For floristic community descriptions of the Littoral Rainforests mentioned in this submission: consult the EGRCMN’s submission for the Lakes Entrance UDF.

SUMMARY
Lake Tyers UBF study area retains some significant stands of rainforest including:

• Limestone Littoral Rainforest;
• Bung Yarnda Littoral Rainforest; and
• Two Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act (1988)-listed floristic communities of Warm Temperate Rainforest (once present, but now extinct in the UDF study area):
  • Alluvial Terraces Warm Temperate Rainforest; and
  • East Gippsland Coastal Warm Temperate Rainforest.
• Rare or threatened species including one Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act listed species (Table 3):
  • Four rare or threatened plant species with many more likely to have been present before clearing
• Several nationally threatened and Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (1999)-listed species (Table 4);
  • Swift Parrot and Grey-headed Flying Fox

 All of the rainforests of the Lake Tyers UDF study area are threatened, many provide habitat for both Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (1999)-listed plants and Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act (2988)-listed plants and animals. 

 Much of this rainforest estate has been cleared and all of the rainforest vegetation is either listed as threatened under State’s Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act (1988) (the Warm Temperate Rainforest floristic communities) or is in the final stages of the nomination process (the Littoral Rainforest floristic communities) under the Federal Environmental Protection and Biodiversity and Conservation Act (1999).  

 The Council (and by extension the community that it represents) has obligations under these acts of Parliament to conserve these threatened rainforest communities as well as their threatened plants and animals.  Conservation and maintenance of these values requires rainforest conservation both through the preservation of existing stands and the rehabilitation and restoration of a significant proportion of the degraded or previously cleared rainforest habitat in the UDF study area.  If as a community we choose to conserve and restore these rainforest habitats then we have taken the biggest step towards conserving the cargo of rare and threatened species they contain.

 Fortunately there are significant synergies available across the UDF study area between sensible planning overlays that deal with land not suitable for development, erosion risk and storm water management and nutrient processing whilst maintaining or restoring rainforests in Lake Tyers area.

 These synergies fall into the following groupings:

1. Marginal bluffs occur along the lakeshore and the Ninety Mile Beach.  These areas are subject to landslip and tunnel erosion.  This provides habitat to Littoral Rainforest and should be left vegetated;
2. Storm water and nutrient processing along gully systems through the conservation and restoration of listed Warm Temperate Rainforest communities that have been locally proven to strip 70% of floodwater phosphorous and 88% of ground water phosphorous (Peel in prep. a).

 Very large and significant stands of native vegetation (mostly Littoral Rainforests) have not been recorded from various plans in the UDF document.  These omissions occur on the east facing marginal bluff of Lake Tyers between Fishermans Landing Arm and Mill Point Arm.

 The significance of rainforests has been understated and important information left out.

 Conservation status of rainforest in the Lake Tyers Urban Area

• There are two ecological vegetation classes of rainforest present in the study area (Warm Temperate Rainforest and Littoral Rainforest) with two distinct floristic communities represented (Table 1.).  The UDF does not identify rainforest as a significant feature of the area study

 The UDF fails to list the following: the floristic communities (Table 1), their conservation status and the threats to them (Table 2) and their threatened species [Table 3 (plants) and Table 4 (animals)] and rainforest depletion by locality (Table 5).

 Rainforest values to the environment and the community at large

In Victoria rainforests conserve 4% of the states plant diversity (30% of which are rare and threatened species), despite occupying less than 0.14% of the State’s land area.

• Rainforests are excellent water processors and have been proven locally to strip up to 70% of the phosphorous from surface storm water and 88% from ground water.  This works best in streams of up to third order (which matches all of the stream orders of the gully systems in the UDF study area);
• Rainforests are fire retardant and so their presence in the urban environment is a benefit in this regard;
• Rainforests consist of species that are restricted in the landscape that can only be conserved by protecting rainforests and their fringing ecotones;
• Rainforest on or adjacent to properties is a major selling point for real estate; and
• Rainforests enable urban kids to experience the bush with relative safety near to home.

 Constraints imposed by the conservation status of rainforest

All of the Warm Temperate Rainforest and Littoral Rainforest communities of East Gippsland are protected by the NVP regulations.  All of the Warm Temperate Rainforest and Littoral Rainforest floristic communities within the Lake Tyers urban area are threatened.  None of the rainforests in the UDF area will survive without concerted local government and community actions that include zoning to protect existing rainforest remnants and their ecotones and zoning to conserve currently cleared habitat to ensure planning and subsequent development allow recovery of the rainforests in their past habitat.

 Benefits of conserving existing stands of rainforest and the currently cleared habitat of rainforest

The following benefits will accrue if the council adopts planning measures to conserve these areas of the landscape:

• High tunnel and gully erosion-risk areas will be protected and erosion risks to infrastructure and housing will be reduced;
• Obligations under the Federal Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (1999) and State Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act (1999) will be met;
• Nationally and State-listed rainforest vegetation as well as their cargo of rare and threatened plants and animals will be conserved;
• Storm water treatment is facilitated by the restoration of rainforests to gully systems in the Lake Tyers UDF study area;
• Nutrient stripping (particularly phosphorous) will remove up to 70% of phosphorous and if combined with the reinstatement of wetlands at the mouths of rainforest gullies nitrogen sequestration is enhanced as well;
• Urban and landscape amenity is improved and the environment is conserved.

Table 1.  Rainforests of the Lake Tyers Urban Area.

Ecological vegetation class Habitat features	Floristic community	Habitat Localities in the urban area
Warm Temperate Rainforest Habitat features: ·         Moist localities; ·         Fire protected	East Gippsland Alluvial Terraces Warm Temperate Rainforest	Habitat: alluvial soils on creek flats and gully floors of all of the major gully systems Localities: gully floors of gully systems feeding Fishermans Landing Arm
	East Coastal Warm Temperate Rainforest	Habitat: gully sides on limestone or outwash alluviums Localities: all of the steeper-sided gully systems feeding Fishermans Landing Arm
Littoral Rainforest Habitat features: ·         Exposed sites ·         Saline influence (wind, water, water tables or geology); ·         Fire protected	Limestone Littoral Rainforest	Habitat: steep slopes of limestone with north or west aspects. Localities: on steep escarpments between Fishermans Landing Arm and Mill Point Arm
	Bung Yarnda Littoral Rainforest	Habitat: The marginal bluffs and subtending sand flats around Lake Tyers. Localities: on marginal bluffs along Shelly Beach and the  steep escarpments between Fishermans Landing Arm and Mill Point Arm

*See Attachment 1.

 Table 2.  Conservation status of rainforests that occur in the Lake Tyers UDF study area and the threats to them.

Floristic community	Conservation status	Threats
East Gippsland Alluvial Terraces Warm Temperate Rainforest	Threatened Flora and Fauna Guarantee-listed	Habitat loss (land clearing) Grazing by domestic stock Feral Deer Weed invasions Urban development (subdivision of cleared habitat, weed invasion) Global warming (increased fire frequency and intensity, rising sea levels)
East Gippsland Coastal Warm Temperate Rainforest	Threatened Flora and Fauna Guarantee-listed	Habitat loss (land clearing) Grazing by domestic stock Feral Deer Weed invasions Urban development (subdivision of cleared habitat, weed invasion) Global warming (increased fire frequency and intensity, rising sea levels)

Table 2 cont’d.  Conservation status of rainforests that occur in the Lake Tyers UDF study area and the threats to them.

Floristic community	Conservation status	Threats
Bung Yarnda Littoral Rainforest	Threatened: currently under consideration in the nomination process under the Federal Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (1999).	Habitat loss (land clearing) Grazing by domestic stock Feral Deer Weed invasions Urban development (weed invasion) Coastal recreation and associated infrastructure Global warming (increased fire frequency and intensity)
Limestone Littoral Rainforest	Threatened: currently under consideration in the nomination process under the Federal Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (1999).	Habitat loss (land clearing) Grazing by domestic stock Feral Deer Weed invasions Urban development (weed invasion) Coastal recreation and associated infrastructure Global warming (increased fire frequency and intensity)

Table 3.  Rare or threatened plants that occur in the rainforests of the Lake Tyers UDF study area.

Name	IUCN	EPBC	AROTS	VROTS	FFG	Action Statement	Rainforest type
Maidens Wattle Acacia maidenii				e	L	A	Bung Yarnda LRf
Yellowwood Acronychia oblongifolia	e			r			East Gippsland Deltaic LRf; Bung Yarnda LRf; East East Gippsland Coastal WTRf; Alluvial Terraces WTRf
Wallaby-bush Beyeria lasiocarpa				r			East Gippsland Coastal WTRf
Pinkwood Beyeria viscosa				r			East Gippsland Coastal WTRf
Coast Grey Box Eucalyptus bosistoana				r			Limestone LRf
Maidens Gum Eucalyptus globulus subsp. maidenii				r			Bung Yarnda LRf; East Gippsland Coastal WTRf
Bolwarra Eupomatia laurina				r
Jointed Mistletoe Korthalsella rubra subsp. rubra				v			East Gippsland Deltaic LRf; Alluvial Terraces WTRf
Yellow Loosestrife Lysimachia japonica	e			v			East Gippsland Coastal WTRf; Alluvial Terraces WTRf
Yellow Milkvine Marsdenia flavescens				r			East Gippsland Coastal WTRf; Alluvial Terraces WTRf
Viscid Daisy-bush Olearia viscosa				v			Limestone LRf
Spicy Everlasting Ozothamnus argophyllus				r			East Gippsland Deltaic LRf; Bung Yarnda LRf; Limestone LRf
Limestone Pomaderris P. oraria subsp. calcicola				r			Limestone LRf
Star Cucumbr Sicyos australis				v			East Gippsland Coastal WTRf
Sandfly Zieria Z. smithii subsp. smithii				r			East Gippsland Coastal WTRf, Bung Yarnda LRf

NOTE: Species in red are likely to have been present in areas now cleared (ie are present in the uncleared habitats of these vegetation communities nearest to Lake Tyers.

 Table 4.  Rare or threatened animals*, which occur (have been recorded) in the rainforests of the Lake Tyers Urban Design Framework study area.

Name	Division Name	ESP	AROTS	VROTS	FFG	TR	CAMBA/ JAMBA	Notes
Azure Kingfisher Alcedo azurea	Birds			n				Nests in LRf/WTRf
Diamond Python Morelia spilota spilota	Reptiles			e	L			Credible record in district
Grey Goshawk Accipiter novaehollandiae	Birds			v				Nests and hunts: WTRf
Grey-headed Flying-fox Pteropus poliocephalus	Mammals	VU	V	v	L			Food: LRF/WTRf, roosts: WTRf
Long-nosed Potoroo Potorous tridactylus	Mammals	VU