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

                                                           Noosa Biodiversity Plan – Biodiversity Assessment Report




                   180
                   160
                   140
                   120
                   100
      Area (km2)




                   80                                                                  0.54%
                                                                                                     Total wetland area
                   60                                                              0.58%
                                                                                                Palustrine
                                                                               0.72%
                   40                                                                       Riverine
                                                                           -2.39%
                   20                                                  0.15%           Lacustrine
                                                                                   Estuarine
                    0
                          2001        2005       2009       2013     Overall
                   -20

                                 Estuarine   Lacustrine   Riverine   Palustrine   Total wetland area


Figure 28: Changes in wetland areas across Noosa Shire from 2001 - 2013




4.7           Hab it at f r agm ent at io n
Noosa Shire’s long history of sustainable environmental management has resulted in a growth
management strategy that minimises fragmentation of habitats, and promotes the regeneration of native
vegetation to develop habitat corridors in previously disturbed areas. Nonetheless, the construction of
linear infrastructure such as roads, powerline easements and rail has been an integral component of the
Noosa Shire’s development to support the large coastal town and major tourist destination. As discussed
in Section 3.3, the clearing of vegetation for infrastructure has been one of the main contributors to recent
land clearing rates within the Noosa Shire.

Habitat fragmentation as a result of the construction and development of linear infrastructure can cause
an array of impacts including:

      •            Reduced core habitat
      •            Introduction of edge effects such as weed incursions
      •            Reduced carrying capacity of habitat patches i.e. the number of species able to be supported
      •            Genetic isolation and inbreeding depression
      •            Reduced dispersal abilities and an inability to respond to environmental changes
      •            Increased mortality rates associated with high risk dispersal options
      •            Reduced colonisation rates due to barrier effects
      •            Local extinction of fauna populations

The major linear features that have fragmented habitat areas within the Noosa Shire or are major barriers
to key landscape corridors are outlined in Table 7. These major linear features are supported by a
network of other local roads and tracks that are concentrated around the main settlement nodes within
the shire, namely Cooroy, Tewantin, Noosa Heads, Pomona and Cooran. The impacts of fragmentation



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