EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
(Issued under the Authority of the Minister for the Environment)
Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth)
Making the Sawfish and River Sharks Multispecies Recovery Plan
The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) (the EPBC Act) provides for the protection of the environment and conservation of biodiversity, including the protection and conservation of threatened species and ecological communities.
The purpose of this instrument is to make the Sawfish and River Sharks Multispecies Recovery Plan for the following listed threatened species:
Pristis pristis
Pristis zijsron
Pristis clavata
Glyphis glyphis
Glyphis garricki
Making the Sawfish and River Sharks Multispecies Recovery Plan
Part 13, Division 5, subdivision A of the EPBC Act provides for the making, or adoption of, recovery plans for listed threatened species or listed threatened ecological communities, which bind the Commonwealth and Commonwealth agencies.
Section 269A(2) of the EPBC Act enables the Minister to make a written recovery plan for the purposes of the protection, conservation and management of a listed threatened species or listed threatened ecological community.
This recovery plan meets the requirements of section 270 of the EPBC Act and regulation 7.11 of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Regulations 2000 (Cth) (the Regulations). It sets out the research and management actions necessary to stop the decline of, and support the recovery of the Largetooth Sawfish, Green Sawfish, Dwarf Sawfish, Speartooth Sharks and Northern River Sharks throughout their range in Australian waters.
Section 274 of the EPBC Act, which requires the Minister to obtain and consider advice from the Threatened Species Scientific Committee on the content of the recovery plan, has been met.
In accordance with section 275 of the EPBC Act, the draft recovery plan was open for public comment from 21 January 2014 until 29 April 2014. A notice inviting comments from the public on the recovery plan was advertised in the Commonwealth of Australia Government Notices Gazette, The Australian newspaper and on the website of the Australian Government Department of the Environment. As per section 276 of the EPBC Act, all comments were considered in making the recovery plan.
This recovery plan is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 (Cth). The Sawfish and River Sharks Multispecies Recovery Plan commences on the day after this recovery plan is registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.
Authority: Section 269A(2) of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth).