Declaration of an Approved Wildlife Trade Operation – Queensland East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery, May 2024

Overview

The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) was enacted to address the need for a national framework for the protection of the environment, particularly with respect to biodiversity and matters of national environmental significance. The Act provides the legislative basis for the Commonwealth Government to regulate activities that may impact the environment, including the approval and monitoring of wildlife trade operations. In May 2024, the Minister for the Environment and Water, through their delegate, varied the declaration of an approved wildlife trade operation for the Queensland East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery. This variation sought to address a gap in the monitoring and data collection regime necessary for the sustainable management of the fishery, by adjusting the timeline for the development and implementation of a robust monitoring system. The policy objective behind this variation is to ensure that accurate and reliable data is collected to support the sustainable management of both target and non-target species within the fishery.

Scope and Application

The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 applies to entities involved in wildlife trade operations, including the Queensland East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery, which must comply with the approved wildlife trade operation as specified in the management regime under various Queensland and Commonwealth Acts and Regulations. This Act establishes the framework for managing wildlife trade operations, ensuring that they do not negatively impact the environment, including protected species. The geographic reach of this Act is both Commonwealth and state, specifically within the jurisdiction of Queensland, and extends to federally managed marine parks such as the Great Barrier Reef. The declaration of an approved wildlife trade operation sets forth specific conditions that must be met, such as the development and implementation of a robust monitoring and data collection regime, to ensure sustainable management of fisheries and conservation of protected species. This Act may also extend or restrict application through subordinate instruments, and affected persons or entities may apply for a statement of reasons and seek independent review under the Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975.

Key Provisions

The main operative sections of the Notifiable instrument F2024N00391 involve a variation to the declaration of an approved wildlife trade operation for the Queensland East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery. Specifically, section 303FT(7)(b) of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) has been used to vary the declaration dated 17 December 2021. The variation pertains to Condition 7, which now requires the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries to commence the development and implementation of a statistically robust, independent, quantitative and validated monitoring and data collection regime by 30 September 2024, rather than having to complete this by 20 May 2024 as previously stated. This regime should involve electronic monitoring, onboard observers, or other means, and should gather data sufficient to reliably demonstrate the accuracy of reported catch, effort, and protected species interaction data, and inform the sustainable management of target, byproduct, and bycatch species. The obligations imposed by this variation require the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries to initiate the development and implementation of the specified monitoring and data collection regime within the new timeframe. The regime must be statistically robust, independent, quantitative, and validated, and must involve suitable data collection methods to accurately reflect the fishery's activities and interactions with protected species. The data collected must be sufficient to ensure the reliability of reported catch, effort, and protected species interaction data, and should gather suitable data on the level of catch, discards, and interactions in the fishery. Failure to comply with the provisions of this Act could result in legal consequences. Under the EPBC Act, breaches of the Act may result in civil or criminal penalties. The exact penalties can vary depending on the nature and severity of the breach but could include substantial fines. The precise penalties are outlined in the EPBC Act and may be subject to the discretion of the court. Additionally, the Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975 provides avenues for affected persons to seek a statement of reasons and independent review of the decision within 28 days of the declaration date.