Whitehaven Offsets Report

Whitehaven Offsets – 25.1.2013

Findings of the field studies of the Whitehaven offset Properties, summary reports, detailed appendices and links to photos are shown below. Nature Conservation Council Press Release

Overall Results from the Survey of the Northern Offsets

The survey of the Whitehaven northern offsets found that:

The dominant vegetation community in areas mapped by the proponent as White Box woodland was in fact Stringybark Open Forest and did not contain any White Box. It did not meet the definition of the Critically Endangered Ecological Community.
It did not even meet the definition of Grassy Woodland but instead represents a totally different vegetation class of Dry Sclerophyll Forest.
The vegetation is not high condition remnant habitat for Swift Parrot, Regent Honeyeater or Corben’s Long-eared Bat, of which the proponent claims 5275ha on the properties.
The absence of White Box means the vegetation will not produce the quantity of nectar required to support nationally threatened birds such as the Swift Parrot and Regent Honeyeater, and will provide only marginal habitat.
Corben’s Long-eared Bat is at its altitudinal limit at 900m and is unlikely to occur in Stringybark open forests. There are no records of this species at such an altitude in the area despite extensive surveys in Mt Kaputar NP at this elevation.
All of the vegetation on the site was heavily disturbed by previous clearing and logging and there very few hollow-bearing trees, compared with Leard Forest which contains up to 100 hollows per hectare.
It is highly unlikely that the area would provide habitat for the endangered plant Tylophora linearis.

Summary Report into the Whitehaven Offsets – 1.3 MB

Full Submission Leard Forest coal offsets 29th Jan 2013 – 4.5 MB

Appendix A Report from field assessment of Wirradale and Mt Lindesay 7th & 9th Jan 2013 – 4.1 MB

Photos of Wirradale and Mt Linday 7th & 9th Jan 2013

Appendix B Expert opinions and other contributors to submission Jan 2013 – 3.2 MB

Appendix C Field Assessment of Eastern and Western Offset Properties in the Locality of Leard SF and Leard SCA 25 Jan 2013 – 63 MB

Appendix D Kelso offset report and habitat condition assessment 21st Jan 2013 – 25 MB

Appendix E Potential impacts from mine noise on Leard State Forest ecosystems Jan 2013 – 1 MB

Appendix F Potential impacts from mine lighting on Leard Forest ecosystems Jan 2013 – 1 MB