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

                                                 Noosa Biodiversity Plan – Biodiversity Assessment Report



Bushfire risk
Exposure to increased bushfire risk was based on the state government bushfire prone area (2015)
mapping. Any areas that are currently mapped as very high, high or medium hazard (along with an impact
buffer) were considered to be at risk of future bushfires. Data is not currently available to predict ‘new’
areas i.e. those outside current hazard areas that may be at increased risk of bushfire threat. However,
current literature and prediction data does suggest that the extent of bushfire risk areas will expand across
the shire.

Table 10 below provides a quantitative assessment of the total extent of each BVG type that is predicted
to be exposed to bushfire. Most vegetation types have close to their entire extent exposed to future
bushfires. However, BVG types most sensitive to bushfire are rainforests, wet Eucalypt forest (ecotonal
communities), heathlands and wetlands. With exposure to the communities in the order of 84% - 100%,
implications have the potential to be significant. This is likely to be further exacerbated by other factors
that can cause altered fire regimes such as increased understorey fuel loads from weed incursion.

Combined analysis of bushfire exposure and sensitivity (i.e. vulnerability) is mapped in Figure 32.

Table 10: Bushfire exposure across BVGs

                                       Area at increased bushfire risk    % of total area of this vegetation
                BVG 5M
                                                    (ha)                                type

 Rainforest / scrubs                                5,674                                84%

 Wet Eucalypt                                      10,556                               100%

 Eucalypt woodland                                 13,267                               100%

 Eucalypt woodland on floodplains                   975                                  95%

 Paperbark woodlands                                7,306                               100%

 Heaths and other coastal
                                                    5,481
 communities                                                                             93%

 Wetlands                                           240                                 100%

 Mangroves and Saltmarsh                            199                                  47%

 TOTAL                                             43,698



Hotter, drier climate
All areas of Noosa Shire will be affected by a hotter, drier climate due to increased temperatures and
evaporation. Similarly, all vegetation types will experience some degree of sensitivity to these effects,
although this is likely to be mitigated if communities are able to adapt. It is anticipated, however, that
‘wetter’ vegetation types such as rainforest, wet eucalypt forests and wetland areas will be most
vulnerable. More detailed future analysis could address potential microclimate differences across the
shire caused by topographical and other effects.




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