Galilee Basin Offset Strategy August 2013 Prepared by: Central West Region, Biodiversity Planning, Department of Environment and Heritage Protection Ecosystems Outcomes, Conservation and Sustainability Services, Department of Environment and Heritage Protection Protected Area Strategy, Department of National Parks, Recreation, Sport and Racing Vegetation Management, Department of Natural Resources and Mines © State of Queensland, 2013. The Queensland Government supports and encourages the dissemination and exchange of its information. The copyright in this publication is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia (CC BY) licence. Under this licence you are free, without having to seek our permission, to use this publication in accordance with the licence terms. You must keep intact the copyright notice and attribute the State of Queensland as the source of the publication. For more information on this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au/deed.en Disclaimer This document has been prepared with all due diligence and care, based on the best available information at the time of publication. The department holds no responsibility for any errors or omissions within this document. Any decisions made by other parties based on this document are solely the responsibility of those parties. Information contained in this document is from a number of sources and, as such, does not necessarily represent government or departmental policy. If you need to access this document in a language other than English, please call the Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS National) on 131 450 and ask them to telephone Library Services on +61 7 3170 5470. This publication can be made available in an alternative format (e.g. large print or audiotape) on request for people with vision impairment; phone +61 7 3170 5470 or email <[email protected]>. Citation EHP. 2013. Galilee Basin Offsets Strategy. Brisbane: Department of Environment and Heritage Protection Government. Acknowledgements would not appear on the verso if there is an acknowledgements page. August 2013 Contents Executive summary ...................................................................................................................................................... 1 Purpose ......................................................................................................................................................................... 2 How this strategy is to be used ..................................................................................................................................... 2 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................................... 2 Mining proposals ....................................................................................................................................................... 3 Rail lines .................................................................................................................................................................... 3 Legislative and policy background ................................................................................................................................ 5 Approval framework for the proposed mining projects under State legislation ......................................................... 6 Approval framework for the proposed rail lines under State legislation .................................................................... 6 Approval framework under Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation requirements .......................... 7 Environmental Values and Potential Impacts within the Galilee Basin ........................................................................ 7 The Strategic Footprint ............................................................................................................................................... 12 Rationale ................................................................................................................................................................. 12 The Desert Uplands strategic footprint ................................................................................................................... 14 The Northern Brigalow Belt strategic footprint ........................................................................................................ 14 Priority areas within the strategic footprint .............................................................................................................. 14 Resource values within the strategic footprint ........................................................................................................ 18 Galilee Basin Offset Strategies ................................................................................................................................... 18 Implementation of the strategies................................................................................................................................. 19 Appendices ................................................................................................................................................................. 20 Appendix 1—The Methodology for developing the strategic footprint .................................................................... 20 Appendix 2—Summary of values within Northern Brigalow Belt and Desert Uplands conservation hubs ............. 22 References .................................................................................................................................................................. 27 iii Galilee Basin Offset Strategy Overview Executive summary The Queensland Government introduced the Queensland Biodiversity Offsets Policy (BOP) to guide compensation for the removal of state significant biodiversity values as a result of development. The policy provides the framework to ensure that there is no net loss of biodiversity. The Galilee Basin Offset Strategy has been developed to support the BOP as a result of the scale of activity planned for the Galilee Basin. This strategy provides direction to proponents of level one mining, petroleum and gas activities (and level two petroleum and gas activities where the pipeline is less than 150km); who need to locate an offset site as part of the conditions of an environmental authority under the Environmental Protection Act 1994 (EP Act). The strategy will achieve this by spatially identifying where a proponent can locate and secure an offset site that achieves the best possible biodiversity outcomes for Queenslanders. The advantage for the proponents who choose to utilise these resources is that development applications will be easier to assess as they relate to offsets, and these companies will contribute to targeted biodiversity conservation in and around the Galilee Basin, with both land based and offset payments targeted to these areas. The strategy will support the implementation of the BOP, and offsets required under the Vegetation Management Framework through the Policy for Vegetation Management Offsets (PVMO). It also has the potential to support offset placement under the Draft Environmental Offsets Policy for the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1992 (EPBC). 1 Purpose The purpose of this strategy is to provide spatial resources that guide proponents to locate offset sites in identified strategic conservation hubs and corridors and assist delegated decision-makers under either the EP Act or Vegetation Management Act 1999 (VMA) in the assessment of development activities in the Galilee Basin. The strategy aims to do this by identifying a strategic footprint within the Desert Uplands and Northern Brigalow Belt bioregion that identifies where to locate land based offsets for the best biodiversity conservation outcomes. Within the footprint, two priorities have been identified that include: Priority 1—Identification of conservation hubs that are areas of high conservation value and where there are limited mining interests. Priority 2—Key north south and east west corridors that link to adjacent bioregions. The remaining corridor areas identified will link the conservation hubs throughout the bioregions. This footprint can be used either voluntarily by proponents in the Galilee Basin, or by delegated decision-makers to ensure offsets are located in areas that achieve the best possible biodiversity benefits. It can also be used to identify areas that could be acquired and managed for the protected area estate, specifically conservation park. How this strategy is to be used The strategy will describe: • types of development planned in the Galilee Basin; • what approvals are required and the legislative requirements for offsets; • environmental values triggered in the Galilee Basin; • how the strategic footprint was developed and its components; and • implementation requirements. For approvals under the State Development and Public Works Organisation Act 1971 (SDPWOA), the strategy will be used to: • allow appropriate conditioning as part of a Coordinator-General’s report to guide proponents into the strategic footprint as part of an offset package. For proponents and offset brokers the strategy will: • identify properties that support landscape level outcomes so that the offsets package achieves a no net loss of biodiversity • identify properties that can