Graspan Screening Report
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Terrestrial Ecology Screening Report Orion Graspan Prospecting Project Copperton, Northern Cape August 2019 Prepared for: ABS Africa (Pty) Ltd Block C Suite 2, Carlswald Close Office Park c/o New and 7th Roads, Carlswald 1685 Gauteng, South Africa Prepared by: ECOREX Consulting Ecologists CC PostNet Suite 192, Private Bag X2 Raslouw 0109 Gauteng, South Africa Authors: Warren McCleland (ECOREX) ABS Orion Graspan Ecology Screening Report (ECOREX) ©ECOREX 2019 Contents Contents .......................................................................................................................................... 2 List of Tables ................................................................................................................................. 3 List of Figures ............................................................................................................................... 3 Declaration of Independence ..................................................................................................... 4 1. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................. 5 1.1. Background ............................................................................................................................. 5 1.2 Project Description .................................................................................................................. 5 1.3 Aims of this report ................................................................................................................... 6 1.4 Study Team .............................................................................................................................. 6 2. TERMS OF REFERENCE ................................................................................................................... 7 3. PROJECT AREA ............................................................................................................................... 7 4. METHODS ...................................................................................................................................... 9 4.1 Flora ........................................................................................................................................ 9 4.2 Terrestrial Fauna ...................................................................................................................... 9 4.3 Assumptions and Limitations ................................................................................................. 11 5. BIODIVERSITY BASELINE DESCRIPTION ......................................................................................... 12 5.1 Flora ...................................................................................................................................... 12 5.1.1 Regional Context ............................................................................................................. 12 5.1.2 Local Context – Plant Species Richness and Vegetation Assemblages .............................. 15 5.1.3 Species of Conservation Concern..................................................................................... 17 5.1.4 Endemic Species.............................................................................................................. 18 5.1.5 Protected Species............................................................................................................ 18 5.2 Terrestrial Fauna .................................................................................................................... 19 5.2.1 Mammals ........................................................................................................................ 19 5.2.2 Birds ............................................................................................................................... 21 5.2.3 Herpetofauna (Reptiles and Amphibians) ........................................................................ 26 5.3 Ecological Importance ............................................................................................................ 27 5.3.1 Northern Cape Critical Biodiversity Areas ........................................................................ 27 5.3.2 Environmental Screening Tool ......................................................................................... 28 5.3.3 Site-specific Importance .................................................................................................. 29 6. DISCUSSION & RECOMMENDATIONS ........................................................................................... 30 7. REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................ 31 8. APPENDICES ................................................................................................................................ 33 ABS Orion Graspan Ecology Screening Report (ECOREX) ©ECOREX 2019 Appendix 1. List of Plants recorded from the Vicinity of the Project Area (SANBI) ........................ 34 Appendix 2. Mammals recorded from the vicinity of the Project Area (Virtual Museum) ............. 50 Appendix 3. Bird Species recorded from the vicinity of the Project Area (SABAP2) ....................... 53 Appendix 4. List of Herpetofauna recorded from the general vicinity of the Project Area (Virtual Museum) ..................................................................................................................................... 56 Appendix 5. CV of Report Author ................................................................................................. 58 List of Tables Table 1. Floristic composition and important taxa in Bushmanland Basin Shrubland ........................ 13 Table 2. Mammal SCC occurring in the general vicinity of the project area ...................................... 20 Table 3. Biome-restricted endemic species recorded from the vicinity of the project area * ............ 21 Table 4. Avifauna SCC occurring in the general vicinity of the project area ....................................... 24 List of Figures Figure 1: Location of the Project Area ................................................................................................ 8 Figure 2: National Vegetation Types represented in the vicinity of the Project Area......................... 14 Figure 3: Location of Project Area in the context of the Northern Cape Critical Biodiversity Areas ... 27 Figure 4: Environmental Screening Tool assessment of Terrestrial Biodiversity Features in the Prospecting Right Area .................................................................................................................... 29 ABS Orion Graspan Ecology Screening Report (ECOREX) ©ECOREX 2019 Declaration of Independence We declare that we have been appointed as independent consulting ecologists with no affiliation with or vested financial interests in the proponent, other than remuneration for work performed. We have no conflicting interests in the undertaking of this activity and have no interests in secondary developments resulting from the authorisation of this project. Remuneration for our services by the proponent is not linked to approval by any decision- making authority responsible for authorising this development. W.L.McCleland 11 August 2019 ABS Orion Graspan Ecology Screening Report (ECOREX) ©ECOREX 2019 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1. BACKGROUND Orion Exploration No. 5 (Pty) Ltd (“Orion”) is applying for a Prospecting Right for various minerals within the Copperton Subvolcanic area, in the Northern Cape. The proposed prospecting will involve both non-inasive and invasive activities, some of which are listed activities under Listing Notice 1 of the National Environmental Management Act, 1998 (Act No. 107 of 1998) (NEMA), and thus trigger the requirement for a Basic Assessment (BA). ABS Africa (Pty) Ltd (“ABS”) was appointed by Orion to conduct the BA, which was completed in April 2019. However, the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) indicated that the prospecting right area included part of a Critical Biodiversity Area (CBA), thus triggering the requirement for a terrestrial biodiversity / ecology study. It was confirmed that such a study would need to be submitted before the application can be finalised. ABS appointed ECOREX Consulting Ecologists CC (“ECOREX”) to undertake an ecology screening study of the proposed prospecting right area. This specialist report concerns the terrestrial ecosystems that may be impacted by the project and is based on a desktop review of available data, as well as the author’s field experience on adjacent properties. The relevant disciplines covered by this study are vegetation / flora, mammals, avifauna and herpetofauna. 1.2 PROJECT DESCRIPTION The project will involve prospecting for a variety of minerals by means of non-invasive and invasive prospecting methods, including diamond-core drilling and minor trenching. More details are available in the Basic Assessment Report (BAR). ABS Orion Graspan Ecology Screening Report (ECOREX) ©ECOREX 2019 1.3 AIMS OF THIS REPORT The aims of this report are: • Review: To collate and review relevant and available ecological information for the project area; • Baseline Overview: To summarise the baseline ecological conditions in the project area, based on a desktop review and assessments of ecological importance from EIAs conducted on nearby properties;