Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2024L01747:reg:4:p6
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2024L01747
Segment Type: reg
Provision Reference: reg 4 (pt 6/80)
Character Range: 19847–22781

beneficial impacts likely to arise from feral cat control.

This threat abatement plan sets a long-term goal, with a 30-year horizon:

    To reduce the impacts of cats sufficiently to ensure the long-term viability of all affected native species.

Note: In this plan, 'cat' is used to refer to pet and feral cats collectively, whilst the terms 'pet cat' and 'feral cat' are used to refer to those specific subsets of cats. Feral cats may be further described as those living in natural environments, and those living in or around human infrastructure or heavily modified environments. Refer to section 3.1 for further explanation.

This plan seeks to reduce the impacts of cats on biodiversity; many other factors also affect biodiversity such that alleviating the impact of cats will not necessarily lead to recovery and long-term viability of cat-affected species. This threat abatement plan represents one component of a broader conservation challenge and management response. Furthermore, and as described in section 4.1.3, some other threats compound the impact of cats, and conservation responses need to recognise such interactions and manage across compounding threats. That said, cats pose the major threat to many native species, and hence the highest priority for management response.

Cat impacts on fauna arise mainly from predation, and potentially also from pathogens and diseases that are spread by cats. Impacts may be direct (e.g. cats substantially reduce a population via predation or disease), or indirect (e.g. cats disrupt ecosystems by reducing the abundance of ecologically significant species).

The goal will be achieved when:

    * There are no further extinctions of native species, nor extirpations of island populations (including seabird colonies), due to impacts from cats.

    * Cat-driven declines in extremely and highly cat-susceptible native species (as defined in Table 1, section 4.1.1) are stopped and reversed to the extent that these species are no longer eligible for listing as threatened as a result of cat impacts. Recognising that some cat-susceptible species may also be affected by other factors, the effective control of cat impacts may not always be sufficient to allow for such recovery, and the conservation of such species may be contingent on management of cats and other threats.

    * Cat impacts are reduced across large landscapes and priority locations, such that no currently unlisted species become threatened because of impacts from cats.

To move strategically towards this long-term goal, the plan has 9 objectives to organise actions over the next 5 and 10 years (Figure 1). The objectives have been developed following review of the previous threat abatement plans, and consultation with experts and stakeholder groups, including First Nations people.

Four are cross-cutting objectives that support the delivery of the on-ground actions covered in the other 5