EASTERN BROADACRE PLANNING STUDY ASSESSMENT OF ECOLOGICAL OPPORTUNITIES AND CONSTRAINTS D.McC. Hogg Report to Macroplan Australia on behalf of ACT Planning and Land Authority June 2008 DAVID HOGG PTY LTD ACN 008 564 047 ABN 35 008 564 047 ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTANTS SUITE 3, BANK BUILDING, JAMISON CENTRE, MACQUARIE, ACT POSTAL ADDRESS: PO BOX 213, JAMISON CENTRE, ACT 2614 TELEPHONE: (02) 6251 3885 FAX: (02) 6253 1574 E-mail: [email protected] CONTENTS Page EXECUTIVE SUMMARY S/1 1. INTRODUCTION 1 2. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND 2 3. AN OVERVIEW OF ECOLOGICAL VALUES 3 3.1 Introduction 3 3.2 Natural Temperate Grassland 5 3.3 Yellow Box – Red Gum Grassy Woodland 6 3.4 Riparian Zone Communities 8 3.5 Grassland Earless Dragon 8 3.6 Striped Legless Lizard 9 3.7 Pink-tailed Worm Lizard 10 3.8 Golden Sun Moth 10 3.9 Perunga Grasshopper 10 3.10 Woodland Birds 11 3.11 Button Wrinklewort 12 3.12 Small Purple Pea 12 3.13 Hoary Sunray 13 3.14 Other Grassland and Woodland Plants 13 3.15 Latham’s Snipe 13 3.16 Other Animals 14 3.17 Other Plants 14 4. METHODOLOGY FOR EVALUATING ECOLOGICAL OPPORTUNITIES AND CONSTRAINTS 15 5. REVIEW OF STUDY AREA BY SECTION 17 5.1 Introduction 17 5.2 Section A – Upper Majura Valley 17 5.3 Section B – Lower Majura Valley 19 5.4 Section C – Fyshwick- Pialligo Area 20 5.5 Section D – Jerrabomberra Valley, eastern part 21 5.6 Section E – Jerrabomberra Valley, western part – ‘Callum Brae’ hills 23 5.7 Section F – South-west Hume 24 5.8 Comparison with Southern Broadacre Planning Study 24 5.9 Conclusions 27 6. PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT ACT REQUIREMENTS 29 7. EPBC ACT IMPLICATIONS 30 REFERENCES AND INFORMATION SOURCES 31 EBPS ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT – JUNE 2008 FIGURES Following page S.1 Summary of ecological constraints S/2 1.1 The study area 2 3.1 Woodlands and grasslands 6 3.2 Grassland earless dragon habitat 10 3.3 Other threatened or significant species and habitat 10 4.1 Wildlife movement corridors 16 5.1 Study area sections 18 5.2 Ecological constraints 18 5.3 Southern Broadacre Planning Study – recommended conservation options 22 5.4 Numbered areas for comparison between EPBS and SBPS 26 TABLE Following page 5.1 Comparison of ecological assessments in EBPS and SBPS 26 EBPS ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT – JUNE 2008 S/1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This report reviews the ecological issues relevant to the Eastern Broadacre Planning Study in terms of the potential constraints that these issues may generate in relation to the potential use of the Majura – Symonston – Jerrabomberra area as a future employment corridor for Canberra. This corridor contains many areas which are of high potential for biodiversity conservation in the ACT, either as nature reserves or as low intensity land uses which would be compatible with biodiversity conservation. Most of these areas contain threatened species or ecological communities which are protected under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC Act) as well as the ACT Nature Conservation Act. The analysis in this report is based largely on the extensive information collected by the ACT Government in preparing its series of Action Plans for threatened species and ecological communities. The important ecological attributes identified in these Action Plans which may be constraints on development are as follows: • Natural temperate grassland, which is an endangered ecological community and is present in some lowlying parts of the study area, supporting a number of threatened species. • Remnant woodland, particularly yellow box – red gum grassy woodland, which is an endangered ecological community occurring on the lower slopes above the grassland, and providing habitat for several threatened bird species. • The grassland earless dragon (Tympanocryptis pinguicolla), an endangered species which now appears to survive only in the study area and adjacent lowlying areas in New South Wales. Because of its endangered status and the importance of the study area as its main habitat, this species is potentially a major constraint to land development and infrastructure works within the study area. • Several other threatened animal species which are less significant as constraints because of their more limited occurrence within the study area, their presence in other areas within and outside the ACT and, in some cases, a lower threatened status. These include the striped legless lizard (Delma impar), the pink-tailed worm lizard (Aprasia parapulchella), the golden sun moth (Synemon plana), the Perunga grasshopper (Perunga ochracea) and several woodland birds. • The button wrinklewort (Rutidosis leptorrhynchoides), an endangered plant, which occurs in scattered locations in the study area, resulting in possible local constraints. In order to clarify the nature of major ecological constraints within the study area, the following hierarchy has been used for identifying areas of conservation value: 1. Existing or committed nature reserves. These can be treated as highly significant constraints. 2. Other areas where there is a strong case for inclusion in reserves, including extensions to existing reserves, or alternatively be managed for multiple use in a way which conserves their ecological values. It is recommended that EBPS ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT – JUNE 2008 S/2 these also be treated as significant constraints, subject to possible minor refinements. They may include Commonwealth land. 3. Complementary habitat, buffer areas and connecting areas. These areas are constrained but may be partially developed at a relatively low intensity which retains important ecological values. 4. Areas with no major ecological constraints. Land within the first two levels of this hierarchy can be regarded as core conservation sites, irrespective of their current reserve status, while land within the third level forms complementary conservation sites. The interactions between areas, particularly in relation to wildlife movement, has also been considered, both at the broad landscape level and in terms of local connectivity within or between sites. The potential ecological constraints are discussed by dividing the study area into six sections and discussing each of these in turn. A summary of these constraints is presented in Figure S.1. A large proportion of the land which is subject to ecological constraints is used for Defence purposes or for Canberra International Airport. The main ecological constraints within the study area can be summarised as follows: • Development within some large parts of the study area is potentially constrained by the presence of the endangered ecological community, natural temperate grassland. • An even larger area is potentially constrained by the presence of habitat for the endangered grassland earless dragon. Much of this habitat is within the natural temperate grassland, but much of it is within native pasture, while some buffers or connecting areas are located in degraded native pasture or exotic pasture. • Most of the records or likely habitat for other threatened grassland species are within the above natural temperate grassland/ GED habitat areas and do not impose significant additional constraints. The main exception to this are the scattered occurrences of button wrinklewort, which appear as localised constraints without having major strategic implications. • Most of the important woodland areas within and around the study area are within proposed nature reserves or the Majura Military Training Area, but there are some other smaller woodland patches which are important as bird habitat or may be strategically important in the functioning of a bird movement corridor through the study area. There is an outstanding ecological opportunity within the study area to create a series of viable grassland reserves with a view to ensuring the long term survival in the wild of the grassland earless dragon. The significance of this is emphasised by EBPS ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT – JUNE 2008 S/3 the strong possibility that, if such action is not taken, the species could become extinct in the wild in the medium (or possibly even short) term. Because of the large number of threatened species and ecological communities within the study area, development in much of the area is likely to require preparation of environmental impact statements under the ACT Planning and Development Act, and to justify referral under the Commonwealth EPBC Act. In particular, any development with potential to impact on the grassland earless dragon is likely to experience intense scrutiny. This in turn could result in costs and delays for developers. The level of certainty with respect to future development in the study area may be enhanced by developing a holistic approach to biodiversity conservation which provides an agreed context under the EPBC Act for the review of any future developments. It may be feasible to achieve this using the strategic environmental assessment provisions of the Planning and Development Act. EBPS ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT – JUNE 2008 1 1. INTRODUCTION The Eastern Broadacre Planning Study (EBPS) is being undertaken by Macroplan Australia on behalf of the ACT Planning and Land Authority (ACTPLA) to investigate the economic potential of the Majura – Symonston – Jerrabomberra area (see Figure 1.1) as a future employment corridor for Canberra, as identified in The Canberra Spatial Plan (Ref. 1). This corridor also contains areas which are of high potential for biodiversity conservation in the ACT, either as nature reserves or as low intensity land uses which would be compatible with biodiversity