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Flora and Fauna Impact Assessment Flora and Fauna Impact Assessment Proposed Upgrade to the Air Services Australia Cooma Non-Directional Beacon (NDB). An ecological impact assessment prepared for Daly International SEPTEMBER 2010 Report No. EcIA 0180 Citation EnviroKey (2010) Flora and Fauna Impact Assessment: Proposed Upgrade to the Air Services Australia Cooma Non-Directional Beacon (NDB). A report prepared by of EnviroKey for Daly International. Report No. EcIA_0180. Final Version 22/09/2010. Commercial In Confidence All intellectual property rights, including copyright, in documents created by EnviroKey remain the property of EnviroKey. The information contained within this document is confidential. It may only be used by the person to whom it is provided for the stated purpose for which it is provided. The document must not be imparted to any third person without the prior written approval of EnviroKey. Disclaimer The scope of work for this report was defined by time and budgetary constraints and the availability of other reports and data. EnviroKey accept no liability or responsibility for or in respect of any use of or reliance upon this report and its supporting material in whole or in part by any third party. Information in this report is not intended to be a substitute for site specific assessment or legal advice in relation to any matter. PO Box 7231 Tathra NSW 2550 t 02 6494 5422 www.envirokey.com.au [email protected] ABN 35255478680 Executive Summary EnviroKey were engaged by Daly International to complete a Flora and Fauna Impact Assessment to determine the potential impacts to flora, fauna, threatened species, populations and communities and their habitats as a result of a proposed upgrade to the Air Services Australia Non-Directional Beacon (NDB) Facility at Cooma, NSW. The site analysis was undertaken on the 10th September 2010 that revealed a total of 13 flora species, nine of which are exotic species. No threatened flora were recorded, nor are any expected to occur. Existing vegetation community mapping for the area shows the study area mapped as Stipa (Austrostipa) scabra – Stipa bigeniculata grassland. However, it should be noted that this mapping is broad scale in nature and does not discern between areas of native grassland, improved pastures and the like. Live vegetation cover within the site comprises approximately 70% exotic and 30% native species. With regard to the NSW Native Vegetation Act 2003, this vegetation can be classified as non-native due to it comprising grassland with less than 50% live native cover. Given this, the site is considered to be, at best, ‘Modified Tussock Grassland’. One exotic species (Scotch Thistle) is listed as a noxious weed (Class 4: Locally Controlled Weeds in Snowy River LGA). The growth and spread of the plant must be controlled according to the measures specified in a management plan published by the local control authority. The Endangered Ecological Community (EEC) Natural Temperate Grassland in NSW and the ACT is known to occur within the locality and the wider region. Landscape position and remnant native species in and adjacent to the site indicate that the study area was likely to formerly comprise the EEC. However, due to the dominance of the study area by exotic species (70% cover), it is determined that it does not comprise the EEC. The ongoing threat of weed invasion severely limits the likelihood of natural regeneration that would return the site to represent the EEC. Conversely, the EEC does appear present on the land on the western, northern and eastern boundaries of the study area. These areas of vegetation are dominated by native flora species, and these are considered consistent with the identification guidelines above, in that the EPBC listed EEC, Natural Temperate Grassland in NSW and the ACT is present. A total of six species of fauna were recorded during the site analysis and these are regarded as typical of the habitat within the region. No threatened or migratory species were detected during the site analysis. One fauna habitat is present, Modified Tussock Grassland which provides potential habitat for threatened reptile fauna. Of the threatened and migratory biota that are known to, or predicted to occur in the locality, our evaluation found that three threatened species, one EEC (EPBC listed only) and two migratory species could or are known to occur based on the habitat attributes of the study area. Significance Assessments undertaken pursuant to the TSC Act indicate that the proposed activity was unlikely to have a significant effect on Diamond Firetail, Grassland Earless Dragon and Striped Legless Lizard provided that the recommendations outlined in section 6 are fully adopted. The proposed activity will not require a Species PO Box 7231 Tathra NSW 2550 t 02 6494 5422 www.envirokey.com.au [email protected] ABN 35255478680 Flora and Fauna Impact Assessment: Proposed Upgrade to the ASA Cooma Non-Directional Beacon (NDB). Report EcIA.0180 Table of Contents 1 INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................... 1 1.1 PROPOSED ACTIVITY ............................................................................................ 2 1.2 DEFINITIONS USED IN THIS REPORT .................................................................. 3 2 DESKTOP ANALYSIS ................................................................................. 4 2.1 LEGISLATIVE CONTEXT ........................................................................................ 4 2.1.1 Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 .................................................. 4 2.1.2 Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 .................. 4 2.1.3 State Environmental Planning Policy No. 44 .................................................. 5 2.1.4 Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD) ............................................... 5 2.1.5 Native Vegetation Act 2003 ............................................................................ 6 2.2 THREATENED SPECIES RECORDS IN THE LOCALITY ...................................... 6 3 SITE ANALYSIS ........................................................................................... 7 3.1 METHODS ............................................................................................................... 7 3.1.1 Flora and Vegetation Communities ................................................................ 7 3.1.2 Fauna and their Habitats ................................................................................ 7 3.1.3 Nomenclature ................................................................................................. 7 3.2 FLORA AND VEGETATION COMMUNITIES .......................................................... 8 3.2.1 Species Richness ........................................................................................... 8 3.2.2 Vegetation Communities ................................................................................ 8 3.2.3 Disturbance .................................................................................................... 8 3.2.4 Threatened Flora and Species of Conservation Significance ........................ 8 3.2.5 Conservation Significance of Vegetation Communities ................................. 9 3.2.6 Endangered Ecological Communities ............................................................ 9 3.3 FAUNA AND THEIR HABITATS ............................................................................ 10 3.3.1 Species Richness ......................................................................................... 10 3.3.2 Threatened & Migratory Species .................................................................. 10 3.3.3 Fauna Habitats ............................................................................................. 11 3.3.4 Habitat Corridors .......................................................................................... 11 3.4 LIMITATIONS ......................................................................................................... 11 4 POTENTIAL IMPACTS .............................................................................. 13 4.1 DIRECT IMPACTS ................................................................................................. 13 4.2 INDIRECT IMPACTS ............................................................................................. 13 September 2010 i Flora and Fauna Impact Assessment: Proposed Upgrade to the ASA Cooma Non-Directional Beacon (NDB). Report EcIA.0180 5 IMPACT ASSESSMENT ............................................................................ 14 5.1 SEPP 44 KOALA HABITAT ................................................................................... 14 5.2 THREATENED AND MIGRATORY BIOTA EVALUATION .................................... 14 5.3 MIGRATORY SPECIES ......................................................................................... 24 5.4 SIGNIFICANCE ASSESSMENTS (TSC ACT) ....................................................... 24 5.5 SIGNIFICANCE ASSESSMENTS (EPBC ACT) .................................................... 30 6 RECOMMENDATIONS .............................................................................. 33 7 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................ 34 8 REFERENCES ........................................................................................... 35 9 APPENDICES ..............................................................................................
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