Part 9 Licensing in respect of fauna, native plants and threatened species
In this Part:private land includes land leased from the Crown, or which is in the course of alienation by the Crown under any Act.
(1) The Director-General may issue a licence (in this Act referred to as a general licence), authorising a person to do any or all of the following:(a) to harm or obtain any protected fauna for any specified purpose,(a1) to hold or keep in possession or under control any protected fauna for any specified purpose,(b) to exhibit protected fauna,(c) to dispose of, whether by sale or otherwise, any fauna harmed, obtained, held, kept or exhibited under the authority of the licence,(d) to sell any fauna in the person’s lawful possession, otherwise than as a fauna dealer or skin dealer,(e) to harm any protected fauna (other than a threatened species, population or ecological community) in the course of carrying out specified development or specified activities.(2) A general licence does not, except in so far as the terms of the licence otherwise expressly provide, authorise the harming of fauna in a national park, historic site, state conservation area, regional park, nature reserve, karst conservation reserve, wildlife refuge, conservation area, wilderness area or area subject to a wilderness protection agreement.(2A) A general licence does not authorise the harming of game birds for sporting or recreational purposes. However, a licence can authorise a sporting or recreational shooter to harm game birds for any other specified lawful purpose.(2B) A general licence is not to be issued to authorise the harming of protected fauna solely for scientific, educational or conservation purposes. A licence may be issued under section 132C for those purposes.Note. Section 91 of the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 further provides that a general licence is not to be issued to authorise a person to harm any animal that is of, or part of, a threatened species, population or ecological community except:(a) for the welfare of an animal, or(b) if there is a threat to life or property.(3) A general licence may be issued without conditions or limitations or may be issued subject to specified conditions or limitations.(4) Without affecting the generality of subsection (3):(a) a general licence may but need not specify the species of protected fauna that may be harmed under its authority, and(b) a general licence may but need not be limited to specified areas.(5) A general licence may authorise any specified persons in addition to the person to whom the licence is issued to do the things authorised by the licence. In any such case, the specified persons are taken to be holders of the licence for the purposes of this Act.(6) To avoid doubt, the Director-General is not a determining authority for the purposes of Part 5 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 when issuing a general licence.
(1) The Director-General may issue a licence (in this Act referred to as an occupier’s licence), authorising an owner or occupier of specified lands:(a) to harm, or(b) to permit a person, holding a general licence issued to the person under section 120 or a commercial fauna harvester’s licence issued to the person under section 123, to harm,a specified number of fauna of a specified class found on those lands and the licence may authorise the disposal, whether by sale or otherwise, of fauna harmed under the authority of the licence.(2) If an occupier’s licence is proposed to be subject to a condition requiring labels, tags, slips or other objects to be affixed or attached to the skin or carcase of fauna harmed under the authority of the licence, the licence must not be issued unless the licensee has been supplied by the Service with sufficient labels, tags, slips or other objects to enable the licensee to comply with the relevant condition.(3) An occupier’s licence shall not be issued with respect to threatened species, populations or ecological communities or to authorise game birds to be harmed for sporting or recreational purposes. However, a licence can authorise a sporting or recreational shooter to harm game birds for any other specified lawful purpose.
123 Commercial fauna harvester’s licence
(1) The Director-General may issue a licence (in this Act referred to as a commercial fauna harvester’s licence), authorising a person to harm fauna of a species named therein for the purposes of sale.(2) A commercial fauna harvester’s licence does not, except in so far as the terms of the licence otherwise expressly provide, authorise the harming of fauna in a national park, historic site, state conservation area, regional park, nature reserve, karst conservation reserve, wildlife refuge, conservation area, wilderness area or area subject to a wilderness protection agreement.(3) A commercial fauna harvester’s licence must not be issued with respect to threatened species, populations or ecological communities.(4) A person licensed under subsection (1) must not, in connection with harming fauna for the purposes of sale, use any carcass chiller unless the chiller is:(a) registered under this section, or(b) on premises registered under section 124.(5) The Director-General may issue registration certificates in respect of each carcass chiller that a person licensed under subsection (1) uses in connection with harming fauna for the purposes of sale.(6) In this section, carcass chiller means any refrigeration container used for the storage of animal carcasses, and includes a refrigerated shipping container and a refrigerated truck or vehicle.
(1) The Director-General may issue a licence (in this Act referred to as a fauna dealer’s licence), authorising a person to buy or sell fauna as a fauna dealer and otherwise to exercise or carry on the business of a fauna dealer.(2) A person licensed under subsection (1) shall not exercise or carry on business as a fauna dealer in New South Wales at or on any premises that are not registered under this section.(3) The Director-General may issue registration certificates in respect of each of the premises at or on which a person licensed under subsection (1) exercises or carries on business as a fauna dealer in New South Wales.
(1) The Director-General may issue a licence (in this Act referred to as a skin dealer’s licence), authorising a person to buy or sell skins as a skin dealer and otherwise to exercise or carry on the business of a skin dealer.(2) A person licensed under subsection (1) shall not exercise or carry on business as a skin dealer in New South Wales at or on any premises that are not registered under this section.(3) The Director-General may issue registration certificates in respect of each of the premises at or on which a person licensed under subsection (1) exercises or carries on business as a skin dealer in New South Wales.
The Director-General may issue a licence (in this Act referred to as an emu licence), authorising a person to do any one or more of the following:(a) to buy or sell live emus, whole emu eggs or other emu products,(b) to kill emus reared or bred under and in accordance with the authority conferred by such a licence,(c) otherwise to exercise or carry on the business of an emu breeder.
126 Import and export licences
(1) The Director-General may issue a licence (in this Act referred to as an import licence), authorising a person to import protected fauna into New South Wales.(2) The Director-General may issue a licence (in this Act referred to as an export licence), authorising a person to export protected fauna from New South Wales.(3) Where an application for an import licence or an export licence has been made in accordance with the regulations, the application shall not be refused except on one or more of such grounds (if any) as are prescribed for the purposes of this subsection.
127 Licence to liberate animals
The Director-General may issue a licence authorising a person to liberate an animal anywhere, or in a specified locality or specified localities, within New South Wales.
129 Certain licences authorising shooting etc in national parks etc
Except in so far as the conditions and restrictions attaching thereto otherwise provide:(a) a licence, being a general licence under section 120, an occupier’s licence under section 121 or a commercial fauna harvester’s licence under section 123, that authorises a person to harm any animal in a national park, historic site, state conservation area, regional park, nature reserve or karst conservation reserve, also authorises that person to do, in connection with the harming of any such animal, any act referred to in section 45 (1) or 56 (1), and(b) a licence, being a general licence under section 120, an occupier’s licence under section 121 or a commercial fauna harvester’s licence under section 123, that authorises a person to harm any fauna in a wildlife refuge, conservation area or area subject to a wilderness protection agreement, also authorises that person to do, in connection with the harming of any such fauna, any act referred to in section 70 (1) or (2).
130 Certain licences and certificates deemed to authorise possession
Except in so far as the licence or certificate otherwise provides, a licence or certificate under this Division that authorises a person to harm or to obtain any fauna also authorises the person to keep and have the fauna in the person’s possession.
131 Licence to pick protected native plants
(1) The Director-General may issue a licence authorising a person to pick the protected native plants specified therein.(2) Despite subsection (1), a licence must not be issued under this section that authorises the picking of a plant of a threatened species unless the plant has been grown in accordance with a licence issued in under section 132.(2A) A licence is not to be issued under this section to authorise the picking of native plants solely for scientific, educational or conservation purposes. A licence may be issued under section 132C for those purposes.
132 Licence to grow native plants for sale
The Director-General may issue a licence authorising an owner or occupier of private land to grow upon that private land, or part thereof specified in the licence, protected native plants for the purposes of sale.
132A Import and export licences for protected native plants
(1) The Director-General may issue a licence authorising a person to import protected native plants into New South Wales.(2) The Director-General may issue a licence authorising a person to export protected native plants from New South Wales.(3) If an application for a licence under this section has been made in accordance with the regulations, the application must not be refused except on one or more of such grounds (if any) as are prescribed for the purposes of this subsection.
(1) The regulations may provide for different classes of licences to be issued under section 131, 132 or 132A.(2) Without limiting subsection (1), the regulations may provide for different classes of licences under section 131, 132 or 132A to be issued in respect of different groupings of protected native plants within Schedule 13.
Division 3A Scientific licences
(1) The Director-General may issue a licence (in this Act referred to as a scientific licence) authorising a person to take action, for scientific, educational or conservation purposes, that is likely to result in one or more of the following:(a) harm to any protected fauna, or to an animal that is of, or is part of, a threatened species, an endangered population or an endangered ecological community,(b) the picking of any protected native plant or of any plant that is of, or is part of, a threatened species, an endangered population or an endangered ecological community,(c) damage to critical habitat,(d) damage to a habitat of a threatened species, an endangered population or an endangered ecological community.(2) A scientific licence does not, except in so far as the terms of the licence otherwise expressly provide, authorise the harming of fauna, or the picking of any native plant, in a national park, historic site, state conservation area, regional park, karst conservation reserve, nature reserve, Aboriginal area, wildlife refuge, conservation area, wilderness area or area subject to a wilderness protection agreement.(3) A scientific licence may be issued without conditions or limitations or may be issued subject to specified conditions or limitations.(4) In particular:(a) a scientific licence may but need not specify the animal or plant that may be harmed or picked under its authority, and(b) a scientific licence may but need not be limited to specified areas.(5) A scientific licence may authorise any specified persons, or class of persons, in addition to the person to whom the licence is issued to do the things authorised by the licence. In such a case, the specified persons or class of persons are taken to be holders of the licence for the purposes of this Act.(6) To avoid doubt, the Director-General is not a determining authority for the purposes of Part 5 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 when issuing a scientific licence.
132D Licence authorises certain actions
Except in so far as any conditions or restrictions attached to a scientific licence otherwise provide:(a) a scientific licence that authorises a person to harm any animal in a national park, historic site, state conservation area, regional park, karst conservation reserve, nature reserve or Aboriginal area also authorises that person to do, in connection with the harming of any such animal, any act referred to in section 45 (1) or 56 (1), and(b) a scientific licence that authorises a person to harm any fauna in a wildlife refuge, conservation area or area subject to a wilderness protection agreement also authorises that person to do, in connection with the harming of any such fauna, any act referred to in section 70 (1) or (2), and(c) a scientific licence that authorises a person to harm any animal or pick any plant also authorises the person to keep and have the animal or plant in the person’s possession.
In this Division:animal has the same meaning as in the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995.
Note.The definition of animal in the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 may include some types of fish.
plant has the same meaning as in the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995.
133 Conditions and restrictions attaching to licences and certificates and variation of licences and certificates
(1) A licence or certificate issued under this Part shall be subject to such conditions and restrictions (if any) as are for the time being prescribed in relation to licences or certificates of the class to which the licence or certificate belongs.(1A) It is a condition of a licence issued under section 131 authorising the picking of a protected native plant in the wild that the picking be carried out in accordance with any relevant flora plan of management for the protected native plant adopted under section 115A.(2) The Director-General may, if the Director-General thinks fit, attach any conditions or restrictions to a licence or certificate upon its issue.(3) The Director-General may, by notice in writing served on the holder of a licence or certificate:(a) attach any conditions or restrictions to the licence or certificate after its issue,(b) vary or remove any conditions or restrictions attached to the licence or certificate, or(c) otherwise vary the licence or certificate.(4) The holder of a licence or certificate (whether issued under this Act or under Part 6 of the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995) shall not contravene or fail to comply with any condition or restriction attached to the licence or certificate under this Act or Part 6 of the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995.Maximum penalty:
(a) in the case of an individual—100 penalty units and, in the case of a continuing offence, a further penalty of 10 penalty units for each day the offence continues, or(b) in the case of a corporation—200 penalty units and, in the case of a continuing offence, a further penalty of 20 penalty units for each day the offence continues.Note. An offence against subsection (4) committed by a corporation is an executive liability offence attracting executive liability for a director or other person involved in the management of the corporation—see section 175B.(5) Subsections (2) and (3) do not apply to an import licence or export licence under section 126.
134 Cancellation of licence or certificate
(1) Subject to subsection (2), a licence or certificate issued under this Part may be cancelled by the Minister or the Director-General.(2) An import licence or export licence under section 126 shall not be cancelled under this section except on one or more of such grounds (if any) as are prescribed for the purposes of this subsection.
(1) A person whose application for a licence or certificate under this Part is refused, or whose licence or certificate has been cancelled by the Director-General, or who is dissatisfied with any condition or restriction which the Director-General has attached to the person’s licence or certificate, may appeal to the Minister.(2) The Minister:(a) may refuse to grant the appeal, or(b) may grant the appeal wholly or in part, and may give such directions in the matter as seem proper.(3) The decision of the Minister on the appeal is final and is binding on the Director-General and the appellant, and shall be carried into effect accordingly.(4) Where the regulations prescribe:(a) the manner in which an appeal is to be made under this section—the appeal shall be made in that manner, or(b) the period within which an appeal is to be made under this section—the appeal shall be made within that period.(5) Where the Director-General fails to grant an application for a licence or certificate under this Part, the application shall, for the purposes of this section, be deemed to be refused upon the expiration of:(a) subject to paragraph (b)—1 month after the application was received by the Director-General, or(b) where the regulations prescribe some other period—that other period.
136 Licences do not authorise entry etc
Where, had this Act not been enacted:(a) the consent or permission of any person would have been required for entering any lands or doing any act on or in respect of any lands, the issue of a licence under this Part does not authorise the entering of those lands, or the doing of that act on those lands, without that consent or permission, or(b) the doing of an act on or in respect of any lands would have been unlawful, the issue of a licence under this Part does not authorise the doing of that act.