred options to combat dryland salinity in the Western Australian wheatbelt, but their economics are uncertain. We compare three scenarios: on-farm mallee oil production, industrial oil and wood-based electricity production, and a combined oil, electricity and...

New information about the hydrogeology of Australia’s agricultural regions has profound implications for the economics of salinity management and the design of policy. This paper reviews a broad range of information relevant to the salinity problem in order to critically evaluate existing and...

Natural resource management organisations in Australia routinely establish resource condition targets in their regional plans/catchment strategies. We reviewed biodiversity, water and community resource condition targets set by Catchment Management Authorities (CMAs) in Victoria and New South...

Perceptions of a salinity ‘crisis’ in Australia around 2000 resulted in the establishment of a major national program that aimed to prevent, stabilize, and reverse trends in salinity. The National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality allocated A$1.4 billion of public funds to 1700...

Lifestyle landowners value land for its amenities and ecological characteristics and could play an important role in managing and conserving native vegetation in multifunctional rural landscapes. We quantify values of ecosystem services captured by owners of rural lifestyle properties in...

Appropriate management and policy responses for dryland salinity vary depending on biophysical and socio-economic conditions, and on the resources in question (water resources, biodiversity, infrastructure, agricultural land, salt-affected land). In this paper we present a framework for...

Although there have been numerous studies on the economics of weed control, relatively few of these studies have focused on natural ecosystems. The aims of this papers are: A) to identify the combination of control options that is optimal for blackberry (Rubus anglocandicans) in Australian...

The replanting of trees and other high water use perennial plant options has been the major focus of dryland salinity management in recent times. Hydrologists have indicated that unless these options are taken up on a very large scale, little can be done to control ongoing land salinisation in...

Requirements that environmental programs must meet in order to deliver value for money are identified, illustrated and discussed. It is argued that environmental managers and policy makers should carefully consider the extent to which potential policies and investments deliver environmental...