Guidelines for Developing Ecological Burning Regimes for the Gnangara Groundwater System
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GUIDELINES FOR DEVELOPING ECOLOGICAL BURNING REGIMES FOR THE GNANGARA GROUNDWATER SYSTEM Barbara A. Wilson, Janine Kuehs and Leonie E. Valentine Department of Environment and Conservation December 2010 Guidelines for Ecological Burning Regimes for the Gnangara Groundwater System Barbara A. Wilson, Janine Kuehs and Leonie E. Valentine, Report for the Gnangara Sustainability Strategy and the Department of Environment and Conservation Government of Western Australia Department of Environment and Conservation Gnangara Sustainability Strategy Taskforce Department of Water 168 St Georges Terrace Perth Western Australia 6000 Telephone +61 8 6364 7600 Facsimile +61 8 6364 7601 www.gnangara.water.wa.gov.au © Government of Western Australia 2010 December 2010 This work is copyright. You may download, display, print and reproduce this material in unaltered form only (retaining this notice) for your personal, non-commercial use or use within your organisation. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968 , all other rights are reserved. Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to the Department of Conservation and Environment. This document has been commissioned/produced as part of the Gnangara Sustainability Strategy (GSS). The GSS is a State Government initiative which aims to provide a framework for a whole of government approach to address land use and water planning issues associated with the Gnangara groundwater system. For more information go to www.gnangara.water.wa.gov.au Acknowledgements The Department of Environment and Conservation – Gnangara Sustainability Strategy would like to thank Dr. Neil Burrows and Dr. Gordon Friend for reviewing the report. Gnangara Sustainability Strategy Contents Contents................................................................................................................................. 1 Summary................................................................................................................................ 3 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 5 Gnangara Groundwater System....................................................................................... 10 The Gnangara Sustainability Strategy............................................................................. 11 General description of flora & fauna on the GGS........................................................... 15 Floristic diversity......................................................................................................... 17 Fauna Diversity ........................................................................................................... 20 Development of ecological fire regimes on GGS................................................................ 22 1. Scope and broad objectives for the ecological guidelines........................................... 23 2. Landscape management units...................................................................................... 25 3. Specific ecological objectives ..................................................................................... 26 4. Fire history records and age class distributions........................................................... 26 Annual Burn Trends .................................................................................................... 26 Area and numbers of prescribed burns and wildfires.................................................. 28 Fuel Age Distribution.................................................................................................. 29 Patchiness and Fire intensity ....................................................................................... 32 Fire Frequency............................................................................................................. 35 Fire interval ................................................................................................................. 38 5. Vital attribute information, key fire response species and habitat variables............... 39 Flora............................................................................................................................. 39 Fauna ........................................................................................................................... 44 Habitat variables.......................................................................................................... 51 6. Calculating idealised fire regime................................................................................. 53 Minimum and maximum tolerable fire intervals frequencies ..................................... 54 Comparison of actual and idealised age class distributions ........................................ 55 7. Burning requirements .................................................................................................. 57 Burning to meet ideal fuel age distribution ................................................................. 57 Functional habitat and Growth stages ......................................................................... 59 Burning for spatial scale arrangements of seral stages................................................ 60 Burning and interactions with other threats................................................................. 62 Guidelines for Ecological Burning Regimes 1 Gnangara Sustainability Strategy Fire and Predators........................................................................................................ 63 Weeds and fire............................................................................................................. 64 Interaction of fire and impact of Phytophthora cinnamomi on flora and fauna .......... 65 8. Identification of areas for burning and maintenance of refugia for significant taxa and communities (case studies).............................................................................................. 67 Yanchep National Park................................................................................................ 67 Yeal Nature Reserve.................................................................................................... 74 Fire management for ecological linkages for fauna at GGS level............................... 75 9. Input into DEC Prescribed Burning Management Plans............................................. 79 Statutory plans ............................................................................................................. 79 Master Burn Plans and Annual Burn Plans ................................................................. 81 Prescribed Fire Plan..................................................................................................... 81 10. Adoption of an adaptive management approach ....................................................... 83 Discussion............................................................................................................................ 90 Recommendations ............................................................................................................... 94 References ........................................................................................................................... 96 Appendix 1. Flora Key Fire Response Species ................................................................. 106 Appendix 2. Fire Management Objective: Ecological burning for biodiversity conservation ........................................................................................................................................... 115 Guidelines for Ecological Burning Regimes 2 Gnangara Sustainability Strategy Summary • Development of fire regimes that are optimal for biodiversity conservation is one of the major challenges in current fire management throughout Australia. • Although the impact of inappropriate fire regimes has been identified as a major threat to biodiversity on the Swan Coastal Plain information on these impacts has been limited. • Recent studies on the GGS (2007-2010) have increased knowledge of the impacts of fire on biodiversity, and of fire records and fuel ages. • This document utilised this recent information to develop guidelines for ecological fire regimes on the GGS to protect biodiversity. • The guidelines are also essential to assess the Gnangara Sustainability Strategy proposal to increase burning for recharge benefits. • Specific ecological objectives were to: develop and maintain ecologically defined temporal and spatial age-class distribution for vegetation communities, increase long unburnt areas for vegetation and fauna communities, maintain refugia for significant species and wetlands, monitor age classes, refugia, flora and fauna, adopt an adaptive management approach • Vital attributes and juvenile periods of plant species were identified in order to determine appropriate fire intervals. • Key fire response plant species were identified with juvenile periods of 4-6 YSLF (year since last fire) for fire sensitive species relying on seed for reproduction. • Key fire response plant species included the two dominant Banksia species Banksia menziesii and Banksia attenuata (resprouters) with a juvenile period of 8 YSLF. • A minimum fire interval of 8-16 years (twice juvenile period) is recommended based on the information for key flora fire response species. • Analyses of the fuel age