West Westmead to The Bays and Sydney CBD Environmental Impact Statement Concept and Stage 1 Technical Paper 10 Biodiversity development assessment report Sydney Metro West – Stage 1 Technical Paper 10: Biodiversity Development Assessment Report Final Sydney Metro Biodiversity Development Assessment Report Sydney Metro Sydney Metro West – Stage 1 Project No: IA199800 Document Title: Biodiversity Development Assessment Report Revision: Final Date: April 2020 Client Name: Sydney Metro Project Manager: Katrina Smallwood Author: Lukas Clews Jacobs Group (Australia) Pty Limited ABN 37 001 024 095 Level 7, 177 Pacific Highway North Sydney NSW 2060 Australia PO Box 632 North Sydney NSW 2059 Australia T +61 2 9928 2100 F +61 2 9928 2444 www.jacobs.com © Copyright 2020 Jacobs Group (Australia) Pty Limited. The concepts and information contained in this document are the property of Jacobs. Use or copying of this document in whole or in part without the written permission of Jacobs constitutes an infringement of copyright. Limitation: This document has been prepared on behalf of, and for the exclusive use of Jacobs’ client, and is subject to, and issued in accordance with, the provisions of the contract between Jacobs and the client. Jacobs accepts no liability or responsibility whatsoever for, or in respect of, any use of, or reliance upon, this document by any third party. Sydney Metro West – Stage 1 Technical Paper 10: Biodiversity Development Assessment Report Contents Glossary of terms ............................................................................................................................................................................ i Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................................................................... v 1. Introduction ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Sydney Metro West ....................................................................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Purpose and scope of this report ............................................................................................................................................ 2 1.3 Secretary’s Environmental Assessment Requirements .................................................................................................... 2 1.4 Key terms used in this report .................................................................................................................................................... 4 1.5 Authors ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 5 2. Methodology .................................................................................................................................................................... 6 2.1 Study area ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 6 2.2 Background research and data sources ................................................................................................................................ 6 2.3 Mapping extent of native vegetation cover ......................................................................................................................... 9 2.4 Plant community type identification ...................................................................................................................................... 9 2.5 Patch size ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 12 2.6 Threatened species habitat assessment – creating a candidate species list ......................................................... 12 2.7 Targeted threatened species surveys.................................................................................................................................. 13 2.8 Survey limitations ...................................................................................................................................................................... 14 3. Landscape features ...................................................................................................................................................... 16 3.1 IBRA Bioregions and sub-regions ......................................................................................................................................... 16 3.2 BioNet NSW Landscapes .......................................................................................................................................................... 16 3.3 Rivers, streams and estuaries ................................................................................................................................................. 16 3.4 Wetlands ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 17 3.5 Connectivity of habitat ............................................................................................................................................................. 32 3.6 Areas of geological significance and soil hazard features ........................................................................................... 32 3.7 Areas of outstanding biodiversity value ............................................................................................................................. 32 3.8 Native vegetation extent ......................................................................................................................................................... 32 4. Native vegetation and vegetation integrity ........................................................................................................... 34 4.1 Description by site ..................................................................................................................................................................... 34 4.2 Plant community type descriptions ..................................................................................................................................... 41 4.3 Vegetation zones and vegetation integrity score ........................................................................................................... 49 4.4 Patch size ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 49 4.5 Threatened ecological communities ................................................................................................................................... 49 4.6 Groundwater dependent ecosystems ................................................................................................................................. 50 5. Habitat suitability for threatened species .............................................................................................................. 65 5.1 Habitat suitability for species that can be predicted by habitat surrogates (ecosystem credit species) ..... 65 5.2 Habitat suitability for species that cannot be predicted by habitat surrogates (species credit species) ..... 69 5.3 Threatened species survey results ....................................................................................................................................... 76 Sydney Metro West – Stage 1 Technical Paper 10: Biodiversity Development Assessment Report 6. Aquatic assessment ...................................................................................................................................................... 79 6.1 Existing environment ................................................................................................................................................................ 79 6.2 Sensitive receiving environments ......................................................................................................................................... 86 6.3 Marine vegetation ...................................................................................................................................................................... 88 6.4 Aquatic biota................................................................................................................................................................................ 89 6.5 Threatened fish ........................................................................................................................................................................... 89 7. Matters of National Environmental Significance .................................................................................................. 95 7.1 Wetlands of international and national importance ...................................................................................................... 95 7.2 Nationally listed threatened ecological communities .................................................................................................