Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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FISHERIES MANAGEMENT AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2000 (NO. 1) 2000 NO. 56

STATUTORY RULES 2000 No. 56

Issued by the authority of the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry

Fisheries Management Act 1991

Fisheries Management Amendment Regulations 2000 (No. 1)

Subsection 168(1) of the Fisheries Management Act 1991 (the Act) empowers the Governor-General to make regulations required or permitted by the Act to be prescribed and regulations necessary or convenient to be prescribed in carrying out or giving effect to the Act.

Section 4(1) of the Act defines a fishery as a class of activities by way of fishing, including activities identified by reference to amongst other things, an area of waters. Paragraph 4(4)(a) of the Act provides that for the purposes of the Act, in relation to a fishery or a managed fishery that is identified by reference to an area, a reference to activities in the fishery or in the managed fishery includes activities in that area. Section 32(1) of the Act provides that the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) may, upon application made in the approved form grant to a person a fishing permit, authorising the use of a boat for fishing in a specified area of the AFZ or a specified fishery.

Paragraph 168(2)(p) of the Act provides that regulations may be made prescribing short methods of reference to areas of the Australian Fishing Zone (AFZ) specified in the regulations and the purposes for which those methods of reference may be used.

The Fisheries Management Regulations (the principal Regulations) prescribe matters in support of the Act, including short methods of reference to fisheries managed by AFMA, and the setting of application fees. The purpose of the Fisheries Management Amendment Regulations (the Regulations) is to amend the principal Regulations to describe an additional fishery.

The East Coast Deepwater Zone Fishery (the ECDZ Fishery) is an additional zone to which access will be given to some South East Trawl Fishery operators. Since a period of exploratory fishing in the early 1990s when the area was managed as a separate fishery, there has been no activity in the proposed zone for approximately five years. Recently there has been renewed interest in the area by operators who also fish the deepwater areas of the South East Trawl Fishery. New arrangements have been developed for the area in consultation with all stakeholders to enable access by some current South East Trawl Fishery operators and the zone will possibly be included as part of the South East Trawl Fishery in the future. A description of the ECDZ Fishery has been added to the principal Regulations to allow for permits to be granted in respect of the area while it is being developed.

Details of the Regulations, which commenced on gazettal, are set out below:

Regulation 1 provides that the Regulations are named the Fisheries Management Amendment Regulations 2000 (No. 1).

Regulation 2 provides that the Regulations commence on gazettal.

Regulation 3 provides that Schedule 1 amends the principal Regulations.

Schedule 1 Item 1 inserts a reference to the East Coast Deepwater Zone Fishery into Regulation 4B which lists those fisheries management by AFMA in addition to those managed under a Management Plan.

Schedule 1 Item 2 inserts a description of the East Coast Deepwater Zone Fishery into Schedule 1A of the principal Regulations.