BHP : MRA2C Offset Area Management Plan Brigalow Property

MRA2C Offset Area Management Plan

EPBC 2017-7957

Brigalow Property

March 2021

Confidential

Document tracking

Project Name	MRA2C Offset Area Management Plan - Brigalow Property
Company	BHP
Project Number	EPBC 2017-7957
Prepared by	Jessie McCudden & Renee Whitchurch
Reviewed by	Mark Longbottom
Approved by	Tom Kaveney
Status	Final
Version Number	6

This report should be cited as 'BHP (2020) MRA2C Offset Area Management Plan - Brigalow Property'

Disclaimer

This document may only be used for the purpose for which it was commissioned and in accordance with the contract between Adaptive Strategies Pty Ltd and BHP. The scope of services was defined in consultation with BHP, by time and budgetary constraints imposed by the client, and the availability of reports and other data on the subject area. Changes to available information, legislation and schedules are made on an ongoing basis and readers should obtain up to date information. Adaptive Strategies Pty Ltd accepts no liability or responsibility whatsoever for or in respect of any use of or reliance upon this report and its supporting material by any third party. Information provided is not intended to be a substitute for site specific assessment or legal advice in relation to any matter. Unauthorised use of this report in any form is prohibited.

	Confidential
Contents
1. Introduction	5
1.1	Background	5
1.2	Offset Approval Conditions	6
1.3	Purpose of Offset Area Management Plan	7
1.4	Legally binding mechanism	9
2. Offset Area	10
2.1	Property location and regional context	10
2.2	Tenure and ownership	10
2.3	Offset area and values	10
2.4	Threatening processes	16
3. Offset Management	17
3.1	Offset management objectives	17
3.2	Completion scores and performance targets	17
3.3	Offset management actions and schedule	19
3.4	Offset area restrictions	24
3.5	Offset management risks	25
4. Monitoring and Reporting	27
4.1	Monitoring	27
4.2	Offset implementation reporting	28

Confidential
References	30
Appendix A Offset Area Boundary Coordinates	31
Appendix B Risk analysis	33
Appendix C Habitat Quality Scores	38
Appendix D Offset Assessment Guide (OAG)	39

Confidential	1. Introduction
BHP

1. Introduction

1.1 Background

South Walker Creek (SWC) Mine is a BHP Mitsui Coal Pty Ltd (BMC) operated open cut coal mine located in the Northern Bowen Basin subregion of Central Queensland, approximately 125 km south-west of Mackay within the Isaac Regional Council Local Government Area. Mining activities at SWC are conducted on Mining Lease (ML) 4750 across five active pits.

The Mulgrave Pit is located in the north-central portion of the mine's operational land and is currently planned to undergo further progression to allow continued development of the coal resource. Referred to as the Mulgrave Resource Access Project, Stage 2C (MRA2C; Project), the planned pit progression will encompass a total 1,279 ha of land disturbance. This includes the diversion of a section of Walker Creek that currently flows through the future mining area.

The MRA2C project received Commonwealth approval under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Act 1999 (EPBC Act), subject to the implementation of conditions on the 30 October 2019 (EPBC 2017/7957). The Commonwealth approval EPBC 2017/7957 outlines the approved, unavoidable, significant impacts as a result of the project, which includes impacts to the threatened species Ornamental Snake (Denisonia maculata), Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus), Greater Glider (Petauroides volans), Squatter Pigeon (Geophaps scripta scripta), Black Ironbox (Eucalyptus raveretiana) and the Threatened Ecological Community (TEC) Brigalow (Acacia harpophylla dominant and co-dominant).

Since approval was granted, an additional disturbance area associated with the MRA2C project was identified. The additional impact area includes habitat for Koala, Greater Glider, Squatter Pigeon and Black Ironbox. BHP applied for a variation to the conditions of the approval to increase the disturbance limits for relevant values and deliver additional offsets to compensate for the increased impacts. This variation was approved on 27 November 2020. The authorised impact areas for each MNES as per Condition 1 of the EPBC Act approval are outlined in Table 1. Offsets for the project will be delivered in two stages as per the EPBC Act approval conditions.

Impacts to Brigalow TEC, Koala, Greater Glider and Ornamental Snake are being offset on the Clive and Brigalow Properties as part of Stage 1. This Offset Area Management Plan (OAMP) is relevant to offsets being provided on the Brigalow Property, and a separate OAMP details offsets being provided on the Clive Property (ELA, 2020a). Impacts to Black Ironbox (Eucalyptus raveretiana) are addressed in a separate OAMP for the Myuna property (ELA 2020b). A summary of the total project offset acquittal is provided in Table 2.