What’s Involved in an Ecological Assessment?
Desktop Assessments
Desktop assessments, sounds boring right? Maybe, but they are so important to the work that we do, and without them we would be walking into an ecological survey blind. We are actually very lucky that here in Queensland our ecological databases and mapping are pretty thorough.
So how do we run a desktop assessment?
We undertake a number of searches of environmental databases, mapping and previous relevant reports for a property. Things like regulated vegetation mapping, regional ecosystem mapping, protected plant survey mapping, biodiversity or environmental overlay mapping, property lists for threatened species, and watercourse mapping. We even use Google Earth to give us context. This gives us aerial views of the vegetation on the property overtime and in relation to contours.
All of this information gets put together to provide an overview of the potential ecological values on a property, and gives us insight into the potential ecological constraints to a project. Basically everything that needs to be confirmed as present during our field surveys, and if present will require assessment throughout the environmental approval process for a project.
Field Assessments
Then comes the exciting work, where we visit a property and confirm the ecological values of the site.
We verify the regional ecosystem mapping by walking the boundaries of different vegetation communities, undertake vegetation transects to gain a flora inventory for each vegetation community, and record incidental flora and fauna species. Some projects require us to undertake additional targeted surveys for specific threatened species if essential habitat is mapped on the property, or undertake random meanders searching for protected plants if the project triggers the Protected Plants Flora Survey mapping.
Every project and property is unique, and therefore the extent and type of surveying we undertake during a field assessment differs, but it’s determined entirely on what the outcomes of the desktop assessment were. This is why both desktop and field assessments are just as important as each other.
If you need advice on what ecological constraints are mapped on your property and what environmental approvals will be required for your project, please get in touch with us.
We will run some desktop assessments for your property and give you an outline of what approvals will be required and the likely costs involved to get your project from initiation to approval.
This is a free service we offer, as we understand how difficult it is to navigate environmental and planning legislation, especially when you are not doing this every day like we are. Let us help you get your project up and running!
