Habitat within the project area has been described as a mixture of remnant and non-remnant vegetation.
Considering the historical disturbance and degraded nature of the project area, the habitat was
determined by Grant Paterson (SQP) during his site visit to not meet the definition of ‘in the wild’ as
defined in the Operational policy - Wildlife (Plants) - When a protected plant in Queensland is taken to
be ‘in the wild’ (DESI, 2023). The policy states that the plant should be found in a relatively natural
ecological situation (e.g. in bushland) to be considered ‘in the wild’.
Considering the historical disturbance and degraded nature of the project area, including the modified
hydrology, and the presence of dense patches of weeds, it is likely that the population of Grevillea
hockingsii within the project area will decline without intervention. The project proposes the
implementation of a Grevillea hockingsii Management Plan which will detail methods to harvest material
from individuals to be impacted by the project out of the degraded habitat and propagate before planting
into an existing population off-site. The management plan will have a net-positive goal, to not only
mitigate the impact of the project but also avoid and potentially reverse the probable natural decline of
the population. The Grevillea hockingsii Management Plan is provided in Appendix K.
Through the successful implementation of this plan, the project is considered unlikely to significantly
impact the species .
Table 50. SRI assessment - Grevillea hockingsii
Significant Residual Impact criteria Lead to a long- term decrease in the size of a local population of the species;
Assessment
A population of 67 individuals was field verified within the project area. Through the implementation of the proposed Grevillea hockingsii management plan, which will strive towards a net-positive outcome, the long-term impact to the overall population size will be mitigated, and the population will potentially be increased. As such, the project is considered unlikely to lead to a long-term decrease in the size of a population of the species. A population of 67 individuals was field verified within the project area. Through the implementation of the proposed Grevillea hockingsii management plan, which will strive towards a net-positive outcome, the long-term impact to the overall population size will be mitigated, and the extent of occurrence will potentially be increased. As such, the Project is considered unlikely to reduce the area of occupancy of a population. Across the Mount Morgan area, G. hockingsii is likely to have been historically cleared and the larger population fragmented with the establishment of the town of Mount Morgan and the Mount Morgan Mine. All 67 individuals within the project area will require clearing as part of the proposed works. As such, the Project will not fragment the population within the project area but is considered likely to increase fragmentation impacts experienced by the larger Mount Morgan population of G. hockingsii . However, through the implementation of the proposed Grevillea hockingsii management plan, it is probable that harvested and propagated plants from the impacted population will be planted into the Mount Morgan population, thus mitigating some of the fragmentation. Additionally, through aiming for a net positive outcome, the Mount Morgan population size may be increased. As such, the project is considered unlikely to fragment an existing population.
Unlikely
Reduce the extent of occurrence of the species;
Unlikely
Fragment an existing population;
Unlikely
182
Wulguru Technical Services Pty Ltd – Supporting Information to Amend an Environmental Authority
Powered by FlippingBook