2016-12-12 General Committee - Attachment 1 to Item 6 - Biodiversity Assessment Report

                                                  Noosa Biodiversity Plan – Biodiversity Assessment Report




3         Biodiversity Values
Noosa contains a diversity of biodiversity values and natural landscapes within a very confined physical
area. Many of the values and landscapes are of great significance and globally unique. Noosa’s key
biodiversity values include:

      •    A diverse range of vegetation communities that mostly remain in remnant condition
      •    A significantly high extent and proportion of endangered vegetation as defined by State and
           Commonwealth legislation
      •    Unique ecosystems including rare sub-tropical examples of patterned fens, coastal lagoon
           systems, sand lakes and dune systems
      •    A highly connected network of core habitat areas from a diverse cross-section of ecosystem types
           and altitudinal ranges
      •    Nationally recognised and protected lowland rainforest and saltmarsh ecosystems
      •    A significantly high proportion of threatened species, including species that are endemic and
           Gondwana relicts
      •    Critical habitats, including internationally recognised migratory bird habitats of conservation
           importance
      •    The healthiest river system in the SEQ region
      •    A high proportion of wetlands areas that are internationally or nationally recognised as important
           or of state significance
      •    An extensive protected reserve system that plays a critical role in conservation management
           across the SEQ region.

Noosa provides the last stronghold for many of these biodiversity values that were once prevalent across
the entire SEQ region. These factors make Noosa a unique area and an important place for biodiversity
conservation.

3.1       V eg et at ion com mun it ie s
Within a small area, Noosa Shire has a high diversity of native vegetation communities, from the lowland
rainforest, heathlands and Melaleuca communities in the east, to the woodlands and tall open forests of
the drier west. This diversity extends to the north-east where the frontal dune communities form part of
the Great Sandy complex. A diverse community of mangrove, saltmarsh and seagrass beds also occur
along the foreshore of the Noosa River and its lake system, whilst the extinct volcanic plugs (inselbergs)
such as Mount Cooroora, Mount Cooroy and Mount Cooran, support montane heath communities.

Overall, Noosa’s diverse vegetation can be classified into 27 BVGs (BVGs 1M), which are grouped under
the following eight vegetation types:

      •    Rainforests and scrubs
      •    Wet Eucalypt open forests
      •    Eucalypt woodlands
      •    Eucalypt woodlands on floodplains
      •    Melaleuca woodlands
      •    Heaths and other coastal communities
      •    Wetlands
      •    Mangroves and saltmarshes




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