Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2014L01089:reg:20:p5
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2014L01089
Segment Type: reg
Provision Reference: reg 20 (pt 5/33)
Character Range: 13575–16624

further investigation to confirm if they meet the requirements of five or more grey nurse sharks being consistently found there throughout the year.

Table 1. Known key aggregation sites critical to the survival of the grey nurse shark in Australian waters
Queensland Waters
Wolf Rock off Rainbow Beach
Cherubs Cave off Moreton Island
Henderson's Rock off Moreton Island
Flat Rock off North Stradbroke Island
New South Wales Waters
Julian Rocks near Byron Bay
North Solitary Island (Anemone Bay)
South Solitary Island (Manta Arch)
Green Island near South West Rocks
Fish Rock near South West Rocks
Mermaid Reef near Laurieton
The Pinnacle near Forster
Big Seal, Seal Rocks
Little Seal, Seal Rocks
Little Broughton Island near Port Stephens
Magic Point at Maroubra, Sydney
Tollgate Islands near Batemans Bay
Montague Island near Narooma
Commonwealth Waters (off New South Wales Coast)
Pimpernel Rock off Brooms Head (northern section of Solitary Islands Marine Park)
Cod Grounds off Laurieton

3 Conservation status
The grey nurse shark has been protected in New South Wales waters since 1984 and nationally since 1996. Since October 2001, grey nurse sharks have been listed as two separate populations under the EPBC Act.

The grey nurse shark is currently listed as:

Commonwealth:       The east coast population is listed as critically endangered and the west coast population is listed as vulnerable under the EPBC Act.
New South Wales:    Critically Endangered (Fisheries Management Act 1994)
Queensland:         Endangered (Nature Conservation Act 1992) Protected (Fisheries Act 1994)
Victoria:           Protected (Fisheries Act 1995) Threatened (Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988)
Tasmania:           Protected (Fisheries Regulations 1996)
Western Australia:  Threatened (Wildlife Conservation Act 1950) with a ranking of vulnerable
IUCN:               International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, Worldwide: listed as vulnerable (2009); East coast of Australia subpopulation: listed as critically endangered (2003); and Western Australia subpopulation: listed as near threatened (2003).

4 Reasons for listing under the EPBC Act
The grey nurse shark was listed as vulnerable under the EPBC Act in August 2000. This listing was based on declining population trends, the life history characteristics of the species, limited knowledge of their ecology and abundance, and the fact that the species was still under pressure from some sectors of the Australian commercial and recreational fishing industries.

In October 2001, the grey nurse shark was listed as two separate populations under the EPBC Act. Given the serious decline in numbers in the east coast population of the grey nurse shark, this population is now listed as critically endangered. The size of the west coast population is unknown but considering the species life history characteristics and continuing incidental impacts from fishing, this population remains listed as vulnerable under the Western Australian Wildlife Conservation Act 1950 and the