Referral Agency Response DERM · MCU10/2127

                 DERM Wetlands and Conservation Estate Referral Agency Response

    Where a wetland management area is mapped as a `significant coastal wetland' under a Regional Coastal
    Management Plan it should be assessed against the policy for areas of state significance (natural
    resources). An Implementation Guideline should be consulted:
    http://www.derm.ald.gov.au/services resources/item details.Dhp?item id=202304&topic id=54.
     For areas where a regional coastal management plan does not exist, where the wetland management area
     is also defined as a 'significant coastal wetland' under the State Coastal Management Plan - Queensland's
     Coastal Policy 2001 (SCMP), any approval is consistent with SCMP policy 2.8.1, Areas of state significance
     (natural resources).
     Maintain wetland water quality. The water quality of any waters in and linked to the wetland is maintained
     and managed to protect the environmental values of the wetland, and to ensure that the water quality
     objectives listed under Schedule 1 of the Environmental Protection (Water) Policy 2009 are achieved.
•   Maintain wetland water regime. The existing water regime (including surface and groundwater) within and
    linked to the wetland is maintained and managed to protect existing natural hydrological processes within
    the wetland ecosystem. This includes safeguarding natural fluctuations in size and location of the wetland,
    and retaining and allowing for regeneration of native vegetation.
To ensure that the proposed development is able to meet the above outcomes, the Assessment Manager is
encouraged to consider the requirement for a buffer area between any proposed works and the wetland. A
wetland buffer has two components:
    •    a support area adjacent to the wetland that maintains and supports the environmental values of the
         wetland; and
     •   a separation area around the support area that protects the wetland from external threats such as
         sediment and nutrient discharge from surrounding landuse.
Buffer d istances should be maximised in order to maintain existing biodiversity values, habitat connectivity and
to minimise edge effects. Unless otherwise determined by a suitably qualified professional, the following buffer
widths are accepted by DERM as precautionary buffer widths likley to absorb impacts from external uses.
     •    within urban areas, a minimum 50m buffer to wetland
     •    outside of urban areas a minimum 200m buffer to wetland
     •    for 'significant coastal wetlands', a buffer width of 200m to wetland
Where required, revegetation of the buffer is recommended using native species representative of the pre-
clearing regional ecosystem, with preference given to endemic species. Plants should be of local provenance
where possible. A rehabilitation / revegetation management plan including weed management strategies may
assist in determining the rehabilitiation requirements for the development. Conditioning of any approval with
building or development envelope(s) may also be a useful way to give formal effect to any required buffer area.
The Assessment Manager should consider requiring applicants to provide a Stormwater Management Plan to
demonstrate how stormwater, sediment and other run-off from the site (associated with the construction and
operational phases of development) will be effectively managed to prevent adverse impacts on wetland values.
Potential impacts are to be addressed through water sensitive urban design including compliance with South
East Queensland Regional Plan 2009-2031 Implementation Guideline No. 7: Water sensitive urban design -
design objectives for urban storm water management. For areas outside of the South-east Queensland Regional
Plan area any approval should recognise the requirements of the the Draft Urban Stormwater- Queensland
Best Practice Environmental Management Guidelines 20092.




2 The Draft Urban Stormwater -Queensland Best Practice Environmental Management Guidelines 2009, is available at:
http://www.derm.gld.gov.au/environmental management/water/environmental values environmental protection water Policy/draft urban
stormwater abpem guideline 2009.html


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