AmataAmataThe last example of Aboriginal landuse is from a much more remote part of the continent, in an area of inland Australia reserved for the exclusive use of Aboriginal Australians. The area is part of the Pitjantjatjara Lands of Amata in the north - west corner of South Australia. This scene is part of a mosaic of two Landsat images acquired on January 1973 and on December 1988. The area is very arid. The landcover is a sparse covering of spinifex over an extensive dunefield. The two distinguishing features that will help you locate the area on maps are Mount Poondinna in the north and the Serpentine Lakes in the south. The lands in the northern part of the image are exclusively reserved for use by Aboriginal people and have been for several decades. The land in the south of the image is part of the (Unnamed) Conservation Park, but is occasionally used by Aboriginal people.
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The most obvious change detectable over the 14 year time span is that due to fires. These fires may have been started by lightning or by humans, I cannot interpret which in this image. In this arid but very beautiful part of Australia, we cannot detect any significant landcover change that we can attribute to landuse. For the reasons of landcover and landuse type, or just the very low intensity of human use, we have found one area of Australia that has changed very little.
