Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2009L02536:reg:3:p2
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2009L02536
Segment Type: reg
Provision Reference: reg 3 (pt 2/8)
Character Range: 14722–18126

interdependent, and the final sequence, duration and length of actions will depend on budgets.

3.3.1             Actions to set priorities and plan strategic options
This group of actions covers the preliminary information needs and actions required to establish a basis for implementing the plan. The key questions the actions aim to answer are:

    * Which islands, whose rodent status is unknown, might be of concern if they were present? These islands should be surveyed and brought into the following selection process should they be discovered to have exotic rodents.

    * Which islands known to have exotic rodents are candidates for the preferred option of eradication and which, by implication, would require sustained control?

    * Which islands that are candidates for eradication should be treated first, and where should sustained control be started?

Therefore, two parallel processes need to be followed to answer these questions. The first process (actions 1.1 and 1.2) is a prioritisation system to select islands for survey where information is lacking, or to confirm information on islands where the status (presence or species) of exotic rodents is unclear.

The second process aims to identify whether eradication is feasible on each island and then prioritise those islands for action (actions 1.3 to 1.5). Past success on similar islands and species or analyses of the island-specific rules and constraints can be used to judge this. For these islands a second prioritisation process is required. Generally, precedence should be given to those where there is a clear current threat to native species or communities and where substantial benefits to the island's biodiversity would be expected if the rodents were eradicated. This rule tends to favour remote islands because of the vulnerability of their biota and their higher levels of endemism. However, cases can be made for eradication on in-shore islands by some jurisdictions either to act as arks for mainland biota or as demonstration or capacity-building sites.

1 - Actions to set priorities and plan strategic options                                                                                                                  Priority and timeframe
1.1 Complete state/territory databases                                                                                                                                    High priority, completed in 2008
1.2 Survey high-priority islands (see Background Document for options to rank islands) with no current information on exotic rodents for the presence/absence of rodents  Medium priority, timeframe depends on State needs
1.3 Formulate and circulate best-practice rules and examples to determine whether eradication is feasible                                                                 High priority, short term
1.4 Identify islands known to have exotic rodents where eradication is feasible, and by implication, where sustained control is the only option                           Very high priority, short term
1.5 Develop a network of Australian and overseas technical experts                                                                                                        Medium priority, medium term

Current state of actions
The Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts has contracted the collation of data on the presence