leagal aspects of the whale watching.pdf - International Fund for ...

If there is any conflict between the plan and the programme, the plan prevails.In particular in relation to taking,
using, etc. whales and dolphins these include:
• approach limits for boats, jet skis and aircraft
• boat speed
• splitting members of a pod (group) of whales or dolphins
• swimming with whales or dolphins
• feeding or touching of whales or dolphins
• making noises (likely to attract or disturb whales or dolphins)
• depositing of rubbish near whales or dolphins
• approach limits for persons filming whales or dolphins
"Reasonable excuse" is accepted as a defence to breaches of the provisions listed above.
Area of Special Interest
Five areas of special interest are established with special management approaches. The Great Barrier Reef area is
limited to eighteen whale watching permits (but whale watching there is only incidental). The other four areas are
more focused on whale watching of humpbacks and other species while in migration, namely;
• Whitsunday, area 1, approach distances are limited
• Hervey Bay, area 2, is limited to twenty permits
• Moreton Bay-Fraser Island, area 3, is limited to three permits
• No permits will be issued for area 4, Gold Coast-Moreton Island, because it is set aside for study and
recovery purposes
The Queensland authorities must take care, in undertaking enforcement action, that they maintain credibility. They
are concerned about the ability successfully to pursue cases in the courts. These may fail due to lack of acceptable
evidence and other such problems. Passengers generally report boat operators about whose activities they are
concerned. In addition, the Department receives some complaints from operators regarding the activities of their
competitors. However, the Department has directed the legislation towards the simple system of boat permits in
order to eliminate some of the complaints experienced in the general fisheries context.
The system includes provision for penalties and sets a maximum penalty for each violation. Penalties are expressed in
penalty units. These are adjustable by the Queensland government and are currently set at $50 (Australian). The
Department uses boat patrols for enforcement within the marine parks but effective enforcement outside these
areas is difficult, not least because in all areas proof of violation is difficult to obtain.
The Department is more concerned with targeting repeat and serious offenders, but has not always been successful
in prosecuting violators and securing convictions. However, most commercial operators do try to observe the
regulations and guidelines. Education of both the regulators and the regulated is thus important. At present, the
Department has access to very high quality training courses for its enforcement staff; these are conducted through
James Cook University in Queensland.
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