Table 6. General information on Queensland, Australia (Productivity Commission 2005, Richards and Lawrence 2009). Location It is situated in northeastern Australia, bordered by the Northern Territory to the west, New South Wales to the south and the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean to the east. It has total area of 1,852,642 km². Climate The climate ranges from hot and dry desert in the southwest to subtropical and tropical in the north where summer rainfall dominates. Vegetation Vegetation types vary from the tussock grasslands and acacia shrublands in the west, to hummock grasslands and a range of woodlands in the east. Land use Rangelands cover most of Queensland (> 70%). Pastoralism is the major land use system with the beef industry found throughout the rangelands whereas the sheep industry is generally confined to the central western and southwestern areas of the rangelands. Animals There are mainly grazing livestock such as sheep and cattle, as well as some soft-footed native animals such as kangaroos and wallabies (Macropodidae). Population The total population of Queensland is about 4.4 million (1999 numbers). Social problems Agricultural development and climate change are threatening ranching systems on the open ranges.