Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) (s266B) Conservation Advice (including listing advice) for the Poplar Box Grassy Woodland on Alluvial Plains 1 The Threatened Species Scientific Committee (the Committee) was established under the EPBC Act to give advice to the Minister for the Environment (the Minister) in relation to the listing and conservation of threatened ecological communities, including under sections 189, 194N and 266B of the EPBC Act. 2. The Committee provided its advice on the Poplar Box Grassy Woodland on Alluvial Plains ecological community to the Minister as a draft of this conservation advice in April 2017, an updated version in April 2018 and also in June 2019. The Committee recommended that: o the ecological community merits listing as endangered under the EPBC Act; and o a recovery plan is not required for the ecological community at this time. 3. A draft conservation advice for this ecological community was made available for expert and public comment for a minimum of 30 business days. The Committee and Minister had regard to all public and expert comment that was relevant to the consideration of the ecological community. 4. In 2019, the Minister accepted the Committee’s advice, adopted this document as the approved conservation advice and agreed no recovery plan is required at this time. The Minister amended the list of threatened ecological communities under section 184 of the EPBC Act to include the Poplar Box Grassy Woodland on Alluvial Plains ecological community in the endangered category. 5. At the time of this advice, components of this ecological community were also listed under the Queensland Vegetation Management Act 1999. 6. This approved conservation advice was based on the best available information at the time it was approved; this includes scientific literature, advice from consultations, and existing plans, records or management prescriptions for this ecological community. Poplar Box Grassy Woodland on Alluvial Plains. (Photo credit: Rosemary Purdie) Table of Contents 1 Conservation Objective ......................................................................................................... 4 2 Description Of The Ecological Community And The Area It Inhabits ............................ 4 2.1 Name of the ecological community ......................................................................... 5 2.2 Location and physical environment ......................................................................... 5 2.3 Climate ..................................................................................................................... 6 2.4 Vegetation ................................................................................................................ 7 2.5 Faunal components ................................................................................................ 10 3. Guidance For Determining Whether The Poplar Box Grassy Woodland On Alluvial Plains Ecological Community Protected Under The Epbc Act Is Present ..................... 12 3.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 12 3.2 Key diagnostic characteristics and condition thresholds ....................................... 12 3.2.1 Step 1 – Key diagnostic characteristics ............................................................... 14 3.2.2 Step 2 – Condition thresholds for national legal protection ................................ 15 3.2.3 Further information to assist in determining the presence of the ecological community and significant impacts on the ecological community ..................... 19 3.3 Area critical to the survival of the ecological community ..................................... 22 3.4 National context and other existing protection ...................................................... 22 Caveat ...................................................................................................................... 22 3.4.1 Relationships to the National Vegetation Information System (NVIS) ....... 23 3.4.2 Relationship to New South Wales vegetation classification ........................ 23 3.4.3 Relationship to Queensland vegetation classification .................................. 24 3.4.4 Relationships to State-listed ecological communities .................................. 24 3.4.5 Listed threatened flora and fauna species associated with the ecological community .................................................................................................... 25 3.4.6 Conservation reserves .................................................................................. 25 4 Summary Of Threats ........................................................................................................... 26 4.1. Key threatening processes ..................................................................................... 27 5 Recommendations By The Threatened Species Scientific Committee ............................ 29 5.1 Recommendation on eligibility for listing against the EPBC Act criteria. ........... 29 5.2 Recommendation on whether to have a recovery plan .......................................... 30 6 Priority Conservation And Research Actions ................................................................... 31 6.1 Principles and standards that guide the actions ..................................................... 31 6.2 Priority protection, conservation management and recovery actions .................... 31 6.2.1 PROTECT .................................................................................................... 32 6.2.2 RESTORE .................................................................................................... 36 6.2.3 COMMUNICATE - ENGAGE WITH AND SUPPORT ............................ 37 6.2.4 RESEARCH AND MONITORING PRIORITIES ...................................... 39 6.3 Offsets .................................................................................................................... 40 6.4 Existing plans/management prescriptions ............................................................. 42 Approved conservation advice for the Poplar Box Grassy Woodland on Alluvial Plains 2 Appendices ................................................................................................................................... 44 Appendix A – Species lists ................................................................................................ 44 Table A1. Characteristic plant species .......................................................................... 44 Table A2. Threatened plant species .............................................................................. 56 Table A3. Native fauna. ................................................................................................ 57 Table A4. Weed species. .............................................................................................. 69 Appendix B – Detailed Description Of Threats ................................................................ 72 B1. Clearance and fragmentation ................................................................................. 72 B2. Mining .................................................................................................................... 73 B3. Invasive weeds and pest animals ........................................................................... 74 B4. Inappropriate fire regimes ...................................................................................... 75 B5. Grazing ................................................................................................................... 76 B6. Dieback .................................................................................................................. 76 B7. Chemical impacts and spraydrift ............................................................................ 77 B8. Nutrient enrichment ............................................................................................... 78 B9. Salinity ................................................................................................................... 78 B10. Climate change ..................................................................................................... 78 Appendix C – Eligibility for listing against the EPBC Act criteria .................................. 80 Criterion 1 – Decline in geographic distribution .......................................................... 80 Criterion 2 – Limited geographic distribution coupled with demonstrable threat ........ 82 Criterion 3 – Loss or decline of functionally important species ................................... 86 Criterion 4 – Reduction in community integrity ........................................................... 88 Criterion 5 – Rate of continuing detrimental change .................................................... 96 Criterion 6 – Quantitative analysis showing probability of extinction ....................... 102 Appendix D – Additional information about the ecological community ........................ 103 D1. Similar and intergrading ecological communities ............................................... 103 D2. Indigenous cultural values and knowledge of the ecological community .......... 104 Bibliography .............................................................................................................................. 108 Approved conservation advice