Michael Terry

Soil Erosion in Australia

NEW SOUTH WALES, the birthplace of Australian settlement and agri? culture, suffers from widespread soil erosion both in the farming areas and in the western grazing areas. To control this, the Soil Conservation Service (Director, Mr. E. E. Clayton) was established early in 1938, and has now begun work throughout the State. Observations have been made in the catchment areas of the Hume reservoir (Murray river), the Burrenjuck dam (Murrumbidgee), Wyangala dam (Lachlan), the Snowy river catchment, the Keepit catchment (near Tamworth), and the Warragamba catchment (be? tween Goulburn and Wallerawang) which encloses an additional water supply for Sydney. Run-off has been surveyed as in the United States. Cooperation is being established with the group farms where poor tillage is increasing the silting up of State water supplies. And throughout a close liaison is maintained with Dr. Hugh H. Bennett, of the United States Soil Conservation Service.