EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
ISSUED BY AUTHORITY OF THE GREAT BARRIER REEF MARINE PARK AUTHORITY
Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975
Whitsundays Plan of Management Amendment 2005 (No.1)
Subsection 39W of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 (the Act) provides that the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (the Authority) may, in writing, prepare plans of management for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (the Marine Park) in accordance with this Part (Part VB of the Act).
Subsection 39ZG(1) of the Act provides that the Authority may, in writing, prepare an amendment of a plan of management for the Marine Park in accordance with this section.
The Whitsundays is well known for its spectacular island scenery, fringing and offshore reefs. The reefs and islands support a range of wildlife including threatened species such as humpback whales, dugong, loggerhead turtles and beach stone-curlew. The Whitsundays Plan of Management 1998 (the Principal Plan) came into effect on 22 June 1998 to protect and conserve the values of the Whitsundays Area while allowing a range of use opportunities. The Principal Plan was amended in 1999 and again in 2002.
The purpose of the Whitsundays Plan of Management Amendment 2005 (No.1) is to amend the Principal Plan by:
- removing the “2 in 7” restriction on the new Regional Tour Operation permissions (information regarding the “2 in 7” restriction is included at Attachment A); and
- making minor and technical amendments to ensure the Principal Plan is consistent with the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Zoning Plan 2003 (which came into effect on 1 July 2004).
Pursuant to subsections 39ZG(2) and (3) and section 39ZE of the Act, once the Authority has prepared an amendment to a plan of management, it must cause public notice to be given regarding the amendments and invite interested persons to make written submissions to the Authority in connection with the proposed amendments. The time period for interested persons to make written submissions cannot be less than one month.
The amendments to the Principal Plan were advertised in the Gazette, and notices were placed in both State and Local newspapers. In addition, information was made available to interested persons on the Authority’s Internet site, and interested persons were sent information informing them of the proposed amendments to the Principal Plan.
Details of the amendment are set out in Attachment B.
The Whitsundays Plan of Management Amendment 2005 (No.1) is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
The Whitsundays Plan of Management Amendment 2005 (No.1) commences on the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.
Attachment A
Removal of the “2 in 7” restriction
Regional Tourism Operations (RTOs) are those tourism operations that have 365-day access to the Whitsundays Planning Area. Permissions for RTOs were capped in 1998 in the Whitsundays Plan of Management 1998 (the Principal Plan).
Subsequent amendments to the Principal Plan introduced an additional
15 RTO permissions that are available for allocation. These permissions allow operators to conduct a 365-day operation in the Whitsundays Planning Area without a booking. These additional permissions also make provision for access at Locations, but such access is restricted to only 2 days in a 7 day period (the “2 in 7” restriction).
The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority’s (the Authority) Tourism and Recreation Reef Advisory Committee’s (TRRAC) advice is that the inclusion of the “2 in 7” restriction on the 15 new RTO permissions is not consistent with the equivalent base level RTO permissions as provided for elsewhere in the Principal Plan.
At the TRRAC meeting held in Townsville on the 13/14 July 2004, members expressed concern regarding the “2 in 7” restriction on the 15 new RTO permissions available for allocation. The TRRAC recommended that the “2 in 7” restriction be removed from these new RTO permissions prior to these permissions being advertised and allocated by the Authority.
Attachment B
Whitsundays Plan of Management Amendment 2005 (No.1)
Details of the amendments are as follows:
Clause 1 provides that the name of the amendment is the Whitsundays Plan of Management Amendment 2005 (No.1).
Clause 2 provides that the amendment commences on the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.
Clause 3 provides that Schedule 1 amends the Whitsundays Plan of
Management 1998 (the Principal Plan).
Schedule 1 – Amendments
Item 1 is of a technical nature only. This item amends the fifth paragraph of the forward to the Principal Plan to replace the reference to the repealed Central Section Zoning Plan with the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Zoning Plan 2003 (the Zoning Plan). Paragraph 1.4(a) of the Zoning Plan, which commenced on 1 July 2004, revoked the Central Section Zoning Plan.
Item 2 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes note 1 to clause 1.4 of the Principal Plan to replace the reference to the Department of Environment to reflect the current name of the Queensland Environmental Protection Agency.
Item 3 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes note 1 to subclause 1.5(4) of the Principal Plan. This item is necessary as the note refers to a proposal to implement vessel sewage discharge standards in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (the Marine Park). These standards were implemented in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Regulations 1983 in 2004.
Item 4 is of a technical nature only. This item amends paragraph 1.6(2)(b) of the Principal Plan to make a grammatical correction required to replace “.” with “;”.
Item 5 is of a technical nature only. This item amends subparagraph 1.6(4)(a)(ii) of the Principal Plan to replace the reference to “collecting” with a reference to “taking”. This item is required to reflect that the term collecting is no longer used in the Zoning Plan.
Item 6 is of a technical nature only. This item amends paragraph 1.6(4)(f) of the Principal Plan to replace the references to mariculture and aquarium trade collecting with references to aquaculture and harvest fishing to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan.
Item 7 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes paragraph 1.7(3)(a) of the Principal Plan to ensure that the provisions regarding the take of dugong and loggerhead turtles in the Principal Plan are consistent with the Zoning Plan.
Item 8 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes clause 1.8, Table 1, note 1 of the Principal Plan to replace the reference to the Department of Environment to reflect the current name of the Queensland Environmental Protection Agency.
Item 9 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes the note to paragraph 1.9(1)(b) of the Principal Plan to reflect the heritage status of a number of indigenous sites located within the Whitsundays Planning Area under the Australian Heritage Council Act 2003.
Item 10 is of a technical nature only. This item amends the note to paragraph 1.9(1)(d) of the Principal Plan to reflect the heritage status of the Dent Island lighthouse and light station under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.
Item 11 is of a technical nature only. This item amends subclause 1.10(2) of the Principal Plan to replace the references to collecting and mariculture with references to harvest fishing and aquaculture to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan.
Item 12 is of a technical nature only. This item amends paragraph 1.10(3)(j) of the Principal Plan to replace the references to commercial collecting and mariculture with references to harvest fishing and aquaculture to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan.
Item 13 is of a technical nature only. This item amends subparagraph 1.10(3)(j)(i) of the Principal Plan to replace the reference to mariculture with a reference to aquaculture to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan.
Item 14 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes subparagraph 1.10(3)(j)(iii) of the Principal Plan to replace the reference to commercial collecting with a reference to harvest fishing to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan.
Item 15 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes subclause 1.10(14), including the heading, of the Principal Plan with a new subclause 1.10(14). The purpose of this item is to replace the references to commercial collecting and mariculture with references to harvest fishing and aquaculture to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan.
Item 16 is of a technical nature only. This item amends subclause 1.10(15) of the Principal Plan to replace the reference to the General Use ‘A’ Zone with a reference to the General Use Zone to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan.
Item 17 is of a technical nature only. This item omits subclause 1.10(23) of the Principal Plan as fishing or collecting is no longer an activity allowed “as of right” at the Bait Reef or Manta Ray Bay area under the Zoning Plan.
Item 18 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes subclause 1.10(25) of the Principal Plan with a new subclause 1.10(25). The purpose of this item is to replace the reference to fishing to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan (which refers to fishing or collecting).
Item 19 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes subclause 1.10(26) of the Principal Plan with a new subclause 1.10(26). The purpose of this item is to replace the reference to fishing to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan (which refers to fishing or collecting). It also replaces the references to the General Use ‘A’ Zone and the General Use ‘B’ Zone with references to the General Use Zone and the Habitat Protection Zone respectively, to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan.
Item 20 substitutes subclauses 1.10(29B) of the Principal Plan with a new subclause 1.10(29B).
The effect of this item is to remove the restriction on the permissions mentioned in this subclause; that Locations in the Planning Area cannot be visited for more than 2 visits in any 7 day period. These permissions are not in line with the equivalent base level Regional Tour Operation permission as outlined in the Principal Plan. The removal of this additional restriction will ensure consistent, fair and equitable treatment of all Regional Tour Operation permissions.
Item 21 is of a technical nature only. This item amends clause 1.10, table 4, item entitled ‘Cruise ship operation (ship only)’, column 2 of the Principal Plan to replace the reference to the General Use ‘A’ Zone with a reference to the General Use Zone to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan.
Item 22 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes the note to the heading of Part 2 of the Principal Plan with a revised note. The revised note sets out the offence provisions in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 that relate to zones.
Item 23 is of a technical nature only. This item replaces the reference to clause 15 in paragraph 2.3(1)(c) of the Principal Plan with a reference to Part 5. This item is required as the reference to clause 15 is a reference to clause 15 of the Central Section Zoning Plan, which was revoked on 1 July 2004.
Item 24 is of a technical nature only, and is required as a consequence of Item 23 above. This item substitutes the note to subclause 2.3(1) of the Principal Plan with a new note. The purpose of the new note is to explain the reference to Part 5 of the Zoning Plan in Item 23.
Item 25 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes paragraph 2.8(2)(a) of the Principal Plan with a new paragraph to replace the reference to the General Use ‘A’ Zone with a reference to the General Use Zone to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan.
Item 26 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes the note to subclause 2.8(2) of the Principal Plan with a revised note. The revised note replaces the reference to the General Use ‘A’ Zone with a reference to the General Use Zone to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan and to update references to the location of the General Use Zone and Shipping Areas in the Zoning Plan.
Item 27 is of a technical nature only. This item omits clause 2.9 of the Principal Plan. This item is required as the Zoning Plan now regulates the take of dugong and loggerhead turtles.
Item 28 is of a technical nature only. This item amends paragraph 2.12(2)(b) of the Principal Plan to reflect that the term collecting is no longer used in the Zoning Plan.
Item 29 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes the note to subclause 2.12(4) note of the Principal Plan with a new note to reflect current legislative drafting styles.
Item 30 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes clause 2.13 of the Principal Plan with a new clause 2.13. The purpose of this item is to replace the reference to fishing to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan (which refers to fishing or collecting).
Item 31 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes the note to subclause 2.20(1) of the Principal Plan to update the reference to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Regulations 1983.
Item 32 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes the heading to clause 2.23 of the Principal Plan with a new heading. The purpose of this item is to replace the reference to fishing to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan (which refers to fishing or collecting).
Item 33 is of a technical nature only. This item amends subclause 2.23(1) of the Principal Plan to replace the reference to fishing to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan (which refers to fishing or collecting).
Item 34 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes subclause 2.23(2) of the Principal Plan with a new subclause 2.23(2). The purpose of this item is to replace the reference to fishing to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan (which refers to fishing or collecting). It also replaces the references to the General Use ‘A’ Zone and the General Use ‘B’ Zone with references to the General Use Zone and the Habitat Protection Zone to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan.
Item 35 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes the heading to clause 2.24 of the Principal Plan with a new heading. The purpose of this item is to replace the references to mariculture and collecting for commercial purposes with references to aquaculture and harvest fishing to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan.
Item 36 is of a technical nature only. This item amends clause 2.24 of the Principal Plan to replace the reference to “mariculture or for collecting for commercial purposes” with references to aquaculture and harvest fishing to ensure consistency with the Zoning Plan.
Item 37 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes the notes to clauses 2.24 and 2.27 of the Principal Plan with new notes. The purpose of this item is to update the references to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Regulations 1983.
Item 38 substitutes subclause 2.28(2) of the Principal Plan with a new subclause 2.28(2).
The effect of this item is to remove the restriction on the permissions mentioned in this subclause; that Locations in the Planning Area cannot be visited for more than 2 visits in any 7 day period. These permissions are not in line with the equivalent base level Regional Tour Operation permission as outlined in the Principal Plan. The removal of this additional restriction will ensure consistent, fair and equitable treatment of all Regional Tour Operation permissions.
Items 39, 40 and 41 are of a technical nature only. These items substitute the headings to Schedule 1, Schedule 2 and Schedule 3 of the Principal Plan respectively, with new headings. The purpose of these items is to insert missing references to relevant provisions of the Principal Plan into the headings.
Item 42 is of a technical nature only. This item amends replaces the reference to “Hook Reef (19-136)” in Schedule 3, item named Hook Reef (19-136) of the Principal Plan with a reference to “Hook Reef (19-136) - ”.
Items 43, 44 and 45 are of a technical nature only. These items substitute the headings to Schedules, 4, 5 and 7 respectively, of the Principal Plan with new headings. The purpose of these items is to insert missing references to relevant provisions of the Principal Plan into the headings.
Item 46 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes the note to the heading to Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan with a new note. The purpose of this item is to clarify the operation of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 and cross-referencing terms used in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 with terms also used in this Schedule.
Item 47 is of a technical nature only. This item omits the definition of aircraft that is located before the definition of 1 nautical mile line from Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan. This item is required as this definition is repeated twice.
Item 48 is of a technical nature only. This item omits the note to the definition of 500 metre line from Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan. This item is required as the note referred to the Central Section Zoning Plan, which was revoked on
1 July 2004.
Item 49 inserts a definition of aquaculture operation into Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan.
Item 50 is of a technical nature only. This item amends the definition of authorisation in Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan to replace the reference to “Division 2 of Part 4” with a reference to “Division 2.4 of Part 2”.
Item 51 is of a technical nature only. This item amends the definition of bareboat in Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan. This item is required as the previous definition referred to the Transport Operations (Marine Safety) Regulation 1995 of Queensland. These regulations were repealed on
16 August 2004 and were replaced with the Transport Operations (Marine Safety) Regulation 2004 of Queensland.
Item 52 is of a technical nature only. This omits the note to the definition of coastal 500 metre line from Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan. This item is required as the note referred to the Central Section Zoning Plan, which was revoked on 1 July 2004.
Item 53 is of a technical nature only. This item omits the definition of collecting from Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan. This item is required, as this term is no longer used.
Item 54 is of a technical nature only. This item amends the definition of cruise ship anchorage in Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan to correct the reference to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Regulations 1983.
Item 55 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes the definition of fishing with a definition of fishing or collecting in Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan. This item is required to ensure consistency with terms used in the Zoning Plan.
Item 56 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes the definition of General Use ‘A’ Zone in Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan with a definition of General Use Zone. This item is required to ensure consistency with the names of zones used in the Zoning Plan.
Item 57 is of a technical nature only. This item omits the definition of General Use ‘B’ Zone in Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan. This item is required, as this term is no longer used.
Item 58 is of a technical nature only. This item inserts definitions of Habitat Protection Zone and harvest fishery in Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan to ensure consistency with terms used in the Zoning Plan.
Item 59 is of a technical nature only. This item omits the definitions of Marine National Park ‘A’ Zone and Marine National Park ‘B’ Zone from Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan. This item is required, as these terms are no longer used.
Item 60 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes the definition of personal watercraft in Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan with a new definition. This item is required as the previous definition referred to the Transport Operations (Marine Safety) Regulation 1995 of Queensland. These regulations were repealed on 16 August 2004 and were replaced with the Transport Operations (Marine Safety) Regulation 2004 of Queensland.
Item 61 is of a technical nature only. This item omits the note to the definition of reef from Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan. This item is required as the note referred to the Central Section Zoning Plan, which was revoked on 1 July 2004.
Item 62 is of a technical nature only. This item omits the note to the definition of reef edge from Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan. This item is required as the note referred to the Central Section Zoning Plan, which was revoked on
1 July 2004.
Item 63 is of a technical nature only. This item substitutes the note to the definition of relevant permission in Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan with a new note. This item is required to correct a reference to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Regulations 1983.
Item 64 is of a technical nature only. This item omits the note to the definition of Shipping Area from Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan. This item is required as the note referred to the Central Section Zoning Plan, which was revoked on
1 July 2004.
Item 65 is of a technical nature only. This item omits the note to the definition of taking from Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan. This item is required as the note referred to the Central Section Zoning Plan, which was revoked on
1 July 2004.
Item 66 is of a technical nature only. This item replaces the definition of vessel in Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan with a new definition.
Item 67 is of a technical nature only. This item replaces the definition of Zoning Plan in Schedule 9 of the Principal Plan with a new definition to reflect that a reference in the Principal Plan to the Zoning Plan is a reference to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Zoning Plan 2003.