Ecology Assessment Report (Flora) Lot 3 BWR1 REPORT September 2013 Origin Energy 1. www.ecosure.com.au Table of Contents List of tables ..........................................................................................................................iv Abbreviations ........................................................................................................................ v Definitions ............................................................................................................................ vii 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Scope of works ....................................................................................................... 1 2 Site context .................................................................................................................... 3 2.1 Bioregion ................................................................................................................ 3 2.2 Land use ................................................................................................................. 3 2.3 Soils and geology ................................................................................................... 4 2.4 Climate ................................................................................................................... 4 3 Methods ......................................................................................................................... 5 3.1 Taxonomic nomenclature ........................................................................................ 5 3.2 Determination of significance level for flora ............................................................. 5 3.3 Desktop and literature review .................................................................................. 5 3.4 Field survey ............................................................................................................ 6 3.4.1 Vegetation community survey .......................................................................... 7 3.4.2 Threatened flora surveys ................................................................................. 7 3.4.3 Exotic flora surveys .......................................................................................... 7 3.4.4 Disturbance survey .......................................................................................... 7 3.4.5 Limitations ....................................................................................................... 7 4 Results and discussion .................................................................................................. 8 4.1 Desktop and literature review .................................................................................. 8 4.1.1 Commonwealth environmental matters ............................................................ 8 4.1.1.1 Wetlands of international significance (Ramsar sites) ................................... 8 4.1.1.2 Threatened ecological communities ............................................................. 8 4.1.1.3 EPBC Act listed threatened species ............................................................. 9 Ecology Assessment (Flora) ecosure.com.au | i 4.1.1.4 Weeds .......................................................................................................... 9 4.1.2 Queensland environmental matters ................................................................. 9 4.1.2.1 Threatened species (NC Act) ....................................................................... 9 4.1.2.2 Environmentally sensitive areas ................................................................. 10 4.1.2.3 Endangered and of concern REs ................................................................ 10 4.1.2.4 Essential habitat ......................................................................................... 10 4.1.2.5 Referable wetlands ..................................................................................... 10 4.1.3 Other environmental values ........................................................................... 10 4.1.3.1 No concern at present REs ........................................................................ 10 4.1.3.2 High value regrowth ................................................................................... 10 4.1.3.3 Pest flora .................................................................................................... 11 4.2 Field survey results ............................................................................................... 11 4.2.1 Commonwealth environmental matters .......................................................... 11 4.2.1.1 Threatened ecological communities ........................................................... 11 4.2.1.2 Threatened flora ......................................................................................... 12 4.2.2 Queensland environmental matters ............................................................... 12 4.2.2.1 Threatened species (NC Act) ..................................................................... 12 4.2.2.1.1 Flora ........................................................................................................... 12 4.2.2.1.2 Other significant species ............................................................................ 13 4.2.2.1.3 Environmentally sensitive areas ................................................................. 13 4.2.2.1.4 Endangered and of concern REs ................................................................ 13 4.2.3 Other environmental values ........................................................................... 13 4.2.3.1 No concern at present REs ........................................................................ 13 4.2.3.2 High value regrowth ................................................................................... 14 4.2.4 Pest flora ....................................................................................................... 14 4.2.5 Watercourses and wetland ecosystems ......................................................... 14 4.2.6 Disturbance ................................................................................................... 14 4.2.7 Other vegetation ............................................................................................ 14 5 Conclusions and recommendations ............................................................................. 16 Ecology Assessment (Flora) Lot 3 BWR1 ecosure.com.au | ii 6 References .................................................................................................................. 17 Appendix A Site location and survey points ......................................................................... 20 Appendix B DEHP regional ecosystems.............................................................................. 21 Appendix C EPBC Act listed threatened ecological communities ........................................ 22 Appendix D EPBC Act protected matters search results ..................................................... 23 Appendix E Wildlife Online database search results ........................................................... 24 Appendix F DEHP environmentally sensitive areas map ..................................................... 25 Appendix G Ground-truthed regional ecosystems ............................................................... 26 Appendix H Ground-truthed threatened ecological communities ......................................... 27 Appendix I DEHP referable wetlands mapping .................................................................... 28 Appendix J Flora species list ............................................................................................... 29 Appendix K Ground truthed NC Act threatened species and Type A restricted plants ......... 31 Appendix L Ground-truthed declared weeds ....................................................................... 32 Ecology Assessment (Flora) Lot 3 BWR1 ecosure.com.au | iii List of tables Table 1 Minimum, maximum and rainfall values for survey period......................................... 4 Table 2 EPBC Act protected matters search tool results for TECs ........................................ 8 Table 3: EPBC Act PMST results for threatened flora species .............................................. 9 Table 4: WoNS potentially occurring on Site ......................................................................... 9 Table 5: NC Act (Wildlife Online) search tool results for threatened species ......................... 9 Table 6: DEHP mapped endangered REs within the Site .................................................... 10 Table 7: Pest flora potentially present on Site ..................................................................... 11 Table 8: TECs observed during field surveys ...................................................................... 11 Table 9: EPBC Act protected flora species potentially present on Site ................................ 12 Table 10 NC Act threatened flora potentially present on the Site ....................................... 12 Table 11: Type A plant species occurring on Site ................................................................ 13 Table 12: REs recorded during surveys .............................................................................