Ecological Assessment Report
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Attachment B: Ecological Assessment Report 001 Referral of proposed action v October 2016 Report 20 AUGUST 2018 Koonandah Hard Rock Quarry : Lot 11 on HR1950 Ecological Assessment PR138277-1 | Koonandah Hard Rock Quarry : Lot 11 on HR1950 | Ecological Assessment | 20 Page i August 2018 Commercial In Confidence Report Document status Version Purpose of document Authored by Reviewed by Review date 1. Internal Draft - AF 20-DEC-2017 1.2 Final Report for Issue AF LL 02-JAN-2018 2. Final Report with Amendments LL AF 06-JUL-2018 3. Final Report with Additional Amendments LL AF 09-JUL-2018 4. Final Report with Additional Amendments LL AF 20-AUG-2018 Approval for issue Name Signature Date Anton Fitzgerald 20-AUG-2018 This document was prepared by RPS Australia East Pty Ltd (‘RPS’) within the terms of its engagement and in direct response to a scope of services. This document is strictly limited to the purpose and the facts and matters stated in it and does not apply directly or indirectly and must not be used for any other application, purpose, use or matter. In preparing the document, RPS may have relied upon information provided to it at the time by other parties. RPS accepts no responsibility as to the accuracy or completeness of information provided by those parties at the time of preparing the document. The document does not take into account any changes in information that may have occurred since the publication of the document. If the information relied upon is subsequently determined to be false, inaccurate or incomplete then it is possible that the observations and conclusions expressed in the document may have changed. RPS does not warrant the contents of this document and shall not assume any responsibility or liability for loss whatsoever to any third party caused by, related to or arising out of any use or reliance on the document howsoever. No part of this document, its attachments or appendices may be reproduced by any process without the written consent of RPS. All enquiries should be directed to RPS. Prepared by: RPS AUSTRALIA EAST PTY LTD Prepared for: DALE & MARILYN SMITH Level 5, Central Plaza PO Box 766 370 Flinders Mall Bowen QLD 4805 Australia Townsville, QLD 4810 Australia PO Box 977, Townsville QLD 4810 T: +61 7 4724 4244 T: 0428 852 257 E: [email protected] E: [email protected] Author: Anton Fitzgerald Reviewed: Laurence Liessmann Approved: Anton Fitzgerald No.: PR138277-1 Version: 4 Date: 20 August 2018 PR138277-1 | Koonandah Hard Rock Quarry : Lot 11 on HR1950 | Ecological Assessment | 20 Page ii August 2018 Commercial In Confidence Report Contents 1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Objectives .......................................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Scope of works .................................................................................................................................. 1 1.3 Site description ................................................................................................................................. 1 1.4 Statutory considerations .................................................................................................................. 4 2 METHODS .......................................................................................................................................... 7 2.1 Desktop assessment......................................................................................................................... 7 2.2 Site inspection ................................................................................................................................... 7 2.2.1 Flora survey ......................................................................................................................................... 7 2.2.2 Targeted fauna survey methods ......................................................................................................... 8 2.2.3 Active searches ................................................................................................................................... 9 3 RESULTS: CONSTRAINTS, POTENTIAL IMPACTS AND IMPLICATIONS .................................. 11 3.1 Vegetation ........................................................................................................................................ 11 3.1.1 Regional ecosystems ........................................................................................................................ 11 3.1.2 Threatened ecological communities .................................................................................................. 14 3.1.3 On-ground vegetation communities .................................................................................................. 14 3.1.4 Queensland vegetation management state code ............................................................................. 17 3.1.5 Threatened flora ................................................................................................................................ 17 3.1.6 Flora constraints, potential impacts and mitigation measures .......................................................... 18 3.2 Fauna ................................................................................................................................................ 21 3.2.1 Threatened fauna .............................................................................................................................. 21 3.2.2 Marine and migratory species ........................................................................................................... 24 3.2.3 Existing impacts ................................................................................................................................ 25 3.2.4 Fauna constraints, potential impacts and mitigation measures ........................................................ 25 3.3 Aquatic ecosystems and wetlands ................................................................................................ 28 3.3.1 Watercourses .................................................................................................................................... 28 3.3.2 Wetlands ........................................................................................................................................... 30 3.3.3 Aquatic ecosystems and wetlands constraints, potential impacts and mitigation measures ............ 30 3.4 Matters of state environmental significance ................................................................................ 30 4 SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS ........................................................................................ 34 5 REFERENCES .................................................................................................................................. 36 PR138277-1 | Koonandah Hard Rock Quarry : Lot 11 on HR1950 | Ecological Assessment | 20 Page iii August 2018 Commercial In Confidence Report Tables Table 1 Relevant environmental statutory considerations .......................................................................... 4 Table 2 Description of vegetation classifications ...................................................................................... 11 Table 3 Regional ecosystem descriptions................................................................................................. 12 Table 4 Ground-truthed vegetation communities of the project area ........................................................ 14 Table 5 Conservation significant flora that have the potential to occur on site ......................................... 18 Table 6 Threatened fauna that have the potential to occur on site ........................................................... 21 Table 7 Migratory species that have the potential to occur on site ........................................................... 25 Table 8 Clearing statistics for vegetation communities on project area .................................................... 26 Table 9 Matters of state environmental significance assessment ............................................................ 31 Table 10 Summary of findings .................................................................................................................... 34 Table 11 Threatened ecological communities likelihood of occurrence ..................................................... 43 Table 12 Threatened flora likelihood of occurrence .................................................................................... 45 Table 13 Threatened fauna likelihood of occurrence .................................................................................. 49 Table 14 Migratory fauna likelihood of occurrence ..................................................................................... 56 Table 15 E.crebra woodland ....................................................................................................................... 63 Table 16 E.acmenoides mixed woodland ................................................................................................... 65 Table 17 Melaleuca woodland .................................................................................................................... 69 Figures Figure 1 Location and aerial imagery