As farms become larger, more intensive and commercial, and as townspeople make increasing demands on the availability and quality of natural resources, the relationship between rural and urban communities has become increasingly strained. This is the background addressed by 19 authors (mostly Australian) of this well-referenced book concerned with the erosion of the ‘social licence’ enjoyed by farmers. Although the text is mainly concerned with competing demands for water by the Australian irrigated cropping sector, consideration is given to other areas of potential conflict such as land-use, biodiversity and conservation, pollution, animal welfare and the general sustainability of rural environment. Attempted solutions to such conflicts may be legalistic or voluntary, but all require trust, credibility and cooperation between farmers, competing groups and governments.

The first section deals with theoretical and historical aspects of the ‘social licence to farm’, followed by consideration of alternative approaches of alleviating tensions between communities. The third section deals solely with institutional and legal solutions, illustrated by case studies, which include some from the United States and Europe.

The book covers the field well, although with considerable overlap between chapters, but the final chapter (and an excellent Preface) pulls the material together into a very readable overview. Although the case studies are useful, some are overly descriptive and lack numerical detail.

The book is recommended for professionals working on rural/urban interface, including representatives of relevant interest groups (including farmers). It would also provide material for students of rural planning by using individual chapters for group discussion, or for application to live case studies.