Endangered Species Protection Regulations (Amendment) 1997 No. 134
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 1997 No. 134
Issued by the authority of the Minister for the Environment
Endangered Species Protection Act 1992
Endangered Species Protection Regulations (Amendment)
Section 176 of the Endangered Species Protection Act (the Act) provides for the making of regulations by the GovernorGeneral.
Under sections 138 and 159 of the Act the Endangered Species Advisory Committee and the Endangered Species Scientific Subcommittee provide advice to the Minister on the operation of the Act.
The purpose of these Regulations is to amend the Endangered Species Protection Regulations which are in force under the Endangered Species Protection Act 1992, to improve the criteria to be considered when nominating an ecological community for listing as endangered.
Schedule 2 of the Endangered Species Protection Act contains a list of ecological communities that are endangered. Section 25 allows for public nomination of an item to be listed, which allows for community consultation in the listing process. Regulation 5 prescribes the descriptive information for ecological communities required to be submitted in a public nomination of an ecological community proposed to be listed under Schedule 2 of the Act.
The Endangered Species Scientific Subcommittee advised the Minister of concerns that the current wording of Paragraph 5 might delay the consideration of nominations for ecological communities in some circumstances and that this could hinder conservation action for the ecological community. Paragraph 5(b) requires a description of the biological and non-biological components of the ecological community and the processes by which these components interact. Paragraph 5(f) requires an estimation of the distribution of the ecological community in 1788. At times the detailed information currently required is not available, either because the detailed studies required may not yet have been undertaken (as in the case of the understanding of the processes by which the biological components of the ecological community interact) or because adequate records may not exist (as in the case of the historical extent of the ecological community). In addition, this information may not be the most relevant information required to assess the conservation status of the nominated ecological community. Finally, as a procedural clarification, there may be no additional criteria specified for the purposes of the definition of "ecological community" in the Act, although the current paragraph 5 (d) requires consideration of such.
By introducing these amendments, the process of public nomination of ecological communities will become clearer and more flexible, and will allow for information required to be submitted with public nominations of ecological communities to be more appropriate for ready assessment by the Endangered Species Scientific Subcommittee. By allowing for more rapid assessment of the conservation status, necessary conservation action will be expedited.
The amendment inserts and substitutes words into subregulations 5 (b), (d) and (f) to allow for nomination of ecological communities where the processes by which their biological and non-biological components are not known and where the past distribution of the community is not well known.
It also inserts words into paragraph 5(d) to allow for the situation where there are no additional criteria specified for the purposes of definition of "ecological community" in subsection 4(1) of the Act.
Overview
The Endangered Species Protection Regulations (Amendment) 1997 No. 134 were issued under the authority of the Minister for the Environment to amend the Endangered Species Protection Regulations, which operate under the Endangered Species Protection Act 1992. The primary aim of these amendments was to refine the criteria for nominating ecological communities for listing as endangered, thereby facilitating a more streamlined and effective process for public nominations and assessments. This amendment responds to concerns raised by the Endangered Species Scientific Subcommittee that the existing requirements could potentially delay the consideration of nominations and conservation efforts due to the lack of available detailed information or historical records. By introducing these changes, the regulations seek to ensure that the information submitted with nominations is more relevant and readily assessable, ultimately expediting necessary conservation actions.
Scope and Application
The Endangered Species Protection Regulations (Amendment) 1997 (No. 134) amends the Endangered Species Protection Regulations, which operate under the Endangered Species Protection Act 1992, to refine the criteria for nominating ecological communities for listing as endangered. This legislative amendment applies to any individual or entity wishing to nominate an ecological community for inclusion in Schedule 2 of the Act, which contains the list of endangered ecological communities. It also applies to the Endangered Species Scientific Subcommittee and the Endangered Species Advisory Committee who provide expert advice to the Minister on the Act’s operation. Geographically, the application of these regulations is national, as they concern matters of national environmental significance under Australian law. The amendments aim to remove barriers to nominating ecological communities by relaxing the stringent information requirements that can delay the assessment process. The changes allow for nominations to proceed even in the absence of detailed biological and historical data, facilitating quicker conservation action. There are no stated exclusions or exemptions within the scope of these amendments, which are designed to be broadly inclusive to encourage community participation in the conservation of endangered ecological communities.
Key Provisions
The main provisions of the Endangered Species Protection Regulations (Amendment) 1997 (No. 134) focus on updating the criteria for nominating ecological communities for listing as endangered under the Endangered Species Protection Act 1992. Section 176 of the Act authorises the making of regulations by the Governor-General, while sections 138 and 159 establish advisory committees to provide advice to the Minister. The primary change in these regulations involves updating the nomination requirements in Regulation 5 to enhance the process for public nominations. Regulation 5(b) now permits a description of the ecological community's biological and non-biological components and their interactions, even if the exact processes are not fully understood. Regulation 5(d) has been amended to clarify that additional criteria specified for the definition of "ecological community" in subsection 4(1) of the Act are not necessary. Regulation 5(f) allows for an estimation of the ecological community's distribution in 1788, even if historical records are incomplete. These changes aim to make the nomination process more flexible and efficient, facilitating quicker assessments by the Endangered Species Scientific Subcommittee and expediting necessary conservation actions.
The obligations imposed by these amended regulations on parties involved in nominating ecological communities for listing are primarily procedural. The regulations require that public nominations for endangered ecological communities include specific descriptive information as updated by the amendments. Nominators must provide a description of the ecological community's components and interactions (Regulation 5(b)), and an estimation of its distribution in 1788 (Regulation 5(f)), but these requirements are now more flexible, acknowledging the potential lack of detailed information in some cases. Furthermore, nominators are no longer required to specify additional criteria for the definition of "ecological community" (Regulation 5(d)), simplifying the nomination process. These amendments aim to streamline the nomination process, making it more accessible and efficient while ensuring that the Endangered Species Scientific Subcommittee has sufficient information to assess the conservation status of nominated communities.
The Endangered Species Protection Regulations (Amendment) 1997 (No. 134) do not introduce new offences or penalties. Instead, they focus on procedural adjustments to facilitate the nomination process for ecological communities. The primary consequence of non-compliance with these regulations would be the potential delay or rejection of a nomination, which could hinder conservation efforts for endangered ecological communities. While the regulations do not specify maximum penalties for breaches, the overarching objective is to ensure that the nomination process is clear and efficient, thereby enabling timely conservation actions. Non-compliance with the requirements may lead to administrative consequences, such as the need to resubmit a nomination with the correct information, but no criminal or civil penalties are explicitly stated within the text of these regulations.