Astron completed an ecological assessment of a proposed disturbance corridor for a seismic survey on the Geraldton Sandplains. The corridor was over 60 km long and extended through a variety of land tenures and vegetation types. The assessment comprised a targeted survey for conservation significant flora and fauna of the corridor. Flora and fauna surveys were both conducted in accordance with the relevant Environmental Protection Authority guidelines and other regulatory guidance.
The survey corridor was traversed on foot by a team of experienced Astron botanists and zoologists. Systematic searches were undertaken for threatened and priority flora (conservation significant flora) that were likely to occur along the corridor (likelihood informed by desktop assessment). Locations of conservation significant flora were recorded using a Differential Global Position in order to maximise accuracy of mapping. The immediate area surrounding each significant plant record was also thoroughly searched in order to accurately map the extent of aggregations of individual species.
The fauna survey included descriptions of fauna habitats and a compilation of the numerous species recorded opportunistically as the survey area was traversed. Habitat assessments included particular focus on the breeding and foraging potential of habitat for the Carnaby’s cockatoo: a species listed as Endangered under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 and Wildlife Conservation Act 1950.
The survey and assessment report was completed within two months of the field work. The report included an assessment of the proposed clearing against the Department of Environment Regulation’s 10 Clearing Principles. Both the field survey and report were completed to the client’s satisfaction, all with a very short turnaround from project initiation.
