The likelihood that an action will have a In all these cases, landholders are encouraged to avoid any impacts on patches of the ecological significant impact on the ecological community community where possible and to help restore depends on local conditions, the quality of the remnants. For example, landholders should try to patch, and upon the intensity, duration, avoid native vegetation clearance in the ecological magnitude and geographic extent of the impacts. community and create a minimum 50 m buffer zone to help protect the root zone of trees and other Fire management activities should seek to components at the edge of the ecological minimise impacts to the ecological community. community from spray drift (fertiliser, pesticide or Fires must be managed to ensure that where herbicide sprayed in adjacent land) and other possible, prevailing fire regimes do not disrupt the damage. life cycles of the component species of the ecological community (including avoiding Please note that human settlements and management burning in flowering and nesting infrastructure where the ecological community seasons, wherever possible), that they support formerly occurred do not form part of the natural rather than degrade the habitat necessary to the environment and are therefore not considered to be ecological community, that they do not promote part of the protected ecological community. This invasion of exotic species, and that they do not also applies to sites that have been replaced by increase impacts of other disturbances such as crops and exotic pastures, or where the ecological grazing or predation by feral predators. community exists in a highly-degraded or unnatural state (see all patches protected under the Activities with national environment law approval ‘Are EPBC Act listing?’ section of this guide). to the listing of this ecological community, do not need to seek further approval. Southern Highlands Forest and Woodland short dry form © Greg Stone
In all these cases, landholders are encouraged to avoid any impacts on patches of the ecological community where possible and to help restore remnants. For example, landholders should try to avoid native vegetation clearance in the ecological community and create a minimum 50 m buffer zone to help protect the root zone of trees and other components at the edge of the ecological community from spray drift (fertiliser, pesticide or herbicide sprayed in adjacent land) and other damage. Please note that human settlements and infrastructure where the ecological community formerly occurred do not form part of the natural environment and are therefore not considered to be part of the protected ecological community. This also applies to sites that have been replaced by crops and exotic pastures, or where the ecological community exists in a highly-degraded or unnatural state (see ‘Are all patches protected under the EPBC Act listing?’ section of this guide). The likelihood that an action will have a significant impact on the ecological community depends on local conditions, the quality of the patch, and upon the intensity, duration, magnitude and geographic extent of the impacts. Fire management activities should seek to minimise impacts to the ecological community. Fires must be managed to ensure that where possible, prevailing fire regimes do not disrupt the life cycles of the component species of the ecological community (including avoiding management burning in flowering and nesting seasons, wherever possible), that they support rather than degrade the habitat necessary to the ecological community, that they do not promote invasion of exotic species, and that they do not increase impacts of other disturbances such as grazing or predation by feral predators. Activities with national environment law approval to the listing of this ecological community, do not need to seek further approval. Southern Highlands Forest and Woodland short dry form © Greg Stone
southern-highlands-shale-forest-guide.docx