Progress on smoking control in Western Australia.

In 1990, 20 years of campaigning by the Western Australian branch of the Australian Council on Smoking and Health succeeded in getting tobacco advertising banned in Western Australia and a fund set up to replace the sponsorship of sport by tobacco companies. The council coordinated the activities of the mainly professional medical organisations that formed its members, ensuring that messages about the dangers of tobacco were consistently presented from different angles. The campaigners also ensured that medical data were reworked for presentation to decision makers and public, invaded the corporate world, and minimised opposition by enlisting the support of sportspeople opposed to tobacco sponsorship. The council hopes now that elimination of advertising will reduce the prevalence of smoking.     

Prevalence of asthma in adults in Busselton,Western Australia.

OBJECTIVE--To estimate whether the prevalence of asthma in adults increased over a nine year interval. DESIGN--Serial cross sectional studies of the population with a protocol that included both subjective and objective measurements. SETTING--Busselton, Western Australia. SUBJECTS--A random sample of 553 subjects aged 18-55 years in 1981, and of 1028 subjects aged 18-55 years in 1990. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Respiratory symptoms measured by self administered questionnaire, bronchial responsiveness measured by bronchial challenge with histamine, and allergy measured by skin prick tests. RESULTS--Symptoms with increased prevalence were those with significant association with allergy in this population. Recent wheeze increased from 17.5% to 28.8% (p < 0.001) and diagnosed asthma increased from 9.0% to 16.3% (p < 0.001). The increase was greatest in subjects less than 30 years old. The prevalence of shortness of breath coming on at rest and of hay fever also increased significantly, but the prevalence of shortness of breath on exertion, chronic cough, bronchial hyperresponsiveness, current asthma (defined as recent wheeze plus bronchial hyperresponsiveness), and allergy did not increase. The severity of bronchial responsiveness did not change significantly in any symptom group. CONCLUSIONS--Young adults showed a significant increase in reporting of symptoms related to allergy but not in the prevalence of current asthma. The increase in symptoms may be due to increased awareness of asthma in this community, to changed treatment patterns, or to increased exposures to allergens.     

Seed germination ecology in southwestern Western Australia

Germination responses of species from the native plant communities of southwestern Western Australia can be related to syndromes of life history, fire response, and seed storage, and also to factors related to environmental stress. The Mediterranean-type climate of the region with periodic drought and recurrent fires affects the production of viable seeds in plants of limited stature and rooting depth. Fire response ephemerals and species cued to flower by fire tend to produce viable, readily germinable seeds, but there are instances where seed production is aborted in these predominantly herbaceous life forms. Clonal, rhizomatous species often produce mainly inviable seeds. Production of viable seeds in woody species of these highly diverse communities may also be restricted by limitations to cross pollination. Obligate post-fire seeding species tend to produce a greater proportion of viable seeds than species which are capable of resprouting following fire. Serotinous species, whether post-fire re-seeders or post-fire resprouting species, produce mainly viable seeds, which germinate readily once freed from protective fruits. Species of the legume families and a few others of the soil seed bank produce innately dormant seeds which can be germinated following heat shock treatments which simulate the effects of fire. Heat shock in these species appears mainly as a mechanism to crack the hard seed coats, but the effect of heat to denature seed coat inhibitors has not been eliminated. Western Australian species do not seem to break dormancy when exposed to leachates from burned wood as has been observed in comparable habitats in California and South Africa, but further research is advised. Germination in many native southwestern Australian species is cued by temperatures that correspond to the winter rainfall period. There are also indications that an after-ripening period of warm, dry storage increases percentage of germinable seeds. Stimulation of germination by hormones is almost unresearched in Western Australia, but germination percentages have been increased in a small number of species of horticultural potential. Stimulation of germination by soil nutrient concentrations is almost unresearched in Western Australia, except for the inhibitory effect of excess sodium chloride levels inEucalyptus andMelaleuca. These species only germinate when osmotic effects are reduced to lower levels as would occur when winter rains dilute soil salts. Application of research on seed germination has already enhanced the establishment of seedlings in the restoration of mine sites and is becoming important in aspects of the breeding and selection of native plants for the cut flower, bedding plant and essential oil industries.     

A nickel-accumulating plant from Western Australia

Summary A small shrub Hybanthus floribundus (Lindl.) F. Muell. Violaceae growing in Western Australia accumulates nickel and cobalt to a very high degree. Values of up to 23% nickel in leaf ash may represent the highest relative accumulation of a metal on record. The high accumulation of nickel poses interesting problems in plant physiology and plant biochemistry.     

Fungal infections of the nails in Western Australia

Between 1963 and 1972, 986 fungi were isolated from the nails of patients in Western Australia. Three clinical types of infections in both finger and toe nails were studied. All 3 types occurred more commonly in adults over the age of 20. Multiple infections were relatively frequent. Two hundred and fourteen of the nail infections were caused by dermatophyte fungi.Trichophyton rubrum was the predominant aetiologic agent isolated from both finger and toe nails,T. mentagrophytes and other dermatophytes were involved to a lesser degree. Paronychia of the finger nails was common and mainly caused byC. albicans. Aspergillus species were the most frequent fungi grown from superficial white onychomycosis.     

Planning for the recovery of Lake Toolibin,Western Australia

Lake Toolibin, an intermittently flooded freshwater wetland in the southwest of Western Australia, is threatened by salinization due to extensive clearing within its catchment. The lake is a Wetland of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention because of the extensive stands of trees on the lake bed and its significance as a waterbird breeding site. Past research and monitoring have identified the causes of wetland vegetation and water quality decline and this information has been used to design a Recovery Plan for the lake. The plan is currently in the early stages of implementation and includes both short-term engineering measures to reduce salinity within the lake and long-term rehabilitation measures within the catchment. Community involvement in the recovery process is an integral part of the plan and ensures that recovery of the lake remains as the focus for ongoing catchment rehabilitation.     

Host specificity and biology ofHeteropsylla spinulosa [Hom.: Psyllidae] introduced into Australia and Western Samoa for the biological control ofMimosa invisa

The biology and host specificity of the psyllidHeteropsylla spinulosa Muddiman, Hodkinson & Hollis collected fromMimosa invisa Von Martius, was studied in Brazil and in Australia. Oviposition was recorded on 19 of 100 plant species tested but nymphs died without feeding, except onM. invisa. H. spinulosa was shown to be specific toM. invisa and was subsequently released and established in Australia and Western Samoa.      

Eubrachythoracid arthrodires from Gogo, Western Australia

Two monotypic genera of coccosteoid eubrachythoracid arthrodires are described from the Upper Devonian Gogo Formation of Western Australia as Compagopiscis gen. nov. and Gogopiscis gen. nov. They are most closely related to Torosteus Gardiner & Miles, also from the Gogo Formation, and all three are placed in the family Plourdosteidae Vezina, 1990; Compagopiscis and Gogopiscis are jointly the sister-group of Torosteus.     

Reintegrating Coastal Development and Public Health in Western Australia

This article presents three case studies that take a socio-ecological perspective to highlight an interconnectedness between the environment, human participation and organization, and public health, in Western Australian marine, coastal, and near-coastal places. We examine the degree to which coastal zone planning and management interact with public health practitioner, and the consequences of this interaction for biophysical surroundings and human health. The case studies demonstrate the limited roles the public health sector has played, and the indispensable expanded role it might play, in what is traditionally seen as the domain of natural resource management. A socio-ecological analysis highlighted the value of decision-making processes for coastal developments that emphasize dialogue, place, public health issues, resource distribution, as well as ecology. These adaptive capabilities offer scope for understanding the consequences of coastal planning and management actions on both the biophysical condition of the environment and human health, break the cycles of reaction, and provide an alternative framework for regulating the developmental expansion of the Western Australian coastline.David Galloway is a sustainability designer and has undertaken work for some of the pastoralists on the Ningaloo coast. The analysis of the third case study is based, in part, on information gained through these consultancies.