Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2015L01763:reg:13:p2
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2015L01763
Segment Type: reg
Provision Reference: reg 13 (pt 2/2)
Character Range: 117380–119123

social consequences. When considering referred actions, the Minister for the Environment must not act inconsistently with any existing recovery plan. This, in effect, means that actions likely to have a significant impact on sawfish and river shark populations need to consider the objectives and actions included in this Recovery Plan and may need to undertake mitigation actions in order to gain approval under the EPBC Act. Mitigation actions may include controls on timing, consideration of alternative development sites, undertaking remedial work to minimise habitat degradation, or the provision of some type of offset (e.g., securing an additional site for long-term conservation purposes and/or undertaking/ supporting research programs to help manage the long-term survival in the wild for the species in question).

     13.3          Indigenous Australians
Indigenous people have rights to access and manage much of the sparsely populated landscape of north Australia where sawfish and river sharks occur, and catch sawfish and river shark species for food and for ceremonial purposes (Thorburn et al., 2007a). This recovery plan seeks to ensure that Indigenous take is sustainable, balancing the cultural significance of fishing for these species against modern fishing techniques that make fishing efforts more successful. Efforts to improve the sustainability of Indigenous take may result in education and outreach programs which encourage voluntary limits on harvest and collaborative research initiatives. Any actions that are implemented to manage Indigenous fishing will be developed in close collaboration with the relevant communities and Indigenous groups, including land and sea management groups and Indigenous rangers.