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Level 1 Flora and Fauna Assessment Kondinin Wind Farm OCTOBER 2017 Level 1 Flora and Fauna Assessment Kondinin Wind Farm Prepared for Kondinin Energy Pty Ltd Version control Project number: SW140 Project file path: SW140 Kondinin wind farm BA report 20170918 Client: Kondinin Energy Pty Ltd Revision v20171011 Date 11/10/17 Prepared by Shane Priddle Reviewed by Bianca Heinze, Greg Harewood, Approved by Shane Priddle Client review by James Townsend Status Final SW Environmental is a registered business name trading under SW Environmental Pty Ltd, ABN: 52 605 825 367 Statement of limitations The authors have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of the information used; information detailed in this report is based upon the information available at the time SW Environmental conducted its work. This report has been solely prepared for the Client. All intellectual property rights in documents created by SW Environmental remain the property of SW Environmental. The information contained within this document is confidential. It may only be used by the Client for the stated purpose for which it is provided. The document or parts thereof must not be imparted to any third person without the prior written approval of SW Environmental. SW Environmental does not accept any responsibility for the use of or reliance on the contents of this report by any third party. Acknowledgements: Ecoedge (2017) was engaged by SW Environmental to prepare the flora and vegetation components (Level 1 flora survey) of this report. SW Environmental has relied on the accuracy and information supplied by Ecoedge directly in the preparation of the relevant (flora and vegetation) sections of the reports cited below. Ecoedge (2017) Report of a Level 1 Flora and Vegetation Survey at Kondinin. Unpublished report to SW Environmental. Ecoedge (2017) Targeted Rara Flora Survey – Proposed Wind farm, Kondinin. Unpublished report to SW Environmental. po box 1037, dunsborough, wa 6281 t 0437 700 917 | [email protected] www.swenvironmental.com.au Level 1 Flora and Fauna Assessment Kondinin Wind Farm Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...................................................................................................... 5 1 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................... 7 1.1 BACKGROUND ......................................................................................................... 7 1.1.1 Project description .................................................................................... 7 1.1.2 Location .................................................................................................. 7 1.2 SCOPE OF WORKS .................................................................................................. 10 1.3 REGULATORY CONTEXT ........................................................................................... 10 1.3.1 Legislative framework ............................................................................. 10 1.3.2 Guidelines ............................................................................................. 12 2 METHODS .............................................................................................................. 13 2.1 FLORA AND VEGETATION ........................................................................................ 13 2.1.1 Desktop assessment ............................................................................... 13 2.1.2 Field survey ........................................................................................... 13 2.1.3 Flora survey limitations ........................................................................... 14 2.2 FAUNA .................................................................................................................. 16 2.2.1 Desktop assessment ............................................................................... 16 2.2.2 Publications ........................................................................................... 16 2.2.3 Taxonomy and nomenclature ................................................................... 17 2.2.4 Field survey ........................................................................................... 17 2.2.5 Habitat assessment ................................................................................ 17 2.2.6 Targeted surveys ................................................................................... 18 2.2.7 Fauna survey limitations .......................................................................... 22 3 DESKTOP REVIEW ................................................................................................. 24 3.1 ENVIRONMENTAL CONTEXT ..................................................................................... 24 3.1.1 Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation of Australia (IBRA) values .................. 24 3.1.2 Landform, geology, soils and climate ......................................................... 24 3.1.3 Brief land use summary .......................................................................... 25 3.1.4 Conservation lands ................................................................................. 25 3.1.5 Important Bird Areas (IBA) ...................................................................... 25 3.1.6 Wetlands and migratory flyways ............................................................... 26 3.1.7 Environmentally Sensitive Areas ............................................................... 27 3.2 FLORA AND VEGETATION ........................................................................................ 27 3.2.1 Vegetation types .................................................................................... 27 3.2.2 Threatened ecological communities ........................................................... 29 3.2.3 Conservation significant flora ................................................................... 30 3.3 FAUNA .................................................................................................................. 31 3.3.1 Fauna and habitats ................................................................................. 31 3.3.2 Conservation significant fauna .................................................................. 31 3.4 BIRD AND BAT RISK ASSESSMENT ........................................................................... 32 3.4.2 Fauna factors ......................................................................................... 33 3.4.3 Site factors ............................................................................................ 34 3.4.4 Turbine parameter factors ....................................................................... 35 4 RESULTS ................................................................................................................ 36 SW140 v20171011 i Level 1 Flora and Fauna Assessment Kondinin Wind Farm 4.1 FLORA AND VEGETATION RESULTS ........................................................................... 36 4.1.1 Vegetation types .................................................................................... 36 4.1.2 Vegetation condition ............................................................................... 37 4.1.3 Flora .................................................................................................... 43 4.1.4 Conservation significant flora ................................................................... 43 4.2 FAUNA RESULTS .................................................................................................... 47 4.2.1 Habitat assessment ................................................................................ 47 4.2.2 Species recorded .................................................................................... 50 4.2.3 Conservation significant fauna .................................................................. 53 5 POTENTIAL IMPACTS ............................................................................................ 54 5.1 CLEARING OF NATIVE VEGETATION .......................................................................... 54 5.2 INDIRECT IMPACTS / CONSTRUCTION ENVIRONMENT ................................................. 57 5.3 OPERATIONAL IMPACTS: BIRD AND BAT COLLISION RISK ........................................... 57 5.3.1 Topography, wetlands, vegetation communities and habitat resources ........... 57 5.3.2 RSA minimum heights ............................................................................. 58 5.3.3 Turbine layout factors ............................................................................. 59 5.3.4 Summary .............................................................................................. 59 5.4 POTENTIAL IMPACT TO CONSERVATION SIGNIFICANT SPECIES .................................... 61 5.4.1 Threatened Ecological Communities .......................................................... 61 5.4.2 Flora .................................................................................................... 61 5.4.3 Fauna ................................................................................................... 61 5.5 PROPOSED CLEARING AGAINST RELEVANT GUIDELINES .............................................. 63 6 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................................. 66 7 REFERENCES ........................................................................................................