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Natural Environment

The Australian arid zone is hot, dry, and dusty; open water surfaces are few and far between, and where they do exist they are usually no more than water-holes or very short-lived flood surfaces. Six minor categories were used to distinguish responses related to the natural environment (see Appendix C and table 4.3). It is therefore interesting to have some idea of the extent to which prompts that were entirely independent of any reference to such attributes elicited comments about the natural environment. As Burnley argues in chapter 5, migration is a selective process, and the impact on the demography of Alice Springs is very important both as a determinant of the future population profile and in terms of attitudes that precondition and predispose individuals and families to particular behaviour routines. Some part of the selection process is related to images (or perceptions) of the climatic and associated attributes of the natural environment, and the "view from the coast" is generally negative, closely associated with some ill-defined sense of "too far away" or isolated and environmentally harsh.

Table 4.2 and figure 4.3 show that 9.8 per cent of all unfavourable responses related to natural environment attributes. Out of all completed statements that related to the natural environment, 74.5 per cent were unfavourable. Of the total of 3,262 responses to all levels and categories, 4.2 per cent were unfavourable comments about the natural environment. Excluding the categories miscellaneous (8), isolation (3), and community facilities (5), the prompts elicited more unfavourable comments about natural environment attributes than about any other major category. Table 4.3 shows which features of the natural environment contribute most to this image, and table 4.4 associates the prompts with their favourable, unfavourable, or indeterminate responses. Table 4.5 ranks favourable and unfavourable responses that accumulated to more than 1.0 per cent of all 732 favourable and 1,394 unfavourable responses.

General references to climate, excluding temperature and not distinguishing seasonal differences, were unfavourable (55 per cent) more often than favourable (40 per cent, see Appendix C), but as a proportion of all favourable comments as opposed to all unfavourable comments, favourable references to climate were a higher proportion (table 4.3, row 2.1). Temperature, on the other hand, was distinguished as a separate minor category following the CSIRO scheme (Brealey and Newton 1978), and 93 per cent of references to temperature were unfavourable (Appendix C). Indeed 3.8 per cent of the 1,394 unfavourable responses distributed over 46 minor categories were related to temperature and always to the heat of summer not the cold of winter (table 4.3, row 2.2). From table 4.4 the reader will note that the prompts (1), (8), and (13) induced the majority of unfavourable references to general climatic factors and to temperature in particular.

Topography (implicitly scenery), flora and fauna, and dust did not account for more than 1.4 per cent of either favourable or unfavourable responses across the entire sample, but it was worth noting that favourable comments about the topography (or scenic resources) of the Alice Springs district outnumbered unfavourable comments in the ratio 5:1. The image of a barren, flat, and dusty outback is hardly supported as only 3 (0.2 per cent) out of 1,394 unfavourable viewpoints were expressed about environmental dust problems.

Minor category 2.6 (water surfaces) requires special note. Associated with references to high temperatures, the absence of an open water surface accounted for 8 per cent of all unfavourable comments and independently of temperature, for 3.2 per cent. As referred to in chapter 2, schemes for the development of an artificial lake north and east of the town site, to occupy 92 ha, have been discussed for some time. There was a public display of the proposed scheme in January and February 1980. Recreational use is the principal objective. On 26 June 1981 the Centralian Advocate newspaper published the article reproduced in figure 4.4.

This newspaper report emphasizes the impact of such a lake on the biotic ecosystem, but another dimension is currently being debated, one that may have greater significance for the future physical and social morphology of contemporary settlement in Australia's arid zone. This impact is related to the Aboriginal peoples and their quest for recognition of their traditional ownership of lands and associated culture traits as discussed briefly in the introduction, relating to the "human rights revolution." Deep and complex sentiments and arguments surround this issue. A report in the Alice Springs Star, 17 June 1981, reproduced in full as figure 4.5, provides an opportunity to present at least some of the information that was directly available to residents of Alice Springs. We will not present any opinion on either report; both are included to provide the reader with some additional insight into the relation between the responses in the surveys in January and February 1980 and 1981 to this aspect of the natural environment and to some of the associated issues that were occupying public media outlets.

Isolation

In chapter I we emphasized the significance of the situation of Alice Springs in relation to the total population of continental Australia and its situation relative to the arid and semi-arid region as used in this report. Apart from the miscellaneous category (8), there were more references to Isolation and Access (Appendices B and C) than to any other category (see table 4.2). The responses support that view of extreme geographical detachment, aggravated by poor road and rail transport systems and surfaces that are unable to withstand the periodic impact of heavy rains. The road north to Darwin and south to the Northern Territory border is sealed, and when inundated, usually reopens rather quickly. However, the route south to Adelaide, beyond the border, while undergoing major engineering improvements including realignment and sealing, is still dangerous to travel because of dust and is damaging to vehicles due to a surface which is barely distinguishable from that of the stony desert floor. Three or four days' driving time for the 1,712 km to Adelaide is normal. There is no rail link north to Darwin; but the federal Government has committed A$400 million to its development and completion over the next decade. High air fares and a limited route network generate much ill feeling and emphasize the sense of isolation through the poor access they provide. Airline strikes also have severe repercussions on the society and economy of a remote town like Alice Springs because the elasticity of transport mode substitution is effectively zero.

Of all unfavourable responses, 24.2 per cent were directed to undefined feelings of isolation, poor communication (including the high cost of telephone calls to the capital cities where most migrants come from), limited television and radio, slow postal services, poor condition of access roads, and high freight costs, etc. Indeed, over 10 per cent of all responses, indeterminate, favourable, and unfavourable, were directed to this factor; with item 3.1, "feeling of isolation" (table 4.3), coming through most frequently. It is reasonable to assume that this feeling of isolation is also a product of specific factors identified in the other minor categories (3.2-3.5).

Table 4.4 shows that prompts (7), (2) (8), and (3) each accounted for over 17 per cent of all unfavourable responses made, the highest being 36.5 per cent for prompt (7), "I wish that it wasn't so. . ." Typical completions to this prompt taken at random were:

- far from a better shopping centre and the ocean.
- expensive to travel.
- isolated.
- costly for transport restrictive in terms of weekend family travelling.
- expensive to get away for a holiday.
- isolated-cheaper air fares, good south road.
- far away from my family.
- far to travel and so expensive.

Isolation, a complex and many-dimensioned concept is an important factor in the appraisal of life quality in Alice Springs. In terms of the simple ranking procedure used in table 4.5, it is the most frequently expressed, unfavourably perceived element. If it is also among the most deeply felt experiences of life in Alice Springs, then further detailed study should be given to it because of its effect on such aspects of behaviour as intended length of residence. A transient population in a persistent space influences the market forces for housing supply and demand, service provision ranging from schools, hospitals, and legal services to provision of water and energy supply, communication systems, and, very importantly, social networks, for instance, recreation clubs and other community associations. The comment was made especially in response to prompt (13), "If only . . . friends stayed long" or "If only . . . children could make some longer [-term] playmates." New policies on passenger, freight, telephone, and postal costs would go a long way towards alleviating such unhappy and stress-inducing circumstances.

Community Facilities

There were six minor categories including one for "other." Unfavourable responses outnumbered favourable responses 10 to 1. Of itself this should not be interpreted as a measure of relative weight (see table 4.2). On the other hand, apart from isolation (3) and the miscellaneous category (8), community facilities elicited more unfavourable comments than did any other category, i.e., 11.5 per cent or 160 statements.

Comments about education facilities and health service provision were not strongly represented, and as both are also key issues of public debate in other Australian states, this is perhaps a positive indicator of a relatively high degree of satisfaction; relative, that is, to other issues and items in the local environment which were expressed in the survey. More detailed discussion is presented by Walker in chapters 6 and 7.

Recreation facilities on the other hand are identified by a large number of unfavourable comments (84). Recreation facility issues were "brought to mind" by the open-ended prompts more frequently than were issues about education, health, retail and commercial, and local public transport facilities. Such insistence on the lack of recreation facilities may indicate a causal factor in the development of the sense of isolation and deprivation which appears as an ecological dominant in the community. There was also a recurring emphasis on the lack of facilities for both passive and active recreation associated with large open water surfaces. Such an artificial water surface has recently been opened in Tennant Creek. In a population with a high proportion of residents migrating from the more humid and coastal areas of Australia, this sense of deprivation in terms of both aesthetic appeal and recreational opportunities is not surprising, but it is significant for the people who live in the Alice Springs district. The A$15 million Alice Springs Country Club Casino, which opened in July 1981, will not go very far towards satisfying the need among local residents for familyoriented recreation facilities; it is designed above all as an interstate and international tourist and convention centre. Whether there will be an effective multiplier effect into the local social activity environment remains to be seen.

In table 4.4 note that prompt (3) "More attention should be paid to . . . " elicited 26.6 per cent of all unfavourable comments, more than any other category, with the majority of them related to recreation. The other facilities that were identified as unfavourable included retail and commercial functions and local public transport. However, the 1980 survey undertaken in January and February preceded the opening of a large supermarket by one of Australia's largest chains, and there were significantly fewer unfavourable comments in the 1981 replication of the study. The Alice Springs supermarket now ranks tenth in Australia in the Coles chain.

Local public transport is non-existent. This is becoming a serious factor in Alice Springs as the town increases in population and in geographical size-especially in relation to movement of young people, parents in single-car families, the increasing proportion of older people, and the Aboriginal population, who at present appear to make heavy and presumably expensive use of the local taxi service (plate 4.1).

Community Dynamics

Seven minor categories composed this group (Appendix B). Apart from the miscellaneous category (8), there were more responses to this group than to any other. Of a total of 547 completed statements, 27.8 per cent were indeterminate as to favourable or unfavourable. Of all responses, 21 per cent (i.e., 547 out of 3,262 minus those 641 not answered at all) were directed to community dynamics (or social relationships) in the town. Out of a total of 732 responses, 271 favourable comments were made (37 per cent), including 128 favourable statements that could not be unambiguously classified in any of the other eight major categories. Favourable comments outnumbered Unfavourable comments 22 to 1, but we must look to the minor categories (table 4.3 and Appendix C) for an understanding of the variable composition of these responses and once again to table 4.4 for the prompts that elicited the most comments.

Two items stand out. The first is alcohol and gambling (6.1) and the second, social relationships (6.2) (see also Appendix C).

Comments on attitudes to consumption of alcohol, the need to consume it and the quantity consumed, time spent in hotels, and the behaviour of drunks, as well as attention (formal and informal) to gambling facilities, all fell in this category. There were no favourable comments, and 4.8 per cent of all unfavourable comments related to alcohol and gambling. Many of the 152 indeterminate comments in this category included unfavourable comments about alcohol and gambling, but they were associated with favourable comments about other aspects of daily life in Alice Springs. This interrelationship of two or more categories in a single response accounted for the high level of indeterminancy. Prompt (4), table 4.4, "There is too much emphasis on . . ." elicited the majority of unfavourable comments about alcohol and gambling, but prompts (2), (6), (9), and (13) also produced such comment. Some examples follow from prompt (4):

- drinkingalmost every general social activity is "helped along" by "grog"-to the detriment of genuine social interaction.
- drink. alcohol.
- drinking and Aboriginal problems
- There is too much emphasis on grog and natives.

Whether Alice Springs does have a more severe problem than other Australian settlements in relation to alcohol and associated behaviour is hard to substantiate, but some evidence that it is relatively widespread is presented by Burnley in chapter 9. That there is concern within the community, expressed especially by women, is beyond dispute. Reference to gambling was more frequent in the 1981 survey, and this can possibly be associated with what was then the impending opening of the casino and the ensuing Territorywide debate on the limitation of poker machine facilities to the casino operators in Darwin and Alice Springs.

Sixty-four poker machines had been approved for operation in the Northern Territory, 36 in Alice Springs, and 26 in Darwin. The resident population of Darwin is three and a half times that of Alice Srings. The mayor of Alice Springs forecast that "widespread bankruptcy would follow in the wake of casino poker machines" (The A/ice Springs Star, 10 June 1981). The A$15 million country club and casino development is a significant capital investment towards growth of the tourist industry in Alice Springs. But its impact on the environment of the settlement's human ecology should receive very careful attention. Analogies to Las Vegas in the American arid zone, however, would be premature at this stage, especially in terms of the scale of impact. Dorinda Talbot wrote an article in the Centralian Advocate, 26 June 1981, aptly titled "The Fun (?) City of the Centre." However, a hedonopolis does not seem to be what residents want. But we know of no evidence that the Northern Territory Tourist Commission, the Territory Government, or the casino and hotel enterpreneurs are going to permit such loose control of free enterprise forces that there will be cause for concern.

Item 6.2 (table 4.4) dominates the community dynamics category. Of all favourable responses 29.8 per cent were made about interpersonal and group social relations. What causes the favourable attitudes on social relations is an important factor requiring careful and immediate further study because it is a positive and clearly desirable condition. Is it likely, for instance, that relatively small settlement size contributes to the expression of these sentiments? Table 4.4, prompt (1) "I think that the greatest difference between living here and living in a capital city is . . ." produced 48.5 per cent of all responses as favour able to community dynamics. Typical comments (selected at random) prompted by the incomplete statement were:

- that there is no stress.
- the easy going and friendly way of live.
- the easy, care-free way of life.
- that Alice is (almost) pollution free with a casual way of life and friends which can be relied on.
- That it is easier to become part of the nucleus of the people.
- everyone is so friendly and the hospitality is wonderful.
- more relaxing-not being in a rat race, quiet surroundings
- that it is easy to meet people here that one will meet again.
- the smaller distance between home and shopping or work, etc.
- no rat race, easy travel to and from work, minimum atmospheric pollution.

When indeterminate comments were made about aspects of community dynamics, they often related to work opportunities as the principal reason for coming to Alice Springs, usually without further comment. Unfavourable comments related to the difficulty of maintaining friendships which had been easily made. People so often moved away after only a short stay. This was especially so for people associated with government employment such as teachers. High turnover rates in formal and informal groups (e.g., sports clubs and neighbourhood friendships) are a consequence; new membership of recreational clubs is enthusiastically canvassed. Some idea of the range of opportunities to meet with other residents in special interest groups, to participate in activities for the young, and to follow church or religious-group-related activities and those associated with service clubs which have an Australia- wide affiliation can be demonstrated by reference to figure 4.6, composed of excerpts from the fortnightly free publication, This Fortnight in Alice, issued by the Alice Springs Regional Tourist Association.

Economic Factors

Although the unfavourable responses outnumbered the favourable responses by over 5 to 1 (table 4.2), the absolute number of comments obtained from the prompts (table 4.4) was surprisingly small-only 87 out of 3,262 (including 641 not answered). Only unfavourable references to cost of living (7.1) reached double figures (4.6 per cent) and were usually prompted by statements (1), (2), and (10). Precisely which aspects of living in Alice Springs are considered costly has not been specifically determined in this study. Wage levels (7.3) seemed to be viewed favourably; at least absence of unfavourable comments implies this. Few comments were made about rent and rate levels or about land prices. This does not mean that they are not viewed as high, but relative to other items they have rather little representation. For people who are not intending to stay more than three years or so this is perhaps not so surprising.

Miscellaneous

This category is different because the minor categories within it are not a single dimension of interest. We will consider 8.1 through 8.7 separately in sequence.

8.1 Challenge Most of the responses that were allocated to this category came from prompt (ii) "I came here because . . .". Favourable but usually ill-defined statements such as "I came here because I wanted to get away from the routine and dull city environment" were rather typical. Specific references to the excitement and challenge of life in Australia's continental centre were also frequent.

8.2 Length of stay Here the distinction between favourable and unfavourable comments was quite easily determined. The majority of responses either implied or stated quite explicitly pleasure to be leaving soon. Although there were only 16 such statements, they exceeded those which stated an intention to stay.

8.3 Aboriginal issues There were no prompts at all to Aboriginal issues per se but a total of 217 responses made explicit reference to this facet of life in Alice Springs. Furthermore, one-third of the responses that could not be identified as belonging to any one of the major categories outlined above included reference to Aboriginal issues, but because other statements were interwoven it was not possible to make a unique allocation.

Reference to Appendix C.3 will show that 46.1 per cent of all comments made about Aboriginal issues were not unfavourable, and indeed it is important to stress that when unfavourable comments were made, it did not necessarily mean unfavourable towards Aboriginal people. There were, however, nearly twice as many unfavourable comments about Aboriginal issues as there were favourable comments (i.e., 8.4 per cent of 1,394 and 4.4 per cent of 732, see table 4.3). Table 4.4 relates the responses to the prompts, but for this major category, as for others within the major category miscellaneous, it is not possible to identify which prompts induced responses specifically about Aboriginal issues. Prompt (2) "Living here would be . . . if it weren't for . . ." and prompt (4) "There is too much emphasis on . . ." were responsible for the majority of unfavourable comments, and it seems reasonable to assume that they are distributed over minor categories 8.1 to 8.4 inclusive because the remaining categories 8.5 to 8.7 had rather explicit prompts associated with them, such as (11) "I came here because . . ." or (12) "The tourist industry . . ." or (14) "If Alice were twice the size . . .".

Some of the responses in category 8.3 from a total of 217 are illustrated below. The reader should treat them as illustrative of the nature of the data source.

(There is too much emphasis on) aboriginal legal rights.

(There is too much emphasis on) relationships between the Aboriginal population and the whites. whites. seem to resent the special efforts being made to bring blacks up to a more acceptable standard of living.

( Living here would be) more attractive (if it weren't for) the Aborigines.

(Living here would be) far improved (if it weren't for) the natives.

( Living here would be) better (if it weren't for) the blacks

(There is too much emphasis on) racism.

(Living here would be) excellent (if it weren't for) drunken Aborigines.

(The average age of these seven people was 52, much greater than the sample average.)

No record was kept of the racial attributes of respondents in either the initial or the replicate samples. What the data do indicate is a substantial concern on the part of Alice Springs residents about racial issues. There is a demonstrated sensitivity to the existence of racial attitudes and to questions that require answers and socio-political attention. To what extent concern about the racial environment will determine future migration patterns, permanence of residence, or day today life-styles in the future has not been assessed here. It may, however, prove to be an ecological factor of some consequence.

The race issue factor is high on our simple ranking of items that evoked unfavourable comment (table 4.5). In the next section of this chapter we will show that this and other categories of opinion appear to be related to demographic and social characteristics of the population. The correlation among these indicators of attitude, demography, and social behaviours is worthy of further study, especially by agencies and departments of Federal and Territory Government responsible for Aboriginal affairs.

8.4 Travel and

8.5 Local residence These minor categories had very low response rates, and the reader can interpret these by reference to Appendices B and C. No further discussion will be presented here.

8.6 Tourism This is a crucial component in the social, economic, and political milieu of Alice Springs. An explicit prompt (12), "The tourist industry . . ." accounted for 194 of the 220 responses related to this category. The additional 26 come from a range of other prompts such as (4) "(There is too much emphasis) on tourism" and (13) "(If only) the tourist industry was given more support because it is the major industry that Alice Springs depends upon. "

Reference to Appendix C (8.6) will show that favourable comments exceeded unfavourable comments in the ratio 1.36 to 1, but 20.5 per cent of responses which were clearly associated with tourism were indeterminate as either favourable or unfavourable. However, this relatively large proportion draws attention to a community consciousness of the significance of tourism as an ecological factor. There was a higher proportion of favourable comments about tourism (table 4.5) than about any other item apart from social relations. However, the high proportion of unfavourable comments (also shown in table 4.5), such that tourism ranked sixth among items about which unfavourable comments were made, is also indicative of a need for some self-examination by the industry, in both the government and the private operator sector.

Future town size The prompt (14) "If Alice were twice the size . . ." accounts for 185 of the 202 responses allotted to this category. These results present a clear picture of the resident image of Alice Springs, one which is likely to be held by most residents. Further growth to about 36,000 people would not be well received. In fact, almost without exception, the prompt (14) was completed by the comment "I would leave." Of all comments about the future size of Alice Springs (Appendix C, 8.7), 73.3 per cent were unfavourable. The implications for tourism, housing, commercial and industrial development, and town and regional planning demand very careful attention. There are aspects of the migration selection process referred to in the previous and following chapters that relate directly to existing and past town size. The small country town atmosphere and the "easy-going way of life" are also positive, attractive factors contributing to a particular sociodemographic, suburban profile.

Rapid growth in area and in absolute numbers would impose strains on housing, education, and health and recreation facilities and also upon the capacity of the community to cope with special environmental characteristics and demands of the arid natural environment and the impact of remoteness and isolation. The latter factor absolutely dominates the rating of unfavourable items. Rapid population increase which is not countered by strategies to reduce the sense of isolation and its consequent impact on the social environment would possibly aggravate the high rates of transiency and associated dysfunctions in the social system.

Table 4.6 compares results from the 1980 survey with those obtained from the total sample. Although values of the 1980 survey are pooled with the total survey results, the reliability seems to be rather high, with only very small differences appearing between the figures. The final column shows the ratio of 1980 responses (in major categories) to the total. The 1980 sample size was 74 per cent of the final sample used in this report, and the reader will note that for each category the ratios are very similar. The most marked difference relates to economic factors, and here the 1980 proportion (83 per cent) of unfavourable comments is much higher. One interpretation is that in 1981 fewer unfavourable comments related to food prices and the variability of retail goods because of the opening in March 1980 (after the survey) of a major new supermarket. This was a major expansion in the commercial capacity of Alice Springs, and it appears to have been reflected in the 1981 response pattern. Indeed, after one year of operation this large store was ranked tenth among all the stores operated by this chain in Australia.

TABLE 4.6. Comparison of 1980 Responses and Combined 1980 and 1981 Responses for Unfavourable Comments in Major Categories (1980 sample = 172, total in 1980 and 1981 = 233)

Note: The 1980 sample was 74 per cent of the total sample following the replicate field survey in 1981. The percentage shown in the final column of the table shows the ratio of unfavourable responses for each category between 1980 and the total.

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