Fig. 15.2

Sand drift became a serious problem after native mallee vegetation had been cleared on sand hills and other sandy soils and drought killed the crops and pastures that replaced it. Top left: newspaper article from The Mail (Adelaide), 27 August 1932 showing tree roots exposed by drifting sand near Veitch, SA. Top right: soil loss near Veitch, SA. From: Australia’s peril: Dangers of soil erosion. Chronicle (Adelaide), 21 December 1944. Bottom left: satellite image of typical mallee sandhill country near Veitch, SA, showing an uncleared patch of vegetation in the top left and cleared dunes below (Google Earth, 15 March 2023). Bottom right: mallee roots exposed to a depth of over 2 m, probably in the Euston–Mildura district. From: Australia’s ‘dust-bowl’ problem. The Illustrated London News, 27 January 1945.