APPENDIX B Biodiversity Technical Report PART 1 OF 6 Main Report NORTH STAR TO NSW/QUEENSLAND BORDER ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT 0 INLAND RAIL Inland Rail North Star to NSW/QLD Border Appendix B – Terrestrial Biodiversity Technical Report Australian Rail Track Corporation Reference: 2700 Document Number: 2-0001-270-EAP-10-RP-0401 Revision: 3 Contents 1 Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Proposal description ................................................................................................................. 1 1.1.1 Key proposal features ................................................................................................ 1 1.1.2 Descriptions of key features of the proposal ............................................................. 2 1.1.3 Fencing and signage ................................................................................................. 7 1.2 Operation of the proposal ......................................................................................................... 7 1.3 Maintenance of the proposal .................................................................................................... 8 1.4 Purpose and scope of this report .............................................................................................. 8 2 Legislative, policy standards and guidelines ................................................................................... 9 2.1 Commonwealth and State legislation ....................................................................................... 9 3 Methods .............................................................................................................................................. 15 3.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 15 3.2 Overview of assessment methodologies ................................................................................ 15 3.2.1 Biodiversity Assessment Method............................................................................. 15 3.2.2 Cumulative impact assessment ............................................................................... 19 3.3 Desktop assessment – terrestrial flora and fauna .................................................................. 27 3.3.1 Directory of Important Wetlands .............................................................................. 28 3.3.2 Groundwater dependent ecosystems ...................................................................... 28 3.4 Field assessments – terrestrial flora and fauna ...................................................................... 29 3.4.1 Locations and timing ................................................................................................ 29 3.4.2 Landscape features and context ............................................................................. 47 3.4.3 Native vegetation, threatened ecological communities and vegetation integrity assessment .............................................................................................................. 48 3.4.4 Vegetation integrity assessment (site condition) ..................................................... 49 3.4.5 Threatened ecological community assessment ...................................................... 52 3.4.6 Threatened flora species ......................................................................................... 69 3.4.7 Threatened fauna species ....................................................................................... 69 3.5 Species polygon mapping for threatened species .................................................................. 73 3.6 Permits to conduct works ....................................................................................................... 73 3.7 Quality assurance/quality control............................................................................................ 73 3.8 Nomenclature ......................................................................................................................... 74 3.8.1 Flora ......................................................................................................................... 74 3.8.2 Fauna ....................................................................................................................... 74 3.9 Assumptions and limitations ................................................................................................... 74 4 Description of environmental values............................................................................................... 75 4.1 Desktop assessment results ................................................................................................... 75 4.1.1 Results of terrestrial ecology desktop assessment ................................................. 75 4.1.2 Results of aquatic ecology desktop assessment ..................................................... 79 4.2 Existing environment .............................................................................................................. 80 4.2.1 Flora and fauna........................................................................................................ 81 4.2.2 Native vegetation within the development site ........................................................ 81 4.2.3 Ecosystem – credit species ................................................................................... 100 4.2.4 Species – credit species ........................................................................................ 119 4.2.5 Species credit species exclusions following surveys ............................................ 131 File NS2B_B_Biodiversity-Technical-Report_24AUG-01.docx 4.2.6 Species habitat polygons ....................................................................................... 132 4.2.7 Threatened flora .................................................................................................... 133 4.2.8 Threatened ecological communities ...................................................................... 137 4.2.9 High Threat Exotic flora species ............................................................................ 139 4.2.10 Threatened fauna observed in the study area ....................................................... 140 4.2.11 Pest fauna species ................................................................................................ 141 5 Potential impacts and impact mitigation ...................................................................................... 142 5.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 142 5.1.1 Proposal activities .................................................................................................. 142 5.2 Nature of impacts ................................................................................................................. 144 5.3 Impact mitigation .................................................................................................................. 153 5.3.1 Avoidance options ................................................................................................. 153 5.3.2 Design considerations ........................................................................................... 153 5.3.3 Mitigation measures .............................................................................................. 154 6 Impact assessment ......................................................................................................................... 160 6.1 Impact assessment under Biodiversity Assessment Methodology ...................................... 160 6.1.1 Impacts not triggering further assessment ............................................................ 160 6.1.2 Plant Community Types and threatened species requiring offset ......................... 160 6.1.3 Paddock tree assessment ..................................................................................... 168 6.1.4 Serious and irreversible impacts ........................................................................... 168 6.2 Prescribed biodiversity impacts ............................................................................................ 176 6.3 Summary of impacts on matters of national environmental significance assessed under Biodiversity Assessment Methodology ................................................................................. 180 6.3.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................ 180 6.3.2 Summary of Commonwealth Matters Assessment ............................................... 181 6.4 Key threatening processes ................................................................................................... 182 7 Significant Impact Assessment Methodology outside of the Biodiversity Assessment Method ........................................................................................................................................................... 186 7.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 186 7.1.1 Predictive habitat modelling 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