EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

Instrument under section 184(1)(c)

(Issued under the Authority of the

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts)

The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (the Act) places certain obligations on the Commonwealth to protect and conserve threatened species.

The purpose of this instrument is to amend the list of threatened species under the Act in accordance with s184(1)(c) of the Act by:

transferring in the list from the conservation dependent category to the critically endangered category

• Miniopterus schreibersii bassanii (Southern Bent-wing Bat)

Consultation on the nomination to amend the list of threatened species under the Act to include this species was undertaken before the legislative instrument was made.

The nomination was placed on public exhibition, and public comments were sought. Parties with relevant expertise were directly consulted regarding their views.

This instrument is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.

The instrument commenced on the day after it was registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.