Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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FISHERIES MANAGEMENT REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT) 1995 NO. 285

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

STATUTORY RULES 1995 No. 285

Issued by the authority of the Minister for Resources

Fisheries Management Act 1991

Fisheries Management Regulations (Amendment)

Subsection 168(1) of the Fisheries Management Act 1991 (the Act) empowers the GovernorGeneral 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. Subparagraph 168(2)(e)(iiia) provides that regulations may be made for the imposition and recovery of fees in respect of the giving of a notice to the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) nominating an Australian boat under paragraph 32(1A)(b) or subsection 32(1B) of the Act.

Section 32 of the Act provides for matters relating to fishing permits. Paragraph 32(1A)(b) allows the holder of a fishing permit to nominate a boat in replacement of the boat specified on the fishing permit at the time the nomination is made. Subsection 32(1B) allows the holder of a fishing permit to nominate a boat on the fishing permit if, at the time the nomination is made, no boat is specified on the fishing permit. Subparagraph 32(6)(a)(ii) provides that a fishing permit is subject, among other things, to such other conditions as are prescribed in relation to fishing permits.

Section 72 of the Act provides for the making of Offshore Constitutional Settlement (OCS) Arrangements between the Commonwealth, the States and the Northern Territory in relation to jurisdiction over fisheries.

Division 2 of Part 6 of the Act (sections 91 to 93 inclusive) relates to the receiving of fish from persons engaged in commercial fishing (operators). Subsection 91(1) empowers AFMA to declare that the Division applies to particular fisheries (declared fisheries). Subsection 91(2) provides, among other things, for the grant of fish receiver permits, which allow a person to receive fish from an operator in a declared fishery. Subsection 92(2) provides that the regulations may require holders of fish receiver permits to make and keep accounts and other records, and to give returns or information, in relation to fish received by them.

The Fisheries Management Regulations (the principal Regulations) prescribe matters in support of the Act, including the operation of boats, reporting of information and fees.

The Fisheries Management Regulations (Amendment) (the Regulations) amend the principal Regulations to implement 4 new matters:

•       The first matter is the imposition of conditions setting trip limits for incidental catch, on fishing permits that allow the taking of tuna and tuna like species of fish in waters relevant to the Northern Territory and the States of Western Australia and Queensland. The conditions are imposed in accordance with Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) which support jurisdictional arrangements for particular fisheries under OCS Arrangements made in early 1995 between the Commonwealth, the Territory and the States.

The trip Emits relate to species of fish that are normally under the jurisdiction of the Territory and the States. Under the OCS Arrangements, those species of fish come under Commonwealth jurisdiction when they are taken incidentally by Commonwealth operators fishing for tuna and tuna like species of fish. The trip limits in the proposed Regulations reflect the agreements reached between the Commonwealth Minister, the State Ministers and the Territory Minister in the MOUs.

•       The second matter relates to recording and keeping of information by holders of fish receiver permits and provision of returns by those holders to AFMA. Fish receiver permits need only be held by persons (such as fish processors) who receive some or all of their fish from operators in declared fisheries. At present, declared fisheries are fisheries subject to quota or limited catch arrangements, namely the Southern Bluefin Tuna Fishery and the trawl sector of the South East Fishery and fisheries that might become subject to quota arrangements, namely the Great Australian Bight Trawl Fishery.

The returns allow AFMA to cheek the veracity of catch information provided by fishers in the quota fisheries. The recording and keeping of information by holders of fish receiver permits allows AFMA to carry out further checks where its investigations show potential over catching in the quota fisheries.

•       The third matter is the setting of 2 new fees in relation to the nomination of boats on fishing permits. The 2 new fees (each of $250) reflect the costs to AFMA of actioning these nominations. The fees are the same amount as other fees presently prescribed in the regulations for other, similar matters, such as the variation of permit conditions.

The Regulations also amend 3 references in the principal Regulations relating to fees, to take into account recent amendments to regulations made under the Fishing Levy Act 1991.

•       The fourth matter is stating the origin of geographical coordinates used in the Regulations to be the Australian Geodetic Datum 1966 (AGD66). AGD66 is the current datum by reference to which geographical coordinates are described, in accordance with the current standard practice of the National Mapping Council of Australia.

The Inter-Government Commission on Survey and Mapping has resolved to implement a new datum, the World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS84). There is a small, but significant difference in the origins of geographical coordinates under AGD66 and WGS84. Implementation of the new datum without altering the numerical values of coordinates would have the effect of moving the equivalent on-ground (or water) locations about 200 metres to the north-cast.

Stating the origin of the geographical coordinates currently used in the Regulations to be AGD66 avoids confusion while WGS84 is being implemented.

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

Regulation 1 provides that the Regulations amend the principal Regulations.

Regulation 2 amends regulation 3 of the principal Regulations by inserting the definition of "declared fishery" and also adding at the end the statement of the origin of geographical coordinates used in the Regulations.

Regulation 3 inserts new regulation 8A into the principal Regulations, which specifies the incidental catch restrictions as a condition on particular fishing permits.

•       New subregulation 8A(1) provides for the imposition of the condition on particular fishing permits.

•       New subregulation 8A(2) specifies the condition in terms of trip limits for particular species of fish. The species of fish are specified in new Schedule 3B. The trip limits are specified in new Schedule 3C.

•       New subregulation 8A(3) deems fish to which the condition applies that are on a boat at the end of a trip, to have been taken on that trip.' This closes a potential loophole that would otherwise make enforcement of the condition difficult.

•       New subregulation 8A(4) provides an exemption to the condition to take account of a minor difference between the incidental catch restrictions agreed with Western Australia (which do not apply to Black Kingfish), and those agreed with the Northern Territory and Queensland (which do apply to Black Kingfish).

•       New subregulation 8A(5) provides relevant definitions and in so doing describes the fishing permits subject to the condition. The affected fishing permits are those which allow fishing for tuna and tuna like species in all or part of the area described in new Schedule 3A.

Regulation 4 inserts new regulations 10A, 10B, 10C and 10D into the principal Regulations.

•       New regulation 10A requires holders of fish receiver permits to make and keep records of information about fish they receive and fish they dispose of The regulation also specifies where and for how long the records must be kept. If Southern Bluefin Tuna (SBT) are received or disposed of, the extra information described in subparagraphs 8A(3)(a)(vii) and (3)(b)(vi) must also be recorded. This reflects the high value of individual SBT.

•       New regulation 10B requires holders of fish receiver permits who receive fish taken by trawling in the South East Fishery or fish taken from the Southern Bluefin Tuna Fishery, to provide returns to AFMA. These 2 fisheries are currently the major quota fisheries administered by AFMA. The new regulation also specifies information to be included in returns and matters relevant to the lodgement of returns.

•       New regulation 10C deems persons who take fish from a declared fishery, and who process the fish or use the fish in aquaculture or mariculture, to be fish receivers. This closes a potential loophole in the recording and returns regime.

•       New regulation 10D deems persons who merely transport fish from a fisher to a processor to be the agent of the processor, and not a fish receiver in their own right. This is necessary to ensure that the requirement to hold a fish receiver permit, and the records and returns requirements under new regulations 10A and 10B, do not fall on inappropriate persons.

Regulation 5 amends regulation 21 of the principal Regulations, which prescribes matters relating to fees.

•       The amendments in clauses 5.1 and 5.2 of regulation 5 are necessary to support the description of the fee in subregulation 21(2) of the principal Regulations, which is based on trips. The amendments take account of the recent deletion of definition of "trip" from the Fishing Levy (Southern Shark Fishery) Regulations.

•       The amendment in clause 5.3 corrects a reference in subregulation 21(3).

Regulation 6 amends Schedule 2 of the principal Regulations by inserting two new fees relating to the nomination of a boat on a fishing permit. Their effect is that a fee of $250 is payable on nominating a boat on a fishing permit, whether or not a boat is specified on the fishing permit at the time the nomination is made.

Regulation 7 adds new Schedules 3A, 3B and 3C to the principal Regulations:

•       new Schedule 3A describes the area in which the incidental catch restrictions specified in new regulation 8A apply;

•       new Schedule 3B describes the species of fish to which the incidental catch restrictions in new regulation 8A apply; and

•       new Schedule 3C specifies the trip limits for the purposes of new regulation 8A.


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