Y
GADTECH MATERIALS PTY LTD
SUNSHINE QUARRY, MAYDENA
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT
Van Diemen CONSULTING PO BOX 1, NEW TOWN, TAS 7008 Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Van Diemen Consulting Pty Ltd
PO Box 1 New Town, Tasmania
T: 0438 588 695 E: [email protected]
This document has been prepared in accordance with the scope of services agreed upon between Van Diemen Consulting (VDC) and the Client. To the best of VDC’s knowledge, the report presented herein represents the Client’s intentions at the time of completing the document. However, the passage of time, manifestation of latent conditions or impacts of future events may result in changes to matters that are otherwise described in this document. In preparing this document VDC has relied upon data, surveys, analysis, designs, plans and other information provided by the client, and other individuals and organisations referenced herein. Except as otherwise stated in this document, VDC has not verified the accuracy or completeness of such data, surveys, analysis, designs, plans and other information. No responsibility is accepted for use of any part of this document in any other context or for any other purpose by third parties. This document does not purport to provide legal advice. Readers should engage professional legal advisers for this purpose.
Document Status REV Author Review Date
1 R Barnes C McCoull R Barnes 30‐1‐2021
1 R Barnes C McCoull T Jacobson, Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd 31‐1‐2021
1 R Barnes C McCoull EPA 12‐2‐2021
2 R Barnes C McCoull R Barnes 17‐2‐2021
2 R Barnes C McCoull T Jacobson, Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd 17‐2‐2021
2 R Barnes C McCoull EPA 26‐2‐2021
3 R Barnes C McCoull R Barnes 6‐3‐2021
3 R Barnes C McCoull T Jacobson, Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd 8‐3‐2021
3 R Barnes C McCoull EPA 8‐3‐2021
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
PREFACE ...... 7 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...... 10
PROPOSED ACTIVITY ...... 10 LOCATION ...... 10 PROPONENT ...... 10 ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT MEASURES ...... 10 DECOMMISIONING AND REHABILITATION ...... 12 PART A – INTRODUCTION ...... 13
A.1 PROPONENT DETAILS ...... 13 A.2 CONSULTANT DETAILS ...... 13 A.3 LANDOWNER DETAILS ...... 13 A.4 QUARRY INFORMATION ...... 13 A.5 TIMEFRAME AND LONGEVITY OF DEVELOPMENT ...... 14 A.6 RESOURCE IMPORTANCE, PROJECT RATIONALE AND ALTERNATIVES ...... 14 A.6.1 SIGNIFICANCE OF RESOURCE ...... 14 A.6.2 PROJECT RATIONALE ...... 14 A.6.3 PROJECT ALTERNATIVES ...... 15 A.7 ENVIRONMENTAL LEGISLATION, STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES ...... 15 PART B ‐ PROJECT DESCRIPTION ...... 19
B.1 LOCATION ...... 19 B.2 VOLUME EXTRACTED ...... 19 B.3 EXTRACTION METHODS ...... 19 B.3.1 PRIMARY ACTIVITIES ...... 19 B.3.2 DRILLING AND BLASTING ...... 19 B.3.3 CRUSHING AND SCREENING ...... 20 B.4 EXTRACTION (MINE) PLAN ...... 20 B.4.1 EXTRACTION AREA ...... 20 B.4.2 CRUSHING – SCREENING AND STOCKPILE AREA ...... 20 B.4.3 SEDIMENT PONDS ...... 20 B.4.4 INFRASTRUCTURE ...... 21 B.4.5 AMENITIES ...... 21 B.5 OPERATING HOURS ...... 21 B.6 QUARRY EQUIPMENT ...... 22 B.7 ROAD USE AND TRAFFIC GENERATION ...... 22 B.7.1 ACCESS ROAD ...... 22 B.7.2 TRAFFIC GENERATION AND CHARACTERISTICS ...... 22 B.8 VEGETATION REMOVAL AND MANAGEMENT...... 22 B.9 TOPSOIL – OVERBURDEN REMOVAL AND MANAGEMENT ...... 32 B.10 BLAST PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT ...... 32 B.10.1 REQUIREMENT TO CONDUCT BLASTING ...... 32 B.10.2 GENERAL APPROACH TO BLAST MANAGEMENT ...... 32 PART C – PLANNING SCHEME INFORMATION ...... 34 Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
C.1 CATEGORISATION OF USE/DEVELOPMENT ...... 34 C.2 ZONING AND OVERLAYS ...... 34 C.3 USE STATUS ...... 34 C.4 DEVELOPMENT ASSESSMENT AGAINST THE SCHEME ...... 34 PART D – EXISTING ENVIRONMENT ...... 37
D.1 CLIMATE PARAMETERS ...... 37 D.2 LANDFORM (TOPOGRAPHY) AND TENURE ...... 42 D.2.1 TOPOGRAPHY ...... 42 D.2.2 LAND TENURE ...... 42 D.3 ROAD NETWORK ...... 42 D.4 LAND USES ...... 42 D.4.1 RESIDENTIAL DWELLINGS ...... 42 D.4.2 FORESTRY LAND ...... 43 D.4.3 RESERVED LAND ...... 43 D.4.4 RECREATION LAND AND FACILITIES ...... 43 D.5 GEOLOGY AND LAND CAPABILITY ...... 43 D.5.1 GEOLOGY AND SOILS ...... 43 D.5.2 LAND CAPABILITY ...... 44 D.5.3 GEOCONSERVATION VALUES ...... 44 D.6 WATERCOURSES AND DRAINAGE ...... 45 D.7 BIODIVERSITY ...... 53 D.7.1 SURVEY ...... 53 D.7.2 VEGETATION COMMUNITIES ...... 53 D.7.3 THREATENED FLORA SPECIES ...... 58 D.7.4 DECLARED AND ENVIRONMENTAL WEEDS ...... 58 D.7.5 PHYTOPHTHORA CINNAMOMI (PC) ...... 58 D.7.6 THREATENED FAUNA SPECIES ...... 59 PART E – POTENTIAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS AND MITIGATION MEASURES ...... 61
E.1 AIR EMISSIONS ‐ DUST ...... 61 E.1.1 DUST SOURCES FROM QUARRY ACTIVITY ...... 61 E.1.2 MITIGATION MEASURES ...... 61 E.2 SURFACE WATER MANAGEMENT ...... 62 E.2.1 EXISTING DRAINAGE AND AQUATIC ENVIRONMENT ...... 62 E.2.2 SOURCES OF SEDIMENT ...... 62 E.2.3 STORMWATER AND WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES ...... 63 E.2.4 WATER MANAGEMENT MEASURES ...... 65 E.2.5 SUMMARY OF MITIGATION MEASURES ...... 68 E.3 LIQUID EFFLUENT ...... 68 E.4 NOISE EMISSIONS ...... 68 E.4.1 BACKGROUND ...... 68 E.4.2 EXISTING LANDSCAPE NOISE SOURCES ...... 69 E.4.3 QUARRY EMISSION SOURCES ...... 69 E.4.4 SENSITIVE RECEPTORS ...... 69 E.4.5 ENVIRONMENTAL NOISE ASSESSMENT ...... 69 Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
E.4.6 GROUND VIBRATION AND AIR BLAST OVERPRESSURE ...... 69 E.4.7 FLY ROCK ...... 70 E.4.8 MITIGATION MEASURES ...... 70 E.5 WASTE MANAGEMENT ...... 70 E.5.1 MATERIAL SOURCES ...... 70 E.5.2 MITIGATION MEASURES ...... 70 E.6 DANGEROUS AND/OR HAZARDOUS GOODS ...... 71 E.6.1 MATERIAL SOURCES ...... 71 E.6.2 MITIGATION MEASURES ...... 71 E.7 WEED MANAGEMENT ...... 71 E.7.1 MATERIAL SOURCES AND POTENTIAL IMPACTS ...... 71 E.7.2 MITIGATION MEASURES ...... 72 E.8 FLORA AND FAUNA ...... 73 E.8.1 VEGETATION ...... 73 E.8.2 THREATENED FLORA SPECIES ...... 74 E.8.3 THREATENED FAUNA SPECIES ...... 74 E.9 SITE CONTAMINATION ...... 74 E.9.1 MATERIAL SOURCES ...... 74 E.9.2 MITIGATION MEASURES ...... 75 E.10 COASTAL ZONE AND MARINE AREAS ...... 75 E.11 TRAFFIC ...... 75 E.11.1 MATERIAL SOURCES ...... 75 E.11.2 MITIGATION MEASURES ...... 75 PART F ‐ DECOMMISSIONING AND REHABILITATION ...... 76
F.1 PROGRESSIVE REHABILITATION...... 76 F.2 PERMANENT CLOSURE ...... 77 F.2.1 PLANNING ...... 77 F.2.2 FINAL BENCH FORM AND SLOPES ...... 77 PART G – MANAGEMENT MEASURES SUMMARY ...... 79 PART H – CONCLUSION ...... 81 PART I ‐ REFERENCES ...... 82 PART J – ATTACHMENTS ...... 83
FIGURES Figure A‐1 Location of the Sunshine Quarry (Mining Lease) Figure A‐2 Location of Sunshine Quarry Development Area and Land Titles Figure A‐3 Topography (m AHD) at the Sunshine Quarry Development Area Figure B‐1 Access to Sunshine Quarry and surrounding roads Figure B‐2 Proposed Mining (Extraction) Areas (Years 1 to 10) – 90,000m3 pa Figure B‐3 Stockpile Area and Extraction Area at Sunshine Quarry Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Figure B‐4 Resource Extraction Area Figure B‐5a Cross Section of Sunshine Quarry (present) Figure B‐5b Cross Section of Sunshine Quarry (to Year 1) Figure B‐5c Cross Section of Sunshine Quarry (to Year 2) Figure B‐5d Cross Section of Sunshine Quarry (to Year 3) Figure B‐5e Cross Section of Sunshine Quarry (to Year 10) Figure C‐1 Zone Map – Derwent Valley Interim Planning Scheme 2015 Figure C‐2 Overlay Map – Derwent Valley Interim Planning Scheme 2015 Figure D‐1 Land Tenure Classification Figure D‐2 Surrounding Road Network Figure D‐3 Nearest residences from activities at the Sunshine Quarry Figure D‐4 Geological bedrock (MRT – Scale 1:250 ,000) around Mining Leases Figure D‐5 Landslide planning hazard bands and Land Capability Class Figure D‐6A Existing regional drainage lines and catchments Figure D‐6B Proposed regional drainage lines and catchments (Year 10)
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 Project Specific Guidelines August 2020
Attachment 2 Traffic Impact Assessment Sunshine Quarry Attachment 3 Environmental noise, ground vibration and air blast overpressure assessment
Attachment 4 Report on Karst Systems and Mining Lease 2065P/M, Nichols Spur, Maydena
Attachment 5 Sunshine Quarry – Ecological Assessment Soil and Water Management Fact Sheets for Building and Construction Sites (subset Attachment 6 of sheets prepared by NRM South) Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
DEFINITION OF TERMS/ABBREVIATIONS
Board the Board of the EPA DA Development Application
DFTD Devil facial Tumour Disease DPIPWE Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment DVC Derwent Valley Council
EMPCA Environmental Management and Pollution Control Act 1994 Environmental Management and Pollution Control System objectives to be EMPCS found in Schedule 1 of EMPCA EPA Environment Protection Authority EPA Tasmania The EPA (the) Land that area identified as the 'Mining Lease' in Figures A‐1 and A‐2.
LUPAA Land Use Planning and Approvals Act 1993 (Tas)
ML Mining Lease
MRT Mineral Resources Tasmania
pollutant has the meaning ascribed to it in Section 3 of EMPCA.
QCP the Tasmanian Quarry Code of Practice 2017 (3rd edition) Resource the extraction area shown in Figure B‐4 Extraction Area Resource Management and Planning System objectives to be found in Schedule RMPS 1 of EMPCA
(the) Scheme Derwent Valley Interim Planning Scheme 2015 STDP Save the Tasmanian Devil Program Roadkill Project Stormwater means water traversing the surface of The Land as a result of rainfall.
TNMPM Tasmanian Noise Measurement Procedures Manual 2008 wastewater means water used or contaminated during carrying out the activity, Wastewater and does not include clean stormwater arising from rainfall on the proposal site a natural depression carrying perennial or intermittent flows of surface water Watercourse for part or all of the year in most years. Consisting of a defined channel, with banks and a bed along which water may flow (QCP definition). WSP Weed Spraying Program
6
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
PREFACE
THE DEVELOPMENT Sunshine Quarry is proposed to extract up to 90,000 cubic metres (approx. 144,000 tonnes) of material per annum. All the extracted volume may be crushed/screened (mechanised/vibratory) to reduce particle size and/or make a uniform particle size product. The quarry operation includes two activities listed Schedule 2 of the Environmental Management and Pollution Control Act 1994 (‘EMPCA’) –
‘5. Extractive Industries. (a) Quarries: the extraction of any rock or gravel and producing 5 000 cubic metres or more of rock or gravel per year’
‘6. Materials Handling. (a) Crushing, Grinding or Milling: processing (by crushing, grinding, milling, or separating into different sizes by sieving, air elutriation or in any other manner) of … (ii) rock, ores or minerals at a rate in excess of 1 000 cubic metres per year’ Level 2 Activities must be referred by the Planning Authority (in this case, Derwent Valley Council) to the Environment Protection Authority (the ‘EPA’), for assessment under the EMPCA. The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) has been prepared to support a Development Application (DA30/2020) by Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd to establish and operate a quarry north‐west of Maydena. The EIS and associated impact assessments (e.g., noise and vibration) have considered impacts from activities within the Mining Lease (Figure A‐2) and specifically the extraction of material from within the Resource Extraction Area shown in Figure B‐4.
FUNCTION OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT An Environmental Impact Statement is the basis on which the Board makes its assessment of an activity. The Board considers the EIS, as well as other relevant information, against the objectives of the RMPS and EMPCS objectives. These objectives focus on the concept of sustainable development, which requires consideration of the economic and social needs of people now and in the future, while sustaining the environment and avoiding or mitigating adverse effects. The Board will consider the objectives and endeavour to make the decision which best furthers them, when considered together. That decision may be to approve the proposal with conditions, or in some cases, the Board may decide the objectives cannot be upheld and the proposal is rejected.
GUIDANCE FROM THE EPA BOARD ON THE CONTENT OF THE EIS EMPCA requires the Board of the Environment Protection Authority to provide guidance to an applicant about what should be included in an EIS. The Board has authorised EPA Tasmania (EPA) to establish the information base to inform decision making on its behalf. The EPA requires the EIS to be prepared using a risk‐based approach. Not all issues nominated in the guidelines will have the same degree of relevance to an activity. Depending on the nature of the proposed activity and its location, some of the issues may be more relevant than others, and some may not be applicable at all. The level of detail provided on each issue should be appropriate to the level of significance of that environmental issue to the proposal.
7
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
The EPA issued Project Specific Guidelines (PSG’s) based on the permit application (DA30/2020) for the Sunshine Quarry proposed by Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd – see Attachment 1. PSG’s focus on the key issues for the proposal, as they are understood at the time they are issued, as well as any known information gaps relevant to the proposal. They are to be read in conjunction with the general EIS guidelines. Of relevance to this EIS is the Quarry Code of Practice (3rd edition; QCP) because it is a code consistent with the intent of section 6 of the general EIS guidelines (emphasis added) – ‘Identify the environmental performance requirements to be achieved for each environmental impact and provide evidence to demonstrate that these can be complied with. These may be standards or requirements specified in legislation, codes of practice, state policies, national guidelines or as determined by agreement with the assessing agencies. Industry best practice standards should be referred to where appropriate.’ The QCP is primarily aimed at environmental assessment and management of quarries. The QCP was developed to further the objectives of Tasmania's Resource Management and Planning System, which seeks to provide for sustainable development of Tasmania's resources. It comprises elements for both the proposed use and development of land for extractive purposes as well as ongoing environmental management. The contents of the original QCP, but not the 3rd edition, were agreed by Industry, Local Government and relevant State Government agencies through a consultative process which included a public comment period. As noted in the QCP, sections are not in themselves legally enforceable. They are intended to encourage operators to achieve good environmental performance without the need to resort to legislative enforcement mechanisms. The provisions of the code can be enforced as Permit conditions, or by issuing Environment Protection Notices. If necessary, an Environment Protection Notice may be used to vary the conditions on an existing Permit. While the QCP outlines acceptable standards, the QCP itself notes that where an operator can demonstrate that the potential environmental impacts can be managed by other means to the satisfaction of the approval authority, appropriate site‐specific conditions for the operation should be applied in the Permit. When the EPA is satisfied that enough information has been received, the Council will be directed to advertise the application for a set period within which anyone can make a representation about the application.
STRUCTURE OF THE EIS The EIS and Planning Information document contains the following components –
Part A Introduction to the proposed development/activity including for example the contact details of the proponent, activity location, and rationale for the project.
Part B Project Description including details of the volume extracted, extraction process, machinery, and equipment to be used and timeframe for the activity.
Part C Planning information for use by the Planning Authority, in this case the Derwent Valley Council, in assessing the development and use against the requirements of the Derwent Valley Interim Planning Scheme 2015 (the ‘Scheme’). 8
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Part D Existing environment information including climatic (temperature, rainfall, wind), catchment, geological and biodiversity information.
Part E Potential environmental impacts and their management including an assessment of each relevant (moderate to high risk) impact, its likelihood of occurrence, mitigation measures and net impact.
Part F Decommissioning and rehabilitation details as the ‘mine plan’ is implemented, and the process of closure if the quarry permanently closed prior to full extraction.
Part G A summary of the management measures proposed for the activity to avoid or mitigate potential environmental impacts from the activity.
Part H Conclusion about the proposed activity.
Part I References cited in the EIS.
Part J Attachments referenced in the EIS.
9
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
PROPOSED ACTIVITY The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) has been prepared to support a Development Application (DA30/2020) by Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd to establish and operate a quarry, Sunshine Quarry, located north‐west of Maydena. The EIS and associated impact assessments (e.g., noise and vibration) have considered impacts from activities within the Mining Lease (Figure A‐2) and specifically the extraction of material from within the Resource Extraction Area shown in Figure B‐4. The extracted volume is up to 90,000 cubic metres per annum (approximately 144,000 tonnes per annum), all of which may be crushed/screened (mechanised/vibratory) to reduce particle size and/or make a uniform particle size product. The activity will include the progressive harvesting of native forest (some of which has been harvested already under silvicultural practices), ripping, drilling, and blasting, crushing (jaw and impact style crushers), vibratory screening and transportation of material. The quarry will include the following activities:
surface site preparation by tree‐felling, vegetation clearing, and stockpiling/mulching, soil and overburden removal and stockpiling, excavation and ripping of material, drilling and blasting by licensed contractor, crushing and/or screening of material, stockpiling of material (processed and unprocessed), and the loading of trucks with processed material from the stockpile area.
LOCATION Sunshine Quarry is located on land managed by Sustainable Timbers Tasmania and private freehold land at Sunshine Road, north‐west of Maydena in the Derwent Valley municipality.
PROPONENT The proponent, Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd, owns and operates several quarries within Tasmania including those at Pawleena, Dromedary, Nichols Road (Nubeena), Runnymede and Kallista Hill.
ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT MEASURES Best practice management is important to the project proponent to minimise the risk of environmental nuisance/harm from the activity. The potential environmental effects which may arise from the activity have been detailed and, where appropriate, actions documented in this EIS to prevent and or minimise potential adverse impacts. Specific comment is made of the items summarised below.
Noise Emissions Tarkarri Engineering was commissioned by Van Diemen Consulting (VDC) on behalf of Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd to conduct an environmental noise, ground vibration and air blast overpressure 10
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement assessment for the Sunshine Quarry, Maydena. An environmental noise emission criterion for operations at Sunshine Quarry was developed based on Quarry Code of Practice requirements and ambient noise monitoring conducted in the vicinity of the quarry which was analysed in accordance with the Tasmanian Noise Measurement Procedures Manual 2008 (TNMPM). With proposed operations only occurring during the day, the following daytime limit was considered: Day: 45 dBA (LAeq,10min). Predicted noise levels from operational scenarios at the Sunshine Quarry were found to be below 26 dBA at all sensitive residential receiver locations. Predicted ground vibration and air blast overpressure levels are well below the Quarry Code of Practice] criteria with a charge mass/delay of 80 kg. Mitigation recommendations are not provided because the assessment found that environmental harm from noise, ground vibration and ABO emissions from the Sunshine quarry is highly unlikely.
Surface Water No chemicals, fuels or oils will be stored in the quarry overnight and refuelling of quarry equipment will be carried out using a mobile bund. Sediment will be managed through the installation and maintenance of a cut‐off drain to the active pit area, additional drains, and sediment pond network.
Biodiversity
Environmental management measures include –
For Tasmanian devil and spotted‐tailed quoll, the following management approach will be applied –
o areas needing to be cleared of vegetation to enable quarry activities should first be surveyed to identify if dens or woodpiles supporting dens are present. The pre‐ clearance surveys must be completed by a suitably qualified person(s) and any dens or suspected dens removed via a procedure approved by the EPA, o If dens or potential dens are observed or suspected during operations a 10 m no machinery buffer will be applied to the den or suspected den and expert advice sought, o Internal road speed will be limited to 20 km/hr from dusk to dawn, and o Truck drivers will be advised to take particular care while driving between dusk and dawn. a Weed and Pathogen Management Plan will be developed and implemented as part of the quarry operation guided by the Weed and Disease Planning and Hygiene Guidelines ‐ Preventing the spread of weeds and diseases in Tasmania (Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment, 2015). Other Matters Environmental management measures for other potentially harmful emissions or matters of potential significance are in place or will be put in place to address the following potential effects to the local environment –
11
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
dust mitigation measures including the use of sprays on the crushing unit, the wetting of the internal road network when required and the use of a water spraying system for load dampening, and
waste generated will be limited by not servicing machinery, except for emergency repairs or minor service requirements, within the quarry. Wastes generated from emergency repairs will be disposed of in an appropriate bin located near the site office for future disposal at a permitted refuse disposal site.
DECOMMISIONING AND REHABILITATION In the event of permanent closure of the use and development a Decommissioning and Rehabilitation plan will be developed and submitted to the EPA for approval.
12
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
PART A – INTRODUCTION Sunshine Quarry is located on land managed by Sustainable Timbers Tasmania and private freehold land at Sunshine Road, north of Maydena in the Derwent Valley municipality (Figures A‐1 and A‐2). At full operational capacity, the quarry should employ 4 people on the site, and at times up to 10 people including truck drivers.
A.1 PROPONENT DETAILS The proponent, Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd, owns and operates several quarries within Tasmania including those at Pawleena, Dromedary, Nichols Road (Nubeena), Runnymede and Kallista Hill.
Legal entity Name Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd Trading Name Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd ACN 157 676 018 ABN 89 157 676 018 Registered Address 546 Brinktop Rd, Penna TAS 7171 Postal Address 546 Brinktop Rd, Penna TAS 7171 Name – Thomas Jacobson Contact Person Email – [email protected] Mobile – 0427 518 004
A.2 CONSULTANT DETAILS The contact details for the consultant engaged to prepare the assessment documentation is below:
Contact – Dr Richard Barnes Postal Address – PO Box 1 New Town 7008 Van Diemen Consulting Pty Ltd Mobile – 0438 588 695 Email – [email protected]
A.3 LANDOWNER DETAILS Land ownership is – CT209039/1 Norske Skog Papermills, Boyer TAS 7140 PID 3389795 Forestry Tasmania, GPO Box 207 Hobart TAS 7001
A.4 QUARRY INFORMATION The details for the site of Sunshine Quarry are below:
Physical address Sunshine Road, Maydena TAS 7140
Mining Lease 2065P/M – 111 hectares
13
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
A.5 TIMEFRAME AND LONGEVITY OF DEVELOPMENT It is anticipated that extraction will commence in the fourth quarter of the 2020‐2021 financial year. At the maximum extraction rate, the quarry is expected to have a lifespan of at least 50 years owing to the high volume of material available in the Mining Lease.
A.6 RESOURCE IMPORTANCE, PROJECT RATIONALE AND ALTERNATIVES
A.6.1 SIGNIFICANCE OF RESOURCE Recent moves by the Department of State Growth (DSG) to align state road specifications with Vic Roads and the need to seek safety improvements for road users has led to a requirement for high skid resistance aggregates in sealed road surfacing. Skidding is generally the result of sudden braking or turning. Thus, higher surface friction may be required at sites where such manoeuvres are likely to occur. However, at these sites, the surface aggregate is often more prone to polishing. Resistance to polishing is measured by the Polished Stone Value1 ‐ the higher the PSV the greater is the resistance of an aggregate to polishing. The more stringent Vic Roads source rock specifications require specific rock types, durability and polishing resistance meant that there are now only 2 main quarries able to supply suitable material. One of these is near Queenstown on the west coast from where most material is sourced for the Hobart (southern Tasmania) market. The other being just north of Diana’s Basin on the East Coast which has been troubled with quality control issues and is an aggregate not as easily used as the Queenstown product. These circumstances have resulted in an almost monopoly supplier. Haulage costs alone from the Queenstown source are $42.00 per tonne. The identification of the Sunshine Quarry deposit is the result of 4 years of searching for a suitable source rock with ‘High PSV. Earlier identified deposits have been included in the extensions of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area and are no longer available to quarry, making the available resource even rarer. Tasmania now has a limited supply of aggregates having a high PSV. It is therefore important that high PSV aggregates be conserved for use in surfacing at locations of high need. This will generally restrict the use of high PSV aggregates to locations carrying high traffic volumes and which require high friction resistance.
A.6.2 PROJECT RATIONALE Both major road sealing companies in Southern Tasmania have expressed an interest in utilising the resource. There is also interest in the waste product by a major quarry to blend (by washing the aggregate) with their current road base product to help it comply with Vic Roads Specifications, currently the quarry trucks material from Flowery Gully in the north to meet this need. Key positives for the development of Sunshine Quarry are as follow –
1 Polished Stone Value (PSV): The laboratory measured parameter number which indicates the potential of an aggregate to polish under the action of traffic. The higher the PSV the greater is the resistance of an aggregate to polishing.
14
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Current Vic Roads Certification to produce 55 PSV sealing aggregates meeting all sealed road specification requirements including durability.
Reduces truck traffic on major distances of the Lyell Hwy and Tasman Hwy, reducing road maintenance costs, increasing safety, and reducing potential impact on fauna.
A resource local to its place of use will result in significant savings in road construction, particularly when haulage costs are considered.
Reduced haulage distance will reduce carbon emissions per unit of road constructed or re‐ surfaced.
The resource is large and will extend the reserve life of the Queenstown resource.
Increased local employment opportunities in the Derwent Valley.
A.6.3 PROJECT ALTERNATIVES The High PSV product that can be produced at the Sunshine Quarry is spatially constrained to this location, hence no alternatives were considered. As noted above, the identification of the Sunshine Quarry deposit is the result of 4 years of searching for a suitable source rock with ‘High PSV2 and that other deposits have been included in the extensions of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area and are no longer available to quarry.
A.7 ENVIRONMENTAL LEGISLATION, STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES The Proponent will conduct the quarry operations in compliance with relevant codes and standards. Guiding legislation, policies and codes are detailed below:
Environmental Management and Pollution Control Act 1994
Land Use Planning and Approvals Act 1993
Mineral Resources Development Act 1995
Tasmanian Quarry Code of Practice, 3rd Edition, May 2017
State Policy on Water Quality Management 1997
Environment Protection Policy (Air Quality) 2004
Environment Protection Policy (Noise) 2009
2 Polished Stone Value (PSV): The laboratory measured parameter number which indicates the potential of an aggregate to polish under the action of traffic. The higher the PSV the greater is the resistance of an aggregate to polishing.
15
an Diemen
V
the LIST © State of Tasmania $
an Diemen
V
$ the LIST © State of Tasmania
an Diemen
V
$ the LIST © State of Tasmania Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
PART B ‐ PROJECT DESCRIPTION
B.1 LOCATION Sunshine Quarry is located on land managed by Sustainable Timbers Tasmania and private freehold land at Sunshine Road, north of Maydena in the Derwent Valley municipality (Figures A‐1 and A‐2). Access is onto Florentine Road (Figure B‐1) which provides direct access to Gordon River Road to the south and the Lyell Highway to the north.
B.2 VOLUME EXTRACTED Sunshine Quarry will have a maximum annual extraction volume of 90,000 cubic metres (approximately 144,000 tonnes per annum), all of which may be crushed/screened (mechanised/vibratory) to reduce particle size and/or make a uniform particle size product.
B.3 EXTRACTION METHODS The activity will include the progressive harvesting of native forest (some of which has been harvested already under silvicultural practices), ripping, drilling, and blasting, crushing (jaw and impact style crushers), vibratory screening and transportation of material. The maximum disturbed area at the quarry at any one time is 3.8 hectares.
B.3.1 PRIMARY ACTIVITIES The quarry will include the following activities:
surface site preparation by tree‐felling, vegetation clearing, and stockpiling/mulching,
soil and overburden removal and stockpiling,
excavation and ripping of material,
drilling and blasting by licensed contractor,
crushing and/or screening of material,
stockpiling of material (processed and unprocessed), and the
loading of trucks with processed material from the stockpile area.
B.3.2 DRILLING AND BLASTING Rock will be liberated by blasting. Blasting is likely to occur 3‐4 times per annum. Drilling and blasting will be carried out by qualified contractors in consultation with the proponent to ensure the following:
drilling is carried out as specified by a blast contractor,
noise and vibration standards are met (both drilling and blasting activities),
blasting activities are safe and meet all workplace health and safety requirements, and
blasting is adequate for rock fragmentation for extraction by excavator and crushing.
19
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
B.3.3 CRUSHING AND SCREENING Blast fractured rock, when blasting occurs, will be removed using an excavator and loaded into the hopper of a crusher. Crushers have jaws which are adjusted to achieve the desired aggregate size. The crushed and screened (using a vibrating screen adjacent to the crushing unit) material will be stockpiled. Stockpiles will be created within the pit which will be identified with labels (eg sub‐base, 40mm gravel). The quarry will operate on a need basis with trucks loaded using a front loader.
B.4 EXTRACTION (MINE) PLAN The approximate proposed layout of the quarry, including the crushing/screening and stockpiling area and active face for the first 10 years of operation, is shown in Figure B‐3.
B.4.1 EXTRACTION AREA The planned extraction of material for the first 10 years (based on the full extraction of the 90,000 m3 per annum) is shown in Figure B‐2. The Mine Plan is for 10 years (as shown in Figure B‐2) after which a new plan will need to be approved by Mineral Resources Tasmania. The extraction of rock will occur in the area identified as Resource Extraction Area (a portion of the Mining Lease) in Figure B‐4. The life of the quarry is for at least 50 years given the volume of resource available. Benches will be self‐draining with each bench structured to act as a table drain, carrying water along the bench to a suitable discharge point where it will flow and report to the sediment pond. The methods outlined in the QCP for quarry design and bench/slope form will be applied – these are well described in the QCP (mainly within sections 7.6) so they are not repeated here.
B.4.2 CRUSHING – SCREENING AND STOCKPILE AREA The crushing/screening and stockpiling at a centralised location provides efficient access to the loading area for trucks to enter and leave the quarry from Sunshine Road without needing to enter or go near the active face. This approach means the active face area can be smaller, with only a bulldozer and excavator and dump trucks needed to extract and cart material (whether it is liberated by blasting or not) to the crushing/screening pad. Cross‐sections of the present, years 1 and 2 and year 10 extraction areas (see Figures B‐2 and B‐3) are shown in Figures B5‐a to B5‐e.
B.4.3 SEDIMENT PONDS Stormwater and associated sediment control will be managed via a water management system (to be installed) at the quarry which will include an internal drainage system, cut‐off drains and sediment pond. See section E.2 SURFACE WATER MANAGEMENT for further details. Drainage from the ‐
(i) active quarry face and associated disturbed area; and (ii) crushing/screening and stockpiling pad, will be managed by the installation of drains and sediment ponds.
20
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
The sediment ponds will capture and treat for sediment removal the water that may flow from the quarry during sustained or heavy rainfall events. The overflow will be directed downslope where it would drain through native vegetation prior to entering a natural watercourse. Water from the pond(s) will be used to dampen roads and loads to prevent/minimise fugitive dust emissions. When the sediment ponds are dry, water will be accessed from other sources via a water cart truck (see B.6 QUARRY EQUIPMENT). Other aspects of section 7.9 of the QCP (drainage and erosion control) will be applied where relevant and practical.
B.4.4 INFRASTRUCTURE No new water (other than for stormwater management) or electrical infrastructure (e.g., powerlines) is required nor proposed for the activity. Roads and tracks will be installed as required, with a preference being given to using the existing roads and snig tracks installed by previous forestry activities.
B.4.5 AMENITIES No permanent structures or amenities are proposed to be located for the quarry. A portaloo would be made available at the quarry during long campaigns.
B.5 OPERATING HOURS Operating hours for the quarry (including specific activities) are outlined in Table 13 and are consistent with the Quarry Code of Practice 2017.
Table 1. Operating hours for Sunshine Quarry, Maydena
Activity Days and Hours of Activity
Monday to Friday, 0700 to 1900 hrs Clearing, ripping, stockpiling and associated works Saturday, 0800 to 1600 hrs Not on Sunday and public holidays4
Monday to Friday, 0700 to 1900 hrs Crushing and/or vibratory screening Saturday, 0800 to 1600 hrs Not on Sunday and public holidays
Monday to Friday, 0700 to 1900 hrs Loading and carting of product Saturday, 0800 to 1600 hrs Not on Sunday and public holidays
3 Management Measure 1. Operating hours are 0700 to 1900 hrs Monday to Friday, 0800 to 1600 hrs on Saturday, closed on Sunday and public holidays (those gazetted Statewide). 4 Public holidays are those gazetted Statewide.
21
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Monday to Friday only, 1000 to 1600 hrs Drilling and blasting Not on Sunday and public holidays
B.6 QUARRY EQUIPMENT The equipment likely to be used at some stage (ie not all the below listed equipment would be used concurrently) of the quarry operation is as follows:
Excavator: 2014 Doosan DX225LC
Crusher: 2006 Metso LT1110 (used with a powered vibratory screen)
Loader: 2009 Doosan DL250
Dozer: 2003 Komatsu D87E‐2
Drill Rig: As per contractor. Other
Trucks for haulage
15,000L capacity water cart truck (for road and load dampening to reduce dust emissions)
Light vehicles for worker transport
Service truck for repairs to machinery and equipment Equipment will be replaced/renewed as existing/proposed equipment ages or becomes redundant.
B.7 ROAD USE AND TRAFFIC GENERATION
B.7.1 ACCESS ROAD The quarry (and Mining Lease) is accessed from Sunshine Road.
B.7.2 TRAFFIC GENERATION AND CHARACTERISTICS The Traffic Impact Assessment (TIA) prepared for the activity (Attachment 2) describes the traffic generation rate, existing road use rates/vehicle types and general road characteristics.
B.8 VEGETATION REMOVAL AND MANAGEMENT The removal or lopping of vegetation will only occur as the area is required for quarry expansion or the maintenance of specific infrastructure, such as cut‐off drains. Leaves, small limbs, and undergrowth will be removed and mulched for use off‐site (e.g., landscaping works) or retained on‐site for future rehabilitation works. No more than 20 cubic metres of mulch and vegetative debris generated by clearing works will be stored in any one stockpile, with stockpiles separated by at least 20 m. Other aspects of section e7.7 of th QCP (vegetation clearing and topsoil stripping) will be applied where relevant and practical.
22
an Diemen V
$
an Diemen
V $
an Diemen
V $
an Diemen
V $ FIGURE B‐5a: CROSS SECTION OF SUNSHINE QUARRY (PRESENT)
PRESENT SURFACE 470
460
450 HEIGHT
440
(m
AHD) 430
420
410
400 ROAD
390
380 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 WEST CROSS SECTION DISTANCE (m) EAST FIGURE B‐5b: CROSS SECTION OF SUNSHINE QUARRY (YEAR 1)
SURFACE AT YEAR 1 470
460
450 HEIGHT
440
(m
AHD) 430
WORKING LEVEL (APPROX 425AHD) 420
410
400 ROAD
390
380 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 WEST CROSS SECTION DISTANCE (m) EAST FIGURE B‐5c: CROSS SECTION OF SUNSHINE QUARRY (YEAR 2)
SURFACE AT YEAR 2 470
460
450 HEIGHT
WORKING LEVEL (APPROX 445AHD) 440
(m
AHD) 430
WORKING LEVEL (APPROX 425AHD) 420
410
400 ROAD
390
380 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 WEST CROSS SECTION DISTANCE (m) EAST FIGURE B‐5d: CROSS SECTION OF SUNSHINE QUARRY (YEAR 3)
SURFACE AT YEAR 3 470
460
450 HEIGHT
WORKING LEVEL (APPROX 445AHD) 440
(m
AHD) 430
WORKING LEVEL (APPROX 425AHD) 420
410
400 WORKING LEVEL (APPROX 405AHD) ROAD
390
380 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 WEST CROSS SECTION DISTANCE (m) EAST FIGURE B‐5e: CROSS SECTION OF SUNSHINE QUARRY (YEAR 10)
SURFACE AT YEAR 10 470
460
450 HEIGHT
440
(m
AHD) 430
420
410
400 WORKING LEVEL (APPROX 405AHD) ROAD
390
380 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 WEST CROSS SECTION DISTANCE (m) EAST Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
B.9 TOPSOIL – OVERBURDEN REMOVAL AND MANAGEMENT Stripped soil will be used to further create bunding to provide a means by which to direct surface water flows to the sediment pond (for within quarry water flows) or away from the quarry (for water originating from outside the quarry area). These areas will be vegetated with native tree, shrub, herb, fern and/or heath species where necessary and appropriately maintained for the life of the quarry. Other aspects of section 7.7 of the QCP (vegetation clearing and topsoil stripping) will be applied where relevant and practical.
B.10 BLAST PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT
B.10.1 REQUIREMENT TO CONDUCT BLASTING Harder material will need to be liberated by blasting. There is likely to be 3 to 4 blasts per annum subject to the volume of material liberated each blast and the demand for material. Drilling (to place charges for blasting) and blasting will be carried out by qualified contractors. The contractor will carry out the drilling and blasting operations in consultation with the quarry owner and in accordance with the following principles:
noise and vibration standards are met and reduced where possible (both drilling and blasting activities),
blasting activities are safe and meet all workplace health and safety requirements, and
blasting is adequate for rock fragmentation for extraction by excavator.
B.10.2 GENERAL APPROACH TO BLAST MANAGEMENT General measures that will be applied for a blast include – Storage and handling of explosives The transportation, storage and handling of explosives is conducted by the blast contractor in accordance with the Australian Explosives Code (1999), the Australian Code for the transport of explosives by road and rail (Third edition ‐ 2009) and Australian Standard 2187 Explosives – Transport, storage and Use (parts 1 and 2).
Risk assessment and auditing The blast contractor is responsible for conducting a risk assessment and safety audit of the quarry as part of each blast. This includes the drilling of the holes for explosives, handling explosives, operation of detonation devices and the safe detonation of the charges. Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd or their delegated agent will receive a copy of the risk assessment and associated documentation that supports the placement of drill holes, levels of explosives used and the detonation devices.
Noise/vibration blast monitoring program Measurements of air blast overpressure and peak particle velocity will be carried out by the blast contractor in accordance with the methods set down in Technical basis for guidelines to minimise annoyance due to blasting overpressure and ground vibration, Australian and New Zealand Environment Council, September 1990.
32
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
The noise/vibration test results collected by the blast contractor will be securely held by Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd or their delegated agent for 5 years from the date of the blast. If the blasting noise limits and/or vibrations as specified in the permit are exceeded, the EPA Director will be notified within 24 hours of the blasting event.
Incident Reporting The blast contractor is responsible for reporting to Police/Fire any incident that requires their involvement or attendance at the quarry. Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd is responsible for reporting any misfires to surrounding relevant landowners: if the blast(s) cannot take place at the time specified, or because of blasting misfires.
33
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
PART C – PLANNING SCHEME INFORMATION This section of the EIS is principally for use by the Planning Authority, in this case the Derwent Valley Council, in assessing the development and use against the requirements of the Derwent Valley Interim Planning Scheme 2015 (the Scheme).
C.1 CATEGORISATION OF USE/DEVELOPMENT The development and use is consistent with the definition of Extractive Industry in the Scheme – ‘… use of land for extracting or removing material from the ground, other than Resource development, and includes the treatment or processing of those materials by crushing, grinding, milling or screening on, or adjoining the land from which it is extracted. Examples include mining, quarrying, and sand mining.’
C.2 ZONING AND OVERLAYS A quarry is defined as an Extractive Industry in the Scheme which is a Discretionary use within the Rural Resource zone. All land adjoining the Mining Lease is zoned Rural Resource (Figure C‐1). The Land intersects three Overlays – Landslide Code, Attenuation Code and Waterway and Wetland Protection Areas Code (Figure C‐2).
C.3 USE STATUS An Extractive Industry use is discretionary within the Rural Resource zone. The Performance Criterion for a Discretionary Use is below ‐
‘A discretionary non‐agricultural use5 must not conflict with or fetter agricultural use on the site or adjoining land having regard to all of the following: (a) the characteristics of the proposed non‐agricultural use; (b) the characteristics of the existing or likely agricultural use; (c) setback to site boundaries and separation distance between the proposed non‐agricultural use and existing or likely agricultural use; any characteristics of the site and adjoining land that would buffer the proposed non‐agricultural use from the adverse impacts on amenity from existing or likely agricultural use.’
The Extractive Industry use would not conflict with nor fetter agricultural uses (e.g., forestry).
C.4 DEVELOPMENT ASSESSMENT AGAINST THE SCHEME Information about the development application relative to the provisions of the Scheme (Use and Development Standards) has been provided separately to the Planning Authority.
5 Agricultural use means use of the land for propagating, cultivating or harvesting plants or for keeping and breeding of animals, excluding pets. It includes the handling, packing or storing of plant and animal produce for dispatch to processors. It includes controlled environment agriculture, intensive tree farming and plantation forestry.
34
an Diemen
V
$ the LIST © State of Tasmania
an Diemen
V
$ the LIST © State of Tasmania Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
PART D – EXISTING ENVIRONMENT
D.1 CLIMATE PARAMETERS The nearest Bureau of Meteorology weather recording station is at Maydena township to the east of the quarry. The station details for the Maydena township weather station are ‐
Site name: MAYDENA POST OFFICE
Site number: 095063
Latitude: 42.76 °S Longitude: 146.62 °E
Elevation: 281 m Maydena has a typically warm summer and cold winter climate pattern (Graph 1); mean maximum temperature in February, mean minimum temperature in July. Rainfall occurs regularly throughout the year (Graph 2) with a peak in winter and spring (June to October). Mean summer rainfall (Table 1) is however sufficient to support rainforest species (>25 mm per month during the months of December, January and February). Periods of higher monthly rainfall overlap with the cooler months and periods of low mean wind speed (Graph 3).
Table 2. Mean maximum and mean minimum temperature and rainfall for Maydena township
J F M A M J J A S O N D Annual Mean max temperature 22.1 22.3 19.4 15.9 13 10.8 10.6 12 13.6 15.6 18.1 19.7 16.1 (oC) Mean min temperature 9 8.9 7.1 5.5 4.4 2.5 2.2 2.7 3.4 4.7 6.5 7.4 5.4 (oC) Mean rainfall 60 62 71.7 83.5 93.5 99.9 107.1 152.6 143.4 114.6 90.9 86.1 1,160.6 (mm) Source – Bureau of Meteorology (www.bom.gov.au) – 1992‐2013 data
For comparison, Hobart receives a mean annual rainfall (MAR) of 615 mm, Strathgordon (to the west) receives a MAR of about 2,500 mm and Westerway (town to the east of Maydena) receives a MAR of about 579 mm. The Mining Lease is therefore to the west of the major ‘rain shadow’ caused by the mountain ranges of Mt Field National Park, Snowy Range and Wellington Range. Mt Field and surrounding peaks are largely responsible for the ‘rain shadow’ that substantially reduces the rainfall total for Westerway even though it is nearby (20 kms east of Maydena).
37
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Graph 1. Mean minimum and maximum temperature for Maydena weather station 095063
Graph 2. Mean annual rainfall and mean maximum temperature Maydena weather station 095063
38
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Graph 3. Mean wind speed for 9am and 3pm for Maydena weather station 095063
Winds are generally from the south‐west, west and south (see wind roses below) with mean wind speed highest in spring and summer (Graph 3).
39
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
40
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
41
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
D.2 LANDFORM (TOPOGRAPHY) AND TENURE
D.2.1 TOPOGRAPHY The topography (contours) of the Land (Mining Lease) is shown in Figure A‐3. The centre of the Land is a small hill which is about 500 m AHD. The hill slopes to the east to around 320 m AHD, while to thed nort h an south the slope at the boundary of the Land is around 460 m AHD. The western extent of the Land supports a bench at about 370m AHD which is where the Stockpile Area is to be located (see Figure B‐3).
D.2.2 LAND TENURE The Mining Lease is mostly located on Authority Land in the Permanent Timber Production Zone established by the Forest Management Act 2013 (Figures A‐2 and D‐1). This land is managed by Sustainable Timbers Tasmania (ex‐Forestry Tasmania). Private freehold land occurs at the eastern and south‐eastern extent of the Mining Lease and there is also a casement for a rail reserve (not constructed/operated).
D.3 ROAD NETWORK The one public road of relevance to the proposed quarry development under consideration is Gordon River Main Road. Access to the quarry site will be from Gordon River Main Road along Florentine Road and the access road to the Sunshine Quarry (Sunshine Road) – Figure D‐2. Florentine Road follows a generally north‐westward direction from Gordon River Main Road and eventually links with the Lyell Highway at Wayatinah (Figure D‐2). In the area of the Florentine Road junction, Gordon River Main Road is sealed to a width of 5.6m with around 0.5m wide grassed verges each side. There is a barrier line marking along the road and direction signing installed at the junction and on the Gordon River Main Road approaches. The rural 100km/h urban speed limit applies to Gordon River Main Road. Florentine Road is an unsealed private forestry road, accessible by the public by virtue of the Forest Management Act 2013. It has a general trafficable width of 5.5 ‐ 6.5 m between Gordon River Main Road and the junction of the Styx Road on a fairly flat grade and slight horizontal curvature. It flares to a width of around 35 m at the edge of the seal on Gordon River Main Road. Between the Styx Road junction and the Sunshine Road junction, Florentine Road has a generally flat alignment with mix of straight and curved sections. It has a trafficable width of around 6.0 to 8.0 m.
D.4 LAND USES
D.4.1 RESIDENTIAL DWELLINGS The nearest approved residential dwelling in other ownership is located approximately 3,510 m to the east‐southeast of the Mining Lease (Figure D‐3) and 5,160 m to the initial 10‐year Extraction Area. The next nearest house (in the Maydena township) is 3,795 m (3.795 km) to the east‐southeast of the Mining Lease.
42
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
D.4.2 FORESTRY LAND Most the land (private freehold and public land managed by Sustainable Timbers Tasmania) is managed for timber production. Forest activities can occur at any time of the year and on occasion occur 24 hrs a day, including the carting of logs. Silvicultural practices include ‘clear fell, burn and sow’, and aggregated/variable retention techniques and associated management measures of native animal control, chemical use for weed control and fertiliser application. The activity of forestry is managed and regulated through the forest practices system as legislated by the Forest Practices Act 1985 and Forest Practices Regulations 2004. There is no adjoining land used for non‐timber related crops (e.g., wheat, barley) or livestock grazing.
D.4.3 RESERVED LAND Two Regional Reserves (Florentine River and Humboldt Ridge) and Mt Field National Park occur in the landscape that supports the Mining Lease (Figure D‐1). The quarry should not affect vegetation and other natural values within nearby lands reserved under the Nature Conservation Act 2002 as it does not adjoin any lands protected under this Act.
D.4.4 RECREATION LAND AND FACILITIES No specifically identified or formally classified land (or facilities) for recreational purposes adjoins the Mining Lease. Gordon River Road provides the only sealed road to the Strathgordon village which is located on the shore of Lake Pedder and to the bushwalking, recreational and sightseeing opportunities of the South‐ west Wilderness. Furthermore, the Styx and Florentine Roads provide opportunities for tourists, campers, bushwalkers, and other recreational oriented persons to access the native forests and formal reserves in the region.
D.5 GEOLOGY AND LAND CAPABILITY
D.5.1 GEOLOGY AND SOILS The Nichols Spur area is an ill‐defined, east‐west trending strike ridge of early Ordovician, quartz sandstone (Tim Shea Sandstone) crosses Nichols Spur (Figures A‐1 and D‐4). The boundaries of Mining Lease 2065P/M closely approximate the boundaries of this sandstone unit, as shown on the Maydena mapsheet (see Figure 1 Attachment 4). The Tim Shea Sandstone dips moderately to the N and NE, and overlies the Cambrian Ragged Basin Complex, of sandstone, mudstone, and chert, on the southern flank of Nichols Spur. To the north, the Tim Shea Sandstone is transitionally overlain by the Florentine Valley Formation (siltstone and calcareous mudstone), followed by Ordovician limestones of the Gordon Group, which first crop out about 1 km north of the Tim Shea Sandstone. Areas of low relief, covered by surficial deposits, lie to the E, S and W of Nichols Spur. The Tim Shea Sandstone (unit Cost; Figure D‐4) on Nichols Spur is predominantly of medium to thick bedded, pale grey, very fine‐grained (<0.25 mm) quartz arenite. Angular pebbles and granules of white chert are present near the base. Higher up, there is interbedded dark grey siliceous siltstone and mudstone. Bioturbated horizons and rare fossil gastropods indicate the unit is marine.
43
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
The Mining Lease intersects with Low and Medium Landslide Hazard Planning Bands (Figures C‐2 and D‐5). Soils are predominantly skeletal gravels and rock over the bedrock through to gravelly peats and pebbly clay‐loams in gullies (often colluvium deposits) and on gentle slopes.
D.5.2 LAND CAPABILITY Land capability is not mapped by DPIPWE but based on the Land Capability Handbook6 the land would fall into two categories –
CLASS 6
Land marginally suitable for grazing because of severe limitations. This land has low productivity, high risk of erosion, low natural fertility or other limitations that severely restrict agricultural use. This land should be retained under its natural vegetation cover.
CLASS 7
Land with very severe to extreme limitations which make it unsuitable for agricultural use.
Land in Class 6 is suitable for native forest silviculture (or possibly plantation) while land in Class 7 (i.e., skeletal soil areas and upper‐most slopes of Nichols Spur) is largely unable to support native forest of commercial timber value.
D.5.3 GEOCONSERVATION VALUES The EPA determined that potential effects on geoconservation sites is one of the key issues to be addressed in the EIS for the development, and that one requirement for the EIS is a – ‘Site survey to determine whether features associated with the Junee – Florentine Karst System and/or Risbys Basin Karst System are present within the development footprint of the quarry.’ Dr. Clive R. Calver was requested to attend the site and prepare a report to determine whether features associated with the Junee – Florentine Karst System and/or Risbys Basin Karst System are present within the development footprint of the quarry. Dr Calver interpreted the ‘development footprint’ to mean the area of the Mining Lease, as Fig. B‐4 of the Development Application Supporting Information shows an indicative “Resource Extraction Area” covering most of the ML area. The report prepared by Dr Calver is in Attachment 4. Dr Calver notes that the survey of accessible outcrop on Nichols Spur, in and around Mining Lease 2065P/M, showed only non‐carbonate rock types, and LIDAR imagery showed no sign of karst features, in accord with previous geological mapping. Dr Calver concludes in his report that on all available evidence, no features associated with the Junee‐Florentine and Risbys Basin Karst Systems are present within the area of the Mining Lease.
6 Grose C.J. (Ed) 1999, Land Capability Handbook. Guidelines for the Classification of Agricultural Land in Tasmania. Second Edition, Department of Primary Industries, Water and Environment, Tasmania, Australia.
44
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
D.6 WATERCOURSES AND DRAINAGE The Mining Lease contains two Class 4 streams (north‐eastern corner of the Mining Lease) and a few drainage depressions (Figure D‐6A). Class 3 streams occur at the western and eastern most edges of the Mining Lease – see Waterway and Coastal Area Protection overlay in Figure C‐2. The Mining Lease spans three sub‐catchments according to CFEV mapping, but all three sub‐ catchments report to the Tyenna River.
45
an Diemen
V
$ the LIST © State of Tasmania
an Diemen
V
the LIST © State of Tasmania $
an Diemen V
$
Geological Polygons 25K
an Diemen
V $ the LIST State of Tasmania
an Diemen
V $
an Diemen
V
$ the LIST © State of Tasmania
an Diemen
V
$ the LIST © State of Tasmania Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
D.7 BIODIVERSITY
D.7.1 SURVEY An ecological survey was conducted, and report prepared for the assessment process (Attachment 5). The purpose of the study was to undertake field surveys to identify and document the biodiversity values in an area and its surrounds proposed to be developed for the Sunshine Quarry. The Survey Area included the Mining Lease 2065P/M and other relevant areas associated with the activity, including a section of Sunshine and Florentine Roads for fauna assessment studies (spotlighting). The following tasks were undertaken as part of the ecological assessment:
1. A review of flora and fauna values recorded previously in the area within and adjacent to the Survey Area.
2. The potential for the occurrence of threatened fauna species listed under the TSP Act and the EPBC Act in the Survey Area was evaluated using the –
(a) EPBC Protected Matters Search Tool, and (b) DPIPWE Natural Values Atlas database. 3. Field surveys were undertaken to investigate and verify the potential fauna and flora issues identified in the desktop assessment. The field survey included:
(a) The ground‐truthing and mapping of vegetation communities in the Survey Area, (b) A survey of terrestrial and riparian flowering annual and perennial plants and aquatic flora, including potential habitat for conservation significant species,
(c) Habitat assessment for threatened raptor and mammal species, and (d) The identification and mapping of declared weeds listed on the schedules of the Weed Management Act 1999 within and near the Survey Area.
Mitigation and impact assessments are briefly presented in Attachment 5 to assist the planning process for the development of the quarry. Where relevant, these have been transcribed into the EIS.
D.7.2 VEGETATION COMMUNITIES There are four native forest communities present within the Survey Area;
Eucalyptus amygdalina forest and woodland on sandstone (DAS)
Eucalyptus obliqua dry forest (DOB),
Eucalyptus regnans forest (WRE), and
Eucalyptus obliqua forest with broad‐leaf shrubs (WOB).
Only one native vegetation community listed on Schedule 3A (Threatened native vegetation communities) of the Nature Conservation Act 2002 occurs in the Survey Area –
Eucalyptus amygdalina forest and woodland on sandstone (DAS) No ecological communities listed under section 181 of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 occur in the Survey Area. 53
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Eucalyptus amygdalina forest and woodland on sandstone (DAS) This forest community occurs on sandstones (mainly Triassic sandstones in the south and south‐east but also on sandier Permian sediments and Mathinna sediments in the north‐east) or sandstone derived soils. In this case, the substrate is a quartz sandstone and chert‐clast conglomerate (Tim Shea Sandstone). In undisturbed areas there is an intermediate layer mainly consisting of Leptospermum species (commonly L. glaucescens) and Banksia marginata. For taller forest areas, where the soil layer is deeper, and a shrub layer is present it is mainly comprised of Monotoca glauca, Leptospermum glaucescens, Acacia mucronata and Banksia marginata, and only in the wettest areas is there shrubs of Zieria arborescens and Nematolepis squamea. Common heath and scrub species in shorter sections of this forest community include Oxylobium ellipticum, Allocasuarina zyphyrea, Pultenaea juniperina, Leptospermum scoparium, Aotus ericoides and Epacris impressa. Of the 11.22 hectares in the Mining Lease 11.11 hectares will at some stage of the quarry lifetime will be disturbed. The rehabilitation of the threatened vegetation community Eucalyptus amygdalina forest and woodland on sandstone (DAS) will occur progressively as areas where the community occupied become unnecessary for quarry extraction and related activities. The following images depict the various forms of this forest type present in the Survey Area.
Eucalyptus amygdalina forest on sandstone adjacent to Sunshine Road, north of the Stockpile Area Access to the Stockpile Area is on left of image (arrow).
54
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Eucalyptus amygdalina recruitment in the disturbed (existing pit) at the Stockpile Area
Eucalyptus amygdalina regrowth in a previously disturbed area at the Stockpile Area
55
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Young regrowth Eucalyptus amygdalina forest on sandstone (tea‐ tree midstorey) south of the Stockpile Area
Fire affected Eucalyptus amygdalina forest on sandstone on the slopes where the initial active pit is to be established. Previous quarry works (rock for roads) have already occurred in this location.
The Natural and Cultural Heritage Division (2015) Guidelines for Natural Values Surveys ‐ Terrestrial Development Proposals indicates that – ‘For any threatened communities, information should be collected on the current extent and condition (including spatial context, relative species diversity, canopy health, signs of weeds or disease and previous disturbance, age structure and evidence of recruitment etc.).
56
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Representative photographs of each community should also be taken and provided in the report.’ The following table contains information about the condition of the forest community to complement the imagery provided above.
Attribute Comments
The species composition of the forest is typical for the community in the relative species D’Entrecasteaux (IBRA IV) and Southern Ranges (IBRA V) Bioregions – the facies diversity present is scrubby to heathy (midstorey layer dominance of Leptospermum and Acacia species).
The forest is regrowth, with two age classes present – areas of very young regrowth in the stockpile area and on the upper skeletal slopes (fire scorched) age structure with mature trees (no hollow development or canopy senescence) present where there are deeper soils and – these are the areas scheduled for harvesting. The forest is not old‐growth, nor does it support old‐growth elements.
Canopy health is high (with flowering and seed set occurring) in tall forest areas, canopy health with moderate to low canopy health in scorched/burnt areas.
signs of weeds No weeds or root‐rot fungus appear to be present (based on observations). or disease
Fire (wildfire and scorch from a clearfall, burn and sow operation – see Figure 3B) has significantly affected the forest community on the upper soil‐skeletal slopes where the active face is proposed to be opened. Scorched trees have previous epicormic bud growth, with some severely burnt trees regenerating from disturbance lignotubers. Previous quarrying activities (rock extraction for roads etc.) have impacted the Stockpile/Crushing Area (there is an old pit, previously active faces, sediment pond, abandoned stockpiles and access tracks – some overgrown).
The areas of this forest type which support commercial timber are scheduled to proposed be harvested in TN006C – see Figure 3B. Some areas have been harvested/burnt disturbance during previous silvicultural activities (see Figure 3B).
evidence of There is recruitment of the canopy species (Eucalyptus amygdalina) and shrub recruitment species in disturbed/open areas (e.g., previous quarry working area).
57
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
D.7.3 THREATENED FLORA SPECIES No flora species listed on the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 or the Threatened Species Protection Act 1995 were recorded within the Survey Area.
D.7.4 DECLARED AND ENVIRONMENTAL WEEDS Three plant species listed as a Declared Weed on the Tasmanian Weed Management Act 1999 or as a Weed of National Significance on the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 were recorded on or near the Survey Area –
blackberry (Rubus fruticosus)7,
Californian thistle (Cirsium arvense), and
Slender thistle (Carduus pycnocephalus). Other pasture and environmental weeds were observed sporadically across the Mining Lease, most commonly in association with roads, roadside drains, and forestry landings –
spear thistle (Cirsium vulgare),
foxglove (Digitalis purpurea),
great mullein (Verbascum thapsus), and
pasture grasses and herbs (e.g., Holcus lanatus, Prunella vulgaris, Hypochaeris radicata) Like any extractive activity, weeds have the potential to contaminate the product transported from the quarry which may cause fresh outbreaks to occur at locations distant to the quarry.
D.7.5 PHYTOPHTHORA CINNAMOMI (PC) The Survey Area is not within a PC Management Area8. Samples to directly survey for PC were not collected. Instead, areas within and around the Survey Area were inspected in detail for signs of infection by PC which included areas of water accumulation such as spoon drains, culverts, and other drainage features.
No plant ‘symptom’ evidence of the pathogen was observed, probably because there are very few susceptible species present (outside the heathy Eucalyptus amygdalina forest on sandstone community) and that wet forest occurs across most of the Survey Area and surrounding region. Wet forest habitats that have tall dense midstorey layers of shrubs and trees are generally not conducive to generating the warm soil temperatures required by the pathogen (spores) to germinate and grow.
7 Blackberry was observed sporadically in the Survey Area. 8 See Schahinger, R., Rudman T., and Wardlaw, T. J. (2003). Conservation of Tasmanian Plant Species & Communities threatened by Phytophthora cinnamomi. Strategic Regional Plan for Tasmania. Technical Report 03/03, Nature Conservation Branch, Department of Primary Industries, Water and Environment, Hobart
58
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
D.7.6 THREATENED FAUNA SPECIES The ecological assessment conducted as part of the assessment process (Attachment 5) provides detailed information about the methods of survey and assessment results for threatened fauna species. A summary is provided below for key/relevant species.
Wedge‐tailed eagle There are several nests known in the region, none of which occur within 1,000 m of the Survey Area (being the Mining Lease). The Mining Lease occurs in the middle of an industrial landscape assigned to permanent timber production managed by Sustainable Timbers Tasmania and private forest companies. The forest practices system requires that eagle nest surveys be conducted by suitably qualified and experienced person to determine whether other, unknown nests (or potential habitat) exist within or near harvesting activities. The Mining Lease and surrounds have previously been included in several eagle nest searches conducted as part of the forest practices system for the certification of forest practices plans. Most recently, Sustainable Timbers Tasmania (STT) conducted an eagle nest search of the area for FPP BSP0085 which included the Survey Area (see section B.5.1 Wedge‐tailed eagle in Attachment 5) and surrounding areas. STT will continue to conduct eagle nest searches within the region as forestry coupes are allocated to harvesting schedules. Any eagle nests identified during those searches would be added to the Natural Values Atlas (maintained by DPIPWE). Consequently, no further searches were conducted by VDC because the eagle nest search conducted recently has currency and future eagle nest searches will be conducted in the area by STT. The entire Survey Area represents foraging habitat for this species.
Masked owl Within the Survey Area there are very few trees greater than 55m tall and only a few areas where tree height is greater than 45m tall – these are in streamside reserves left by logging activities. Each tree in the >55m height category was checked for signs of activity of use by masked owl at their base – no evidence of substantial hollow development in any tree that could be used by masked owl was observed (noting that some hollows may have gone undetected due to the height of the trees) nor was any evidence of masked owl activity observed (e.g., whitewash, pellets, bones/skin of prey items). There are no chimneys or chutes (snapped/burnt out tree stump bases) present within the Survey Area which could be used by masked owl to nest. There are only 3 known nests for the species in the Southern Ranges IBRA 5 Bioregion (Natural Values Atlas data, see Attachment 5), with most observations and nests occurring eastward in low elevation areas with more fertile habitats (e.g., dolerite, alluvial/clay, and basalt derived soils such as Ouse, Bothwell, Hamilton, and the Midlands region generally) or coastal regions (e.g., Franklin, Bruny Island). Nests are also known further north on the Central Highlands in dry forests, woodlands, and open scrub environments. 59
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Tyenna River Freshwater Snail (Phrantela pupiformis) This freshwater snail is limited to the Tyenna River and its tributaries east of The Needles. There are several recorded locations of this species in the region around the Survey Area (Figure 7 of Attachment 5) – all associated with streams and creeklines such as the Tyenna River. The EIS PSG’s require comment about water quality flowing from the as noted by the below – ‘o There are records of the Tyenna River freshwater snail from three tributaries leading from the quarry site to the Tyenna River and it is likely there are populations of this species in other streams within 5 kilometres of the site. Freshwater aquatic fauna are susceptible to impacts from changes in water quality from chemical runoff and increased sediment load from land based developments such as quarries. Management of runoff from the quarry operation must be described in the EIS such that it will minimise the risk of impacts to aquatic fauna.’ The gullies and drainage depressions within the Survey Area are ephemeral, other than the large creeks at the western and eastern most areas of the Mining Lease – these are not to be quarried or directly affected by the quarrying activity. Water flowing from activity disturbed areas, and those under rehabilitation, will be managed to remove sediment prior to discharge through native vegetation into a gully or drainage depression where the water would report to a watercourse and then the Tyenna River. There is likely to be no impact to this species from the quarry development.
Tasmanian devil and spotted‐tailed quoll Both species are known to occur in the region around the Survey Area –
A single devil was observed through camera observations in the Survey Area, while none were observed during spotlights. No dens attributable to the Tasmanian devil were recorded in or around the Survey Area during the surveys.
Spotted‐tailed quolls were recorded during spotlight surveys on Gordon River Road (near and at Maydena) and on Florentine Road (winter months only). No spotted‐ tailed quolls were observed via camera methods. No dens attributable to the Spotted‐tailed quoll were recorded in or around the Survey Area during the surveys but there are numerous but localised denning opportunities within fallen timber (mainly woodpiles from forestry related activities) in the Survey Area.
60
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
PART E – POTENTIAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS AND MITIGATION MEASURES The following sections describe and assess the potential environmental impacts that may be caused by the activity for themes and the mitigation measures to be applied to minimise the risk of causing environmental nuisance.
E.1 AIR EMISSIONS ‐ DUST The primary air emission associated with quarry operations is dust. Dust can be a nuisance to neighbours and may be a safety hazard to quarry employees. Generally, the emission of visible dust should be confined within the boundary of the premises, except in remote areas where the effects beyond the site may not cause an environmental nuisance or harm. There are other sources ofd dust an fugitive air emissions in the surrounding landscape, including agricultural uses (forestry – harvesting, burning), quarries, conservation management activities (fuel reduction burns, ecological burns) and road use (unsealed).
E.1.1 DUST SOURCES FROM QUARRY ACTIVITY Potential sources of dust from the quarry operation are:
The blasting, drilling, and ripping of rock during dry windy conditions (especially in the summer months),
The stripping of topsoil (extremely limited as the amount of topsoil is low),
The movement of rock and gravel within the quarry by machinery,
Crushing and/or vibratory screening of rock material,
Access road (gravel) use in and out of the quarry, and
Stockpiled gravel and fines. The most likely source of dust is from quarry internal road use and the act of crushing/screening material. Winds tend to be westerly to south‐westerly with southern breezes in the afternoon (especially in summer) which may push dust emissions to the north‐east and east of the site. There are no residential dwellings within 3.5 km of the Land (Figure D‐5). The management of dust on the site in addition to the large distances to the nearest sensitive use makes dust nuisance a very unlikely scenario. Loads will be dampened or covered by a tarpaulin (water sourced on site from sediment ponds or via a water cart accessing water off the site).
E.1.2 MITIGATION MEASURES
Crusher and screens Standard industry practice for dust control, which will be applied at the activity, is to dampen material prior to crushing and/or to also have installed sprayers on the output chute to minimise dust emissions from an otherwise dry product9. Mobile modern crushers have such features installed and there is a
9 Management Measure 2. Standard industry practice for dust control, which will be applied at the activity, is to dampen material prior to crushing and/or to also have installed sprayers on the output chute to minimise dust emissions from an otherwise dry product. 61
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement water source available – water from the sediment basin or the use of a dedicated water tanker – to operate these dust suppression measures whilst crushing.
General dust suppression measures General measures that will be used to suppress dust if it does occur in substantial volumes that may cause environmental harm (e.g., during periods of strong northerly and/or north‐westerly winds in summer) include the following industry standard environmental practices for quarries10:
Watering of internal roads or the use of a dust suppressant as required during dry and windy conditions,
Retention of vegetation along the access road corridor where possible,
Retention of (when possible) around the quarry working area to reduce the likelihood of strong winds liberating fine particles into the air,
Utilisation of slash/mulch obtained from cleared areas to stabilise the soil surface and to limit wind action on dust generation at the soil surface,
Covering of trucks with tarpaulins and/or load dampening, and
Minimising the geographic extent of areas of exposed soil. Water can be accessed from the on‐site sediment ponds or via a dedicated water tanker.
E.2 SURFACE WATER MANAGEMENT
E.2.1 EXISTING DRAINAGE AND AQUATIC ENVIRONMENT The Mining Lease contains two Class 4 streams (using Forest Practices Code definitions) and a few drainage depressions with two major streams at its eastern and western extent (Figure 6B). The receiving aquatic environment (and aquatic life it supports) is natural to partly modified and drains water from land managed for forestry related activities, conservation, and other extractive industries. There are downstream water users (e.g., aquaculture, agriculture, recreational fishing) and the Tyenna River (to which all the drainage in the Mining Lease reports) flows eastwards where it reports to the Derwent River near Karanja (‘Norton Neck’).
E.2.2 SOURCES OF SEDIMENT All disturbed areas have the potential to generate sediment in runoff during heavy (high intensity) and/or sustained periods of rainfall. Sources of sediment include the access track into and out of the quarry, the area where material is crushed/screened/stockpiled and the active face.
10 Management Measure 3. General measures to manage dust include watering of internal roads as required during dry and windy conditions, retention of vegetation along the access road corridor where possible, retention of native vegetation around the quarry working area to reduce the likelihood of strong winds liberating fine particles into the air, covering of trucks with tarpaulins and/or load dampening and minimising the geographic extent of areas of exposed soil.
62
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
E.2.3 STORMWATER AND WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES The QCP provides the following water management practices and principles which will be applied at Sunshine Quarry. Drainage
Drainage works will, when possible, seek to mimic natural drainage patterns and utilise natural drainage lines with retained vegetation.
Cut‐off drains or diversion bunds/banks will be installed above (i) pit excavations (see Figure B‐2 for at Year 10 drain location) and (ii) the Stockpile Area (see Figure B‐3) to prevent surface flowing water from entering the site and adding to erosion problems. Cut‐off drains will discharge into vegetated areas that then flow into natural drainage lines, or via a level sill that distributes run‐off across a stable area.
Contour banks and contour drains may be used, if necessary, to capture and slow down water that would otherwise gather momentum as it travels down the slope.
Working areas will be kept in as dry condition as possible (mud areas should be avoided), and machinery should avoid be driven through flowing water.
Rate of run‐off increases dramatically following vegetation removal, hence the total area exposed will be kept to a minimum.
Tracks and the access road will be constructed to control the grade, have table drains installed, and with regular cross drains or culverts installed. Culverts should discharge into natural drainage lines that are stable and vegetated via properly constructed spillways, ripraps, or culverts – See Figure 4 from the QCP, reproduced below, that shows the use of riprap at end of culvert to slow the speed of water from the culvert prior to it entering vegetated areas – this is standard practice for unsealed roads in forested areas (e.g., forestry roads).
63
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Sediment Control
All run‐off from working areas, will be collected in settling ponds before being discharged from the premises. Run‐off should be directed through vegetation prior to reaching any watercourse to enable further filtering of sediment. The vegetation could be slash pinned to the ground, or weighed down with rocks, that has otherwise been cut from opened areas.
Sediment will be removed from settling ponds as required (see section E.2.5 SEDIMENT POND SIZING AND CLEANOUT RATE), so that excess capacity is available for the next storm event.
Settling ponds should discharge into natural drainage lines that are stable and vegetated via properly constructed spillways, ripraps, or culverts.
Accepted methods for removal of sediment from run‐off include settling ponds (see Figure 5 and Plate 5 from the QCP, reproduced below), aggregate filters, and wetlands (shallow ponds planted with suitable swamp plants). Sediment ponds are the preferred method of sediment capture for the Sunshine Quarry – see Figures B‐2 and B‐3 for sediment pond locations and point discharge locations.
64
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
E.2.4 WATER MANAGEMENT MEASURES The following surface water management will be applied –
Stormwater Cut‐off drains will serve to keep stormwater separate from wastewater. Cut‐off drains or diversion bunds/banks will be installed above (i) pit excavations (see Figure B‐2 for ‘at Year 10’ drain locations) and (ii) the Stockpile Area (see Figure B‐3) to prevent surface flowing water from entering the site and adding to erosion problems. Cut‐off drains will discharge into vegetated areas which will then flow into natural drainage lines, or via a level sill that distributes run‐off across a stable area. The Divert Upslope Water information sheet in Attachment 6 describes how to establish and maintain diversion/upslope drains. Drainage of stormwater will, when possible, seek to mimic natural drainage patterns and utilise natural drainage lines with retained vegetation.
General measures – wastewater Attachment 6 contains general Soil and Water Management Fact Sheets produced and distributed by NRM South for building and construction sites. The sheets in Attachment 6 contain information that is relevant to some aspects of the works being conducted at the quarry, including in‐pit check dams, use of sediment fences and fibre rolls, and erosion control blankets/mats. The measures will be applied and maintained as and when they are required in the active quarry face and Stockpile/Crushing Area to manage surface water flow and sediment capture.
Sediment pond sizing and cleanout rates – wastewater Sediment ponds are a key component of any surface water management system. The quarry will use ponds to collect and treat water from disturbed areas to remove sediment prior to discharge to the environment. To achieve this, run‐off from working areas (i.e., wastewater) will be collected and treated for sediment removal before being discharged to the environment. Pond discharge will be directed through vegetation prior to reaching any watercourse to enable further filtering of sediment. For the purposes of this runoff analysis the Sunshine Quarry site will be treated as two catchment areas (the Quarry active face area and the Stockpile/Crushing Area). The Quarry active face area will be further divided into three distinct temporal catchment areas (based on quarry stages) which are:
Extent at year 1
Extent at year 2
Extent at year 5
Tc (travel time of the overland flow path) has been calculated using the Bransby Williams formula using inputs from the site mining plans (see Figures B‐2 and B‐3): Tc = 91L/(A0.1 * Se0.2)
Tc values are presented in Table 3.
65
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Table 3. Time of concentration calculations
Time of Equal area Se Catchment Area A (ha) Flow Line L (km) Fall concentration (m/km) Tc (min) Quarry ‐ Y1 0.87 0.05 20 400 1 Quarry ‐ Y2 2.09 0.11 40 364 3 Quarry ‐ Y3 to 5 3.82 0.27 60 222 7 Stockpile/Crushing 2.06 0.17 29 171 5 Area Intensity is derived from the Intensity Frequency Duration chart for centre of the quarry from the Bureau of Meteorology website (BOM, 2020) using the estimated Tc as the duration value. A 1 in 20‐ year reoccurrence event curve is used. The runoff coefficient for this land will be at the dmid en of the scale (0.35). Flow rate (Q) is calculated using the following formula: Q = (C*I*A)/360 Flow rates are presented in Table 4.
Table 4. Flow rate calculation
Coefficient of Intensity of rain Catchment Flow rate Q Catchment runoff C event I (mm/hr) Area A (ha) (m3/s)
Quarry ‐ Y1 0.35 132.0 0.87 0.112 Quarry ‐ Y2 0.35 96.4 2.09 0.196 Quarry ‐ Y3 to 5 0.35 71.1 3.82 0.264 Stockpile/Crushing Area 0.35 81.4 2.06 0.163
The sediment retention pond from both the quarry and stockpile/crushing area will discharge into vegetated land. All drainage eventually reports to the Tyenna River via either a southern or northern sub‐catchment (See Figures D‐6a and D‐6b). Table 5 shows the required retention basin areas, design surface areas and design capacities. Design surface areas are based on maximum retention requirements (or shortest flow Line L (km)) to provide an adequate factor of safety.
66
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Table 5. Required surface area compared to actual surface area
Retention Design pond Design pond Flow rate Q Basin Area Catchment surface area capacity (m3) (m3/s) from WSUD (m2) (ave 1m deep) Fig 3.2 (m2)
Quarry ‐ Y1 0.112 45 45 (4.5mx10m) 45 Quarry ‐ Y2 0.196 80 80 (8mx10m) 80 105 Quarry ‐ Y3 to 5 0.264 105 (10.5mx10m) 105 Stockpile/Crushing Area 0.163 65 65 (6.5mx10m) 65
Desired clean out frequency (Fr (yrs) is calculated using the below formula and assumes a sediment loading rate (Lo) of 5m3/ha/yr which has been accepted by the EPA for other similar quarries. Clean out frequencies are calculated assuming a general storage of 50% of total capacity. St = A x R x Lo x Fr or Fr = St / (A x R x Lo)
Table 6. Desired cleanout frequency of sediment basins
Assume storage is 50% of total capacity Sediment Desired Capture Contributing Storage Volume loading clean out Catchment efficiency catchment (50% Design rate Lo frequency (R) A (ha) Capacity) (m3) (m3/ha/yr) (Fr (yrs) Quarry ‐ Y1 0.9 0.870 22 5 5.6 Quarry ‐ Y2 0.9 2.090 40 5 4.3 Quarry ‐ Y3 to 5 0.9 3.820 52 5 3.0 Stockpile/Crushing 0.9 2.060 32 5 3.5 Area
The sediment pond for the quarry (active face at Year 10) has a minimum clean out frequency of 3 years after year 3. To provide an adequate factor of safety this basin should be cleaned out every 1 to 2 years depending on sediment capture. The sediment pond for the quarry should not need to be cleaned out during the first 2 years of quarrying as the sediment pond should cater for this entire extraction level.
67
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
The Stockpile/Crushing Area will need to have the pond associated with that area cleaned out every 3.5 years, so a conservative 3 yearly cycle should be adopted.
E.2.5 SUMMARY OF MITIGATION MEASURES The below aspects of the site and the activity can be summarised for water management practices:
No chemicals, fuels or oils will be stored within the pit overnight, and refuelling of quarry equipment will be carried out using a mobile bund11,
Cut‐off drains and drains around and internal to the quarry will be established and maintained where required12,
The surface of the access road and internal haul roads will be gravel. They will be constructed in accordance with the principles described in the Forest Practices Code and QCP. Like any unsealed road, there will be ongoing maintenance to ensure the surface is fit for purpose, drains are kept unblocked and that culverts are working,
Buffers will be applied to watercourses (not drainage depressions) of no less than 5 m (measured horizontally), and
Sediment accumulation rates in the sediment pond(s) will be monitored and the maintenance program revised as required – conducted quarterly. Accumulated sediment will be reused as part of the saleable product or for application onto disused areas as part of site rehabilitation13.
E.3 LIQUID EFFLUENT There will be no permanent toilet or other amenities provided on site – a portaloo may be made available during long campaigns (more than 2 weeks) at the quarry. Its contents would be removed and disposed of by a suitably licensed operator at an approved location.
E.4 NOISE EMISSIONS
E.4.1 BACKGROUND Tarkarri Engineering conducted an environmental noise, ground vibration and air blast overpressure assessment for the quarry. Specifically, the potential impacts of drilling and blasting, and crushing/screening, were considered in the assessment and mitigation measures recommended. The assessment report prepared by Tarkarri Engineering forms part of this EIS and is in Attachment 3.
11 Management Measure 4. No chemicals, fuels or oils will be stored within the pit overnight, and refuelling of quarry equipment will be carried out using a mobile bund. 12 Management Measure 5. Cut‐off drains and drains around and internal to the quarry will be installed and maintained. 13 Management Measure 6. Sediment accumulation rates in the sediment pond will be monitored (at least quarterly) and the maintenance program revised as required. Accumulated sediment will be reused as part of the saleable product or for application onto disused areas as part of site rehabilitation
68
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
E.4.2 EXISTING LANDSCAPE NOISE SOURCES Noise sources in the landscape surrounding the land where the activity will occur have been identified as follows:
farm machinery adjacent properties,
vehicles and trucks using Florentine Road and roads,
wind in plantation and native forest,
timber harvesting operations, reforestation activities, and forest management activities (e.g., fertiliser application, vermin control, tree pruning and thinning), and
bird and insect life.
E.4.3 QUARRY EMISSION SOURCES The major noise sources from the Sunshine Quarry activity have been identified as follows:
drill rig operation and associated blasting operations,
stockpiling of soil into bunds,
clearing, mulching, and stockpiling of vegetation,
crushing, and screening of material, and
use of ancillary equipment; excavators, crushers, screens (vibratory/mechanised), loader and truck movements.
E.4.4 SENSITIVE RECEPTORS There is no township or any residential dwellings within 3.5 kms of the quarry.
E.4.5 ENVIRONMENTAL NOISE ASSESSMENT Tarkarri Engineering was commissioned to conduct an environmental noise, ground vibration and air blast overpressure assessment for the quarry. An environmental noise emission criterion for operations at Sunshine Quarry was developed based on Quarry Code of Practice requirements and ambient noise monitoring conducted in the vicinity of the quarry which was analysed in accordance with the Tasmanian Noise Measurement Procedures Manual 2008 (TNMPM). Operations at the quarry would be within the day period specified in the QCP. An environmental noise emission criterion for operations at Sunshine Quarry was developed based on QCP requirements and is as follows: ‐ Day: 45 dBA (LAeq,10min). Predicted noise levels from operational scenarios at the Sunshine Quarry are well below 45 dBA at all sensitive receivers.
E.4.6 GROUND VIBRATION AND AIR BLAST OVERPRESSURE Prediction of ground vibration and air blast overpressure was conducted using scaled regression equations developed by the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), a bureau of the United States Department of the Interior.
69
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Blasting would occur on average 3 to 4 times per annum. Predicted ground vibration and air blast overpressure levels are well below the assessment criteria with a charge mass/delay of 80 kg and would remain so at charge mass levels well in excess of 80 kg.
E.4.7 FLY ROCK Modern blast techniques and the use of a suitably qualified and insured engineer/blast contractor minimise the risk of generating fly‐rock. There are many examples of quarries being located adjacent to and within highly agricultural landscapes – the fly rock risk can be suitably managed and mitigated. The blast contractor is responsible for conducting a risk assessment and safety audit of the quarry as part of each blast. This includes the drilling of the holes for explosives, handling explosives, operation of detonation devices and the safe detonation of the charges. The Lessee or their delegated agent will receive a copy of this risk assessment and safety audit and associated documentation that supports the placement of drill holes, levels of explosives used and the detonation devices.
E.4.8 MITIGATION MEASURES Mitigation recommendations are not required because environmental harm from noise, ground vibration and ABO emissions from the activity is highly unlikely.
E.5 WASTE MANAGEMENT The activity will not generate Controlled waste, nor will it generate rock/soil/overburden ‘solid wastes’ as all of the material excavated will be used in the product sold or for the rehabilitation of benches, slopes etc. Machinery related ‘solid wastes’, such as oil filters, will generally not be produced as machinery servicing will not occur in the quarry (except for emergency repairs or service requirements).
E.5.1 MATERIAL SOURCES Machinery related ‘solid wastes’, such as oil filters, will generally not be produced as machinery servicing will not occur in the quarry (except for emergency repairs or minor service requirements).
E.5.2 MITIGATION MEASURES The below aspects of the site and the activity can be summarised for waste management practices:
No machinery servicing, except for emergency repairs or minor service requirements (e.g., a filter change), will be conducted within the quarry. Wastes generated from machinery repairs will be disposed of in an appropriate bin near the entrance to the quarry for future disposal at a permitted refuse disposal site14, and
Waste generated by workers from general refuse (e.g., lunch wrappers) at the quarry will be collected in waste bins provided on‐site for general refuse – they will be locked and be animal‐
14 Management Measure 7. No machinery servicing, except for emergency repairs or minor service requirements, will be conducted within the quarry. Wastes generated from machinery repairs will be disposed of in an appropriate bin near the entrance to the quarry for future disposal at a permitted refuse disposal site.
70
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
proof to prevent native animals (e.g., possums, devils) accessing them. Bins will be emptied at least once per fortnight and the material disposed of at a permitted refuse disposal site15.
E.6 DANGEROUS AND/OR HAZARDOUS GOODS The storage, handling and transport of dangerous goods, explosives and dangerous substances must comply with the requirements of relevant State Acts and any regulations.
E.6.1 MATERIAL SOURCES Fuel and oil will be used in the quarry to operate and maintain functional machinery. There will be no permanent built storage of fuels, oils, lubricants or any other dangerous good in the quarry. Chemicals for weed spraying be used (but not stored) in the quarry. They will be handled, used, and disposed of in accordance with the manufacturer’s directions and relevant regulations.
E.6.2 MITIGATION MEASURES The below aspects of the site and the activity can be summarised for dangerous and/or hazardous good management practices:
Weed spraying chemicals will be handled, used, and disposed of in accordance with the manufacturer’s directions and relevant regulations16,
When in the quarry, fuel and oil containers will be stored at least 10 m from any drain or sediment pond and will be bunded (moveable bunds) to a capacity at least 1.5 times the volume of the container17, and
One hydrocarbon spill kit will be stored at the quarry to use in the event of a spillage. Staff will be trained in how to use the kit and the kit will be replaced as and when required18.
E.7 WEED MANAGEMENT
E.7.1 MATERIAL SOURCES AND POTENTIAL IMPACTS Three plant species listed as a Declared Weed on the Tasmanian Weed Management Act 1999 or as a Weed of National Significance on the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 were recorded on or near the Land –
blackberry (Rubus fruticosus),
Californian thistle (Cirsium arvense), and
15 Management Measure 8. Waste generated by workers from general refuse (e.g., lunch wrappers) at the quarry will be collected in waste bins provided on‐site for general refuse ‐ they will be locked and be animal‐ proof to prevent native animals (e.g., possums, devils) accessing them. Bins will be emptied at least once per fortnight and the material disposed of at a permitted refuse disposal site. 16 Management Measure 9. Weed spraying chemicals will be handled, used and disposed of in accordance with the manufacturer’s directions and relevant regulations. 17 Management Measure 10. When in the quarry, fuel and oil containers will be stored at least 10 m from any drain or sediment pond and will be bunded (moveable bunds) to a capacity at least 1.5 times the volume of the container. 18 Management Measure 11. One hydrocarbon spill kit will be stored at the quarry to use in the event of a spillage. Staff will be trained in how to use the kit and the kit will be replaced as and when required. 71
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Slender thistle (Carduus pycnocephalus).
Other pasture and environmental weeds were observed sporadically across the Land, most commonly in association with roads, roadside drains, and forestry landings –
spear thistle (Cirsium vulgare),
foxglove (Digitalis purpurea),
great mullein (Verbascum thapsus), and
pasture grasses and herbs (e.g., Holcus lanatus, Prunella vulgaris, Hypochaeris radicata) Like any extractive activity, weeds have the potential to contaminate the product transported from the quarry which may cause fresh outbreaks to occur at locations distant to the quarry.
E.7.2 MITIGATION MEASURES The below aspects of the site and then activity ca be summarised for weed management practices:
Weed and Pathogen Management Plan A Weed and Pathogen Management Plan will be developed and implemented as part of the quarry operation. The plan will be guided by the Weed and Disease Planning and Hygiene Guidelines ‐ Preventing the spread of weeds and diseases in Tasmania (Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment, 2015)19. The objectives of the Weed and Pathogen Management Plan (WPMP) will be based on the following:
record and map the occurrence of weeds within the Lease, with a focus on those areas actively being quarried,
identify and implement management measures within the Lease to – o minimise the risk of spreading propagules of weeds within the Lease and to locations outside the Lease,
o control and/or eradicate weeds where practicable, o ensure that rehabilitation works are not compromised by the occurrence or growth of weeds, and to
o minimise the risk of introducing soil‐borne pathogens into the Lease.
monitor and review the results of on‐ground actions as required, and to
establish a mechanism to review the plan, including its objectives and implementation.
19 Management Measure 12. A Weed and Pathogen Management Plan will be developed and implemented as part of the quarry operation guided by the Weed and Disease Planning and Hygiene Guidelines ‐ Preventing the spread of weeds and diseases in Tasmania (Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment, 2015).
72
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
The objectives, responsibilities, and management actions of the WPMP will need to adapt to new information about the site as it becomes available. The WPMP will be reviewed as required with revised versions provided to the EPA for approval.
Weed Spraying Program A Weed Spraying Program (WSP) will be developed using the document ‐ ‘Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment (2015). Weed and Disease Planning and Hygiene Guidelines ‐ Preventing the spread of weeds and diseases in Tasmania ‐ and in consultation with a weed spraying contractor who will implement the program20. The WSP will be reviewed each year and updated as new information about the occurrence of weeds in the quarry become available.
Clean Machinery Policy Transport trucks and light vehicles pose less risk to the transportation of weed propagules if they remain on the hard surface of the roads and the gravel loading area and that these areas are managed to exclude weeds. The highest risk of transporting propagules into the quarry is from heavy machinery, such as excavators, as these can carry large clods of dirt and mud in which seed propagules can be lodged. Heavy machinery will be brought into the quarry in a clean condition; free of weed propagules, clods of dirt and vegetative matter21.
E.8 FLORA AND FAUNA
E.8.1 VEGETATION Only one native vegetation community listed on Schedule 3A (Threatened native vegetation communities) of the Nature Conservation Act 2002 occurs in the Survey Area – Eucalyptus amygdalina forest and woodland on sandstone (DAS)22. Of the 11.22 hectares of this forest community in the Mining Lease 11.11 hectares will at some stage of the quarry lifetime will be disturbed and regenerated. The Forest Practices Authority records 792 hectares23 of this forest type within the relevant bioregion per the ‘Monitoring of the maintenance of the permanent native forest estate’ so the 11.11 hectares to be disturbed represents only 1.4% of the total extent in the bioregion. No avoidance or mitigation measures are proposed because –
1. The forest community is not wilderness or old‐growth (it lacks any old‐growth elements), 2. The forest community will be regenerated back on‐site post‐disturbance, and
20 Management Measure 13. A Weed Spraying Program will be developed in consultation with a weed spraying contractor who will implement the program. 21 Management Measure 14. Heavy machinery will be brought into the quarry in a clean condition; free of weed propagules, clods of dirt and vegetative matter. 22 Eucalyptus amygdalina forest and woodland on sandstone – a Vulnerable community. 23 1996 dataset records 798 hectares with 6 hectares cleared and converted between 1996 and 2020 (see Forest Practices Authority webpage, www.fpa.tas.gov.au).
73
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
3. The scale of the impact to the forest community is negligible relative to the spatial geographic extent in the relevant bioregion. The rehabilitation of the threatened vegetation community Eucalyptus amygdalina forest and woodland on sandstone (DAS) will occur progressively as areas where the community occupied become unnecessary for quarry extraction and related activities. Rehabilitation works should utilise Eucalyptus amygdalina seed obtained from trees at the Survey Area and immediate surrounds to maintain the genetic provenance of the parent trees.
E.8.2 THREATENED FLORA SPECIES No flora species listed on the Tasmanian Threatened Species Protection Act 1995 or the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 were observed on the Land during the site surveys. Given this, no specific management, mitigation, or offset measures are proposed.
E.8.3 THREATENED FAUNA SPECIES
Tasmanian devil and spotted‐tailed quoll Both species are known to occur in the region around the Survey Area. Accordingly, the following management approach was recommended in the ecological study report –
areas needing to be cleared of vegetation to enable quarry activities should first be surveyed to identify if dens or woodpiles supporting dens are present. The pre‐clearance surveys must be completed by a suitably qualified person(s) and any dens or suspected dens removed via a procedure approved by the EPA,
If dens or potential dens are observed or suspected during operations a 10 m no machinery buffer will be applied to the den or suspected den and expert advice sought,
Internal road speed will be limited to 20 km/hr from dusk to dawn, and
Truck drivers will be advised to take particular care while driving between dusk and dawn24.
E.9 SITE CONTAMINATION
E.9.1 MATERIAL SOURCES The quarry area has not been historically used for the storage or disposal of contaminated wastes including soil.
24 Management Measure 15: For Tasmanian devil and spotted‐tailed quoll, the following management approach will be applied – • areas needing to be cleared of vegetation to enable quarry activities should first be surveyed to identify if dens or woodpiles supporting dens are present. The pre‐clearance surveys must be completed by a suitably qualified person(s) and any dens or suspected dens removed via a procedure approved by the EPA, • If dens or potential dens are observed or suspected during operations a 10 m no machinery buffer will be applied to the den or suspected den and expert advice sought, • Internal road speed will be limited to 20 km/hr from dusk to dawn, and • Truck drivers will be advised to take particular care while driving between dusk and dawn.
74
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
E.9.2 MITIGATION MEASURES No soil/contaminant surveys or investigations are proposed.
E.10 COASTAL ZONE AND MARINE AREAS No part of the extractive industry lies within 300 metres of the coast nor in the marine environment generally. There will be no impact to the coastal zone from the quarry development.
E.11 TRAFFIC
E.11.1 MATERIAL SOURCES The existing access (Sunshine Road) from Florentine Road will be used for the activity. Potential sources of dust, noise, water management and biodiversity impacts (e.g., weeds) are considered under the relevant theme elsewhere in Part D.
E.11.2 MITIGATION MEASURES The below aspects of the site and the activity can be summarised for access traffic management:
At the Sunshine Road junction with Florentine Road, the available sight distance to the west along Florentine Road is less than required. The embankment on the northern side of Florentine Road and to the west of Sunshine Road is to be sight benched to provide a sight distance of at least 140 m to the west.
75
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
PART F ‐ DECOMMISSIONING AND REHABILITATION It is the aim of Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd to minimise the area of land ’open’ at the quarry. Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd will manage the ratio of area disturbed/ rehabilitated to remain within the terms of the Mining Lease. This is not overly complicated given recent advances in aerial imagery and surveying techniques to regularly calculate areas ‘open’. When closed, Sunshine Quarry will be rehabilitated to native forest vegetation. The maximum disturbed area without any form of rehabilitation works is 3.8 hectares.
F.1 PROGRESSIVE REHABILITATION ‘Progressive rehabilitation’ will apply at the quarrying operation for those areas that have been quarried and are no longer needed or used for the operation of the quarry25. Progressive rehabilitation refers to the rehabilitation of worked out, or surplus areas, while extractive operations are ongoing. It is an important component of quarry management, particularly where the pit is large or expanding. Progressive rehabilitation includes the stabilisation of the landform prior to revegetation and serves to ensure landform stability and revegetation on an ongoing basis. In this case, rehabilitation will only occur once benches have been established that will no longer be worked or needed for quarry operation purposes. Temporary vegetative cover of native heath/herb species (e.g., native fireweed, ground covers) may be established on areas (e.g., soil stockpiles) to prevent weed infestation and erosion. The main aims of rehabilitation work would be to:
achieve long term stabilisation of all worked out areas to minimise ongoing erosion,
revegetate all worked out areas with native species that will eventually grow to form forest communities (both wet and dry forest), and
ensure that worked out areas are safe for future land uses (e.g., forestry activities). The rehabilitation of areas that are no longer being quarried or used for another purpose (such as a stockpile holding area, truck turning bay etc.) will be based on the following principles:
1. Benches ripped or cracked prior to substrate addition (i.e., topsoil, overburden, and waste rock).
2. Stockpiled weathered gravel, topsoil (from quarry site) and sediment collected from sediment interceptors applied to prepared benches.
3. Application of native tree/shrub/grass seed and/or tubestock. 4. Monitoring of the following factors – a. weed infestation, b. survivorship and growth rates in planted tubestock, c. germination success and growth in seed distributed species, and
25 Management Measure 16. ‘Progressive rehabilitation’ will apply at the quarrying operation for those areas that have been quarried and are no longer needed or used for the operation of the quarry.
76
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
d. landform stability. 5. Remedial works which may include but not necessarily be limited to – a. weed control works, b. additional native species seed spreading, c. additional tubestock to replace losses, d. landform stabilisation works, and e. erosion control measures and/or repair works.
F.2 PERMANENT CLOSURE
F.2.1 PLANNING In the event of permanent closure of the facility prior to complete extraction of the resource a detailed Decommissioning and Rehabilitation Plan (DRP) will be developed and submitted to the EPA for approval26. The DRP would include discussion and processes to:
Facilitate the orderly and safe removal of machinery and other equipment,
Establish sufficient and appropriate tree/shrub/grass/herb (native vegetation) cover to minimise the risk of dust generation and soil erosion, and
Establish a monitoring regime that assesses the success or otherwise of the rehabilitation to agreed (MRT, EPA, and landowner/manager) sign‐off parameters.
F.2.2 FINAL BENCH FORM AND SLOPES Specific attention will be given to the final form of benches and slopes in the DRP. Face height and bench width at the closure of the quarry will be dictated by practical and economic considerations. The DRP will consider the following principles:
Toward the end of the productive life of a high face, intermediate benches may be constructed thereby cutting the existing face in half, or into 3 lifts if necessary, to give a maximum final face height between benches of 10 metres. Lower face heights (e.g. about 5 metres) are preferable for final rehabilitation of the site, because they will be screened more quickly by establishing vegetation, but they may not be possible,
Slopes and faces should be battered back, preferably to slopes of 3 to 1 or less where it is practicable, or approximately 20o (36%), which will be more likely to hold topsoil and seed without slumping, and
26 Management Measure 17. In the event of permanent closure of the facility prior to complete extraction of the resource a detailed Decommissioning and Rehabilitation Plan (DRP) will be developed and submitted to the EPA for approval.
77
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
Where batters are slumping, the toe of the slumped area should be shored up and allowed to drain using rocks or log crib‐ work or other form of landslip prevention work. Expert advice may need to be sought where slumping occurs.
78
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
PART G – MANAGEMENT MEASURES SUMMARY Best practice management is important to the project proponent to minimise the risk of environmental nuisance/harm from the activity. In the preceding Sections of this EIS, the potential environmental effects which may arise from the activity have been detailed and, where appropriate, actions documented to prevent and or minimise potential adverse impacts. The management measures made by the proponent are summarised in Table 9.
Table 6. Management Measures for Sunshine Quarry
No. Commitment Timeframe EIS Reference Operating hours are 0700 to 1900 hrs Monday to Friday, 0800 to 1600 hrs on Saturday, closed on Sunday and public holidays Ongoing from B.2 Operating 1 (those gazetted Statewide). project Hours Specific quarry tasks will be limited to the hours stipulated in commencement Table 2.
Standard industry practice for dust control, which will be Ongoing from applied at the activity, is to dampen material prior to crushing 2 project and/or to also have installed sprayers on the output chute to commencement minimise dust emissions from an otherwise dry product.
General measures to manage dust include watering of E.1 Air internal roads as required during dry and windy conditions, Emissions ‐ retention of vegetation along the access road corridor where Ongoing from Dust possible, retention of native vegetation around the quarry 3 project working area to reduce the likelihood of strong winds commencement liberating fine particles into the air, covering of trucks with tarpaulins and/or load dampening and minimising the geographic extent of areas of exposed soil. No chemicals, fuels or oils will be stored within the pit Ongoing from 4 overnight and refuelling of quarry equipment will be carried project out using a mobile bund. commencement Ongoing from Cut‐off drains and drains around and internal to the quarry 5 project E.2 Surface will be installed and maintained. commencement Water Management Sediment accumulation rates in the sediment pond will be monitored (at least quarterly) and the maintenance program Ongoing from 6 revised as required. Accumulated sediment will be reused as project part of the saleable product or for application onto disused commencement areas as part of site rehabilitation No machinery servicing, except for emergency repairs or minor service requirements, will be conducted within the Ongoing from 7 quarry. Wastes generated from machinery repairs will be project disposed of in an appropriate bin near the entrance to the commencement quarry for future disposal at a permitted refuse disposal site. E.5 Waste Waste generated by workers from general refuse (e.g., lunch Management wrappers) at the quarry will be collected in waste bins Implemented from 8 provided on‐site for general refuse ‐ they will be locked and project be animal‐proof to prevent native animals (e.g., possums, commencement devils) accessing them. Bins will be emptied at least once per
79
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
fortnight and the material disposed of at a permitted refuse disposal site. Weed spraying chemicals will be handled, used, and disposed Ongoing from 9 of in accordance with the manufacturer’s directions and project relevant regulations. commencement E.6 When in the quarry, fuel and oil containers will be stored at Ongoing from Dangerous least 10 m from any drain or sediment pond and will be 10 project and/or bunded (moveable bunds) to a capacity at least 1.5 times the commencement Hazardous volume of the container. Goods One hydrocarbon spill kit will be stored at the quarry to use in Ongoing from 11 the event of a spillage. Staff will be trained in how to use the project kit and the kit will be replaced as and when required. commencement A Weed and Pathogen Management Plan will be developed and implemented as part of the quarry operation guided by WPMP submitted the Weed and Disease Planning and Hygiene Guidelines ‐ to EPA within 60 12 Preventing the spread of weeds and diseases in Tasmania days of permit (Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and granted Environment, 2015). E.7 Weed A Weed Spraying Program (described in the Weed and Ongoing from Management Pathogen Management Plan) will be developed in 13 approval of the consultation with a weed spraying contractor who will WPMP implement the program. Heavy machinery will be brought into the quarry in a clean Ongoing from 14 condition; free of weed propagules, clods of dirt and project vegetative matter. commencement For Tasmanian devil and spotted‐tailed quoll, the following management approach will be applied – areas needing to be cleared of vegetation to enable quarry activities should first be surveyed to identify if dens or woodpiles supporting dens are present. The pre‐clearance surveys must be completed by a suitably qualified person(s) and any dens or suspected dens removed via a procedure approved Ongoing from E.11 Flora 15 by the EPA, project and Fauna If dens or potential dens are observed or suspected commencement during operations a 10 m no machinery buffer will be applied to the den or suspected den and expert advice sought, Internal road speed will be limited to 20 km/hr from dusk to dawn, and Truck drivers will be advised to take particular care while driving between dusk and dawn. ‘Progressive rehabilitation’ will apply at the quarrying F.1 16 operation for those areas that have been quarried and are no As required Progressive longer needed or used for the operation of the quarry. Rehabilitation In the event of permanent closure of the facility prior to Prior to 60 days of F.2 complete extraction of the resource a detailed the quarry being 17 Permanent Decommissioning and Rehabilitation Plan (DRP) will be permanently Closure developed and submitted to the EPA for approval. closed.
80
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
PART H – CONCLUSION This Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) has been prepared to support a Development Application (DA30/2020) by Gadtech Materials Pty Ltd to establish and operate a quarry (Sunshine Quarry) north‐ west of Maydena. This EIS follows the generic EIS Guidelines and the EIS Project Specific Guidelines issued by the EPA and provides information on ‐
1. the present environment of the site, including such matters as zoning, land use, flora, fauna, soils, and climate. It also describes the proposed quarry operation activities in detail, the potential emissions sources, and the development timetable, and on
2. each of the potential environmental issues associated with the quarry and details of the mitigation measures to address each issue. Sunshine Quarry is a proposed to extract up to 90,000 cubic metres of material per annum. There are environmental impacts that are likely or potential from the activity, including noise, vibration, dust, and sediment discharge in uncontrolled stormwater discharge. Management measures have been proposed and will be implemented to mitigate the effects of the identified environmental impacts. It is concluded that:
1. the RMPS and EMPCS objectives have been duly and properly pursued while sourcing and compiling information on the proposal,
2. the EIS for the proposed activity has been prepared in accordance with the Environmental Impact Assessment Principles, and
3. the proposed activity is capable of being managed in an environmentally acceptable manner such that it is unlikely that the objectives of the Environmental Management and Pollution Control Act 1994 (the RMPS and EMPCS objectives) would be compromised.
81
Sunshine Quarry, Maydena – Environmental Impact Statement
PART I ‐ REFERENCES Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment (2015). Weed and Disease Planning and Hygiene Guidelines ‐ Preventing the spread of weeds and diseases in Tasmania. (Eds.) Karen Stewart and Michael Askey‐Doran. Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment, Hobart, Tasmania.
82