Ecological Assessment Report
Proposed Residential Development
Lot 142 on SP123456

01 Executive Summary

Altitude Ecology Pty Ltd was commissioned by Summit Developments Pty Ltd to prepare a desktop ecological assessment for a proposed residential development at Lot 142 on SP123456, Greenbank Road, Greenbank QLD 4124 (the subject site). The site covers approximately 5.23 hectares and is located within the Logan City Council local government area.

The desktop assessment was undertaken in accordance with the Nature Conservation Act 1992 (Qld), the Vegetation Management Act 1999 (Qld), the Planning Act 2016 (Qld), the State Planning Policy 2017 (SPP), and the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) (EPBC Act).

The assessment identified two Regional Ecosystem (RE) types on the subject site, including RE 12.9-10.19 (Eucalyptus acmenoides and/or Syncarpia glomulifera open forest on loams), which is listed as Of Concern under the Vegetation Management Act 1999. The Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus — South-East Queensland) was confirmed as a likely user of the site based on vegetation mapping and ALA occurrence data.

Environmental offset obligations arise under both the state and Commonwealth regulatory frameworks. A referral to the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) under the EPBC Act is recommended prior to development approval.

02 Introduction

2.1 Project Overview

Summit Developments Pty Ltd proposes to develop Lot 142 on SP123456 for residential subdivision comprising approximately 28 residential lots with associated roads, drainage infrastructure, and open space. The site is currently occupied by remnant eucalypt woodland transitioning to grassland in the eastern portion.

2.2 Study Area Location

The subject site is located at Greenbank Road, Greenbank, approximately 30 km south-west of Brisbane CBD. The site is bounded to the north by existing low-density residential development, to the east by Greenbank Road, to the south by a rural residential allotment, and to the west by a dry land cropping paddock.

Figure 1: Study area location, Lot 142 on SP123456, Greenbank QLD (approximate boundary shown in green)

2.3 Assessment Purpose

This report has been prepared to support a development application to Logan City Council and to inform an EPBC Act referral assessment. The report describes the ecological values of the subject site, identifies potential impacts on protected species and ecological communities, and recommends mitigation and offset obligations.

03 Methodology

3.1 Desktop Assessment

A desktop ecological assessment was undertaken in March 2026. This involved a review of the following databases and spatial datasets:

• Atlas of Living Australia (ALA) — species occurrence records within a 5 km radius of the site centroid
• Queensland Department of Environment PMST (Protected Matters Search Tool) — EPBC-listed species and ecological communities within 10 km
• Queensland Regional Ecosystem Mapping (RE v11.0) — vegetation classification and conservation status
• Vegetation Management Act Interactive Mapping System (VMA IMS) — remnant status and category
• Queensland Koala Habitat Assessment — koala habitat value mapping
• MSES (Matters of State Environmental Significance) mapping layer

3.2 Species Screening Criteria

Flora and fauna species with EPBC Act and/or NCA/NC Regulation listings were screened using PMST results and ALA occurrence records. Species were retained for further assessment if ALA records exist within 10 km of the site and the habitat type present on-site is consistent with known habitat requirements of the species.

04 Vegetation Communities

Two Regional Ecosystem (RE) mapping units were identified on the subject site based on desktop RE mapping. A summary of each RE type, its conservation status, and estimated coverage is provided in Table 1.

Table 1: Regional Ecosystem mapping identified within the subject site. Source: RE Mapping v11.0 (DSDE 2024).

Figure 2: Remnant Regional Ecosystem Mapping — QLD Government RE v11.0 (DSDE). Study area boundary shown in teal.

RE 12.9-10.19 forms the dominant vegetation community on-site, with the overstorey dominated by Eucalyptus acmenoides (White Mahogany) and scattered Syncarpia glomulifera (Turpentine). The understorey consists of mixed shrubs including Acacia disparrima, Breynia oblongifolia, and Alphitonia excelsa. This RE is classified as Of Concern under the VM Act and triggers Category B regulated vegetation offset obligations.

05 Flora Results

5.1 Threatened Flora — PMST & ALA Screening

A total of 4 threatened flora species returned from the PMST search within 10 km of the site. Of these, 2 species were assessed as having potential habitat on-site based on RE mapping and substrate characteristics. These species are summarised in Table 2.

Table 2: Threatened flora species assessed for the subject site. EN = Endangered, VU = Vulnerable, NT = Near Threatened. Source: DCCEEW PMST (March 2026); ALA (March 2026).

06 Fauna Results

6.1 Threatened Fauna — PMST & ALA Screening

The PMST search returned 12 threatened fauna species within 10 km of the site. Following habitat suitability assessment, 5 species were retained for further consideration. The retained species are detailed in Table 3 below.

Table 3: Threatened fauna species assessed for the subject site. Source: DCCEEW PMST (March 2026); ALA (March 2026).

6.2 Koala Habitat Assessment

The Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) is listed as Endangered under the EPBC Act (SEQ population) and as Vulnerable under the Queensland Nature Conservation (Koala) Conservation Plan 2006–2016. The subject site is mapped as high-value koala habitat under the South East Queensland Koala Conservation Strategy.

The dominant eucalyptus species on-site — Eucalyptus acmenoides (White Mahogany) and Eucalyptus tereticornis (Forest Red Gum) — are both primary koala food trees within SEQ. ALA records confirm 47 koala observations within 10 km of the site centroid, with 6 records within 2 km. The site is assessed as providing high-value koala habitat and movement corridor function between habitat patches to the north and south.

Figure 3: Threatened fauna habitat distribution and ALA occurrence records within the study area

07 Threatened Species Assessment

The following assessment summarises the significance of impacts on threatened species identified as potentially occurring on the subject site.

Table 4: Threatened species impact assessment summary.

08 EPBC Act Assessment

8.1 Controlled Action Assessment

The proposed development has been assessed against the 'matters of national environmental significance' (MNES) provisions under Part 3 of the EPBC Act. The following MNES are considered likely to be triggered by the proposed development:

On the basis of the desktop assessment findings, an EPBC Act referral is recommended prior to lodging the development application with Logan City Council. The referral should be accompanied by the results of targeted pre-clearance surveys for Fimbristylis sp. (Greenbank) and a koala habitat assessment prepared in accordance with the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water Significant Impact Guidelines.

09 State & Local Planning Assessment

9.1 Vegetation Management Act 1999 (Qld)

The subject site contains 3.12 ha of OF CONCERN remnant vegetation mapped under the VM Act as RE 12.9-10.19 (Category B regulated vegetation). Clearing of Category B regulated vegetation in a designated urban area requires a Development Approval and triggers environmental offset obligations under the Environmental Offsets Act 2014 (Qld).

The 1.08 ha of RE 12.3-17.1 (Not of Concern) does not trigger offset obligations but clearing must be reported via the vegetation clearing notification system.

Figure 4: Protected Plant Trigger Map — QLD Government Vegetation Management WMS (DESI). Flora survey trigger areas shown as hatched overlay; study area boundary in teal.

9.2 State Planning Policy 2017 (SPP)

The following SPP interest areas are relevant to the subject site:

9.3 Matters of State Environmental Significance (MSES)

Desktop review of the MSES mapping layer identified the following MSES values intersecting the subject site:

• High ecological value (HEV) watercourse — drainage line along eastern boundary mapped as HEV watercourse. A 100 m riparian setback from the watercourse top-of-bank applies under MSES.
• Regulated vegetation (Of Concern remnant) — 3.12 ha of RE 12.9-10.19 mapped as regulated vegetation.

Figure 5: Matters of State Environmental Significance (MSES) — Aquatic Ecosystems, Watercourses & Wetlands. Source: QLD Government MSES MapServer (DES). Study area boundary in teal.

10 Environmental Offsets

Environmental offset obligations arise under the Environmental Offsets Act 2014 (Qld) for the proposed clearing of 3.12 ha of Category B regulated vegetation (RE 12.9-10.19). The offset obligation has been calculated using the Queensland Biodiversity Offset Policy calculator and the SE Bioregion multipliers applicable to this RE type.

The proponent should identify a suitable offset area prior to lodging the development application. The offset area must be:

• Within the same bioregion (South East Queensland) for a like-for-like offset
• Of equivalent or better ecological condition than the vegetation to be cleared
• Registered on title as a conservation covenant under the Nature Conservation Act 1992 or transferred to a Nature Refuge or State land

11 Conclusions & Recommendations

The desktop ecological assessment identified significant ecological values on the subject site, including Of Concern remnant vegetation (RE 12.9-10.19), high-value Koala habitat, and potential habitat for one Endangered flora species (Fimbristylis sp. Greenbank). The proposed development is likely to constitute a Controlled Action under the EPBC Act and will require environmental offsets under Queensland legislation.

The following actions are required prior to lodging the development application:

12 References

E.1 Appendix E.1 — ALA Flora Occurrence Records

E.2 Appendix E.2 — ALA Fauna Occurrence Records

F.1 Appendix F.1 — PMST Flora Results

F.4 Appendix F.4 — PMST Summary & Acknowledgements

This report was prepared using publicly available data from the Atlas of Living Australia (ALA), the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water's Protected Matters Search Tool (PMST), and Queensland Government spatial data portals.

The data accessed via these portals is subject to the terms and conditions of the respective data custodians. Species occurrence records from ALA represent observations reported to the platform and should not be regarded as comprehensive species inventories for the study area.

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