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maltatoday, SUNDAY, 9 APRIL 2017 40 Travel Exploring aboriginal land in Arnhem Land, Northern Australia MARC CASOLANI LITERALLY known as 'God's country' to most bush folk, this is definitely the most magical land that I have seen after two years of exploring in Australia. I've gone through each and every state and I've only got one left to roam – Western Australia – so I've covered a fair amount of ground. Probably one of the harder places to get to in Aus- tralia; but oh my, even the effort it takes you to get to the jewels of Arnhem Land, is a beautiful pain in the backside. Once you reach most of the highly recommended sites in Arnhem Land, keeping your jaw from hitting the ground will be as hard as it gets. It's hard to imagine so many differ- ent types of beautiful geological features within such close proximity to one another. I guess this is what makes this last remain- ing Aboriginal-ruled territory so special. Located in the northernmost region in the Northern Territory of Australia, Arn- hem Land is the last frontier when it comes to the few remaining strong roots of the Aboriginal people. Their land here spans around 97,000Km² and is mainly connected through unpaved roads or 4WD tracks. The only tarmacked roads are near key towns or within certain communities. Crazily enough with the vast land that surrounds this fertile land only around 17,000 people inhabit it. 5% of them would be white Aus- tralians who mine the land that is leased out to the mining companies from the Abo- riginal elders. Driving through this land gives you a sense of well-being. Now I've said this be- fore for only a handful of places but this will probably be the first time I have said it for a place I think is rather hostile to live in if you do not connect to it. By that I mean that you need to become accustomed to the na- ture around you and tune into the fruit that this land bares. Most of us are blind to all this, myself included but if you get a lucky break and live with the locals here, you might just get a chance to see what I mean. Amongst all this beauty of nature that you see around you, from the lush green bush to the fresh streams and rivers that flow from a coast that is glowing red and white, there is danger at every corner with poisonous plants, snakes, crocodiles in the rivers and jellyfish in the sea. Buffalos that were intro- duced to this land 100 years ago and have now thrived in their surroundings pose a danger to the one that is unawares. If you get past the wild animals, the weather is an- other force to be reckoned with. Lighten- ing can strike in the wet season at any time The large star of Bethlehem (M: ħalib it-tajr kbir) is a relatively tall plant, presently starting to flower in steppe areas and abandoned fields. It is unmistakable, with its showy bunch of flowers, each with six milky-white petals cupping a glossy black beady middle part. Growing as it often does in neglected areas that are not always particularly rich in flora, it is always a pleasant surprise to find a luxuriant swathe of this tall elegant plant, and the urge to smell its fragrance is irresistible. Do go ahead and get a whiff of that aroma that intoxicates so many insects, but please resist the temptation to pick a bunch to take home. If we want the large star of bethlehem in our home, let's grow some in our garden - a win-win solution. Our flora is beset with enough threats as it is, what with trampling, off- roading, herbicides, ground flattening for infernal trapping sites and the accelerated concreting of our countryside. How about we leave something for tomorrow's generation, why don't we! Visit Friends of the Earth's website for more information about our work, as well as for information about how to join us. You can also support us by sending us a donation - www.foemalta.org/donate Text Victor Falzon Photo Desirée Falzon Cocoa is not only a driver of land- use change; it is also affected by land-use change. In both cases harmful effects for the environment can be observed – and in both cases the tenuous economic situation of the farmers is the driver of change. In poorly managed cocoa plantations, soil degradation can lead to poor soils and as a consequence to lower productivity. This, and the fact that the characteristic of tropical soils often makes it easier to establish a new plantation than to re-plant an old one, drives cocoa farmers to cut down forests to create new plantations. The extent of the problem may vary from country to country, depending on the access to other arable land, the way land rights are handled and nature protection is enforced. Another threat to forests comes from the use of fire wood for drying ovens. Whereas in some countries like Ghana beans are dried by the sun, in areas with higher precipitation they are commonly dried in wood fired drying houses. So called solar ovens, which are simple devices similar to a greenhouse, would offer a cheap and sustainable solution in those areas. Cocoa is a rather diverse and low impact form of agriculture when practiced in low input agro-forestry systems. Therefore, losing cocoa plantations to more intensive forms of land use poses a threat to biodiversity and to a sound and resilient agro- environmental system. Cocoa plantations might be replaced by other cash crops like palm oil or, even worse, by mining activities. This is increasingly happening in Ghana in the context of small-scale gold mining activities and has also caused severe water pollution problems. Due to their economic situation, cocoa farmers are easily coerced into giving away their and to mining companies or large agro-businesses, which promise quick economic gain and hide the fact that the land will be rendered useless for farming once they have done their work. Bittersweet Chocolate Deforestation 552. LARGE STAR OF BETHLEHEM GREEN IDEA OF THE WEEK 455 SHAPE KEEPER: Ensure that your shoes and bags maintain their shape by stuffing them with crumpled newspaper after use.