Australian Capital Territory Current Acts

NATURE CONSERVATION ACT 2014 - SECT 129

    (1)     A person commits an offence if—

        (a)     the person interferes with—

              (i)     the nest of an animal; or

              (ii)     something in the immediate environment of the nest of an animal; and

        (b)     the interference—

              (i)     places the animal or its progeny in danger of death; or

              (ii)     places the animal in danger of not being able to breed—

    (A)     if the interference happens during the animal's breeding season—during the breeding season; or

    (B)     in any other case—during the animal's next breeding season; and

        (c)     the animal is a native animal.

Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units, imprisonment for 1 year or both.

Note     Interfere with an item—see s 127.
"Nest", of an animal—see s 127.
"Progeny"—see s (5).

    (2)     A person commits an offence if—

        (a)     the person interferes with—

              (i)     the nest of an animal; or

              (ii)     something in the immediate environment of the nest of an animal; and

        (b)     the interference—

              (i)     places the animal or its progeny in danger of death; or

              (ii)     places the animal in danger of not being able to breed—

    (A)     if the interference happens during the animal's breeding season—during the breeding season; or

    (B)     in any other case—during the animal's next breeding season; and

        (c)     the animal—

              (i)     is a native animal; and

              (ii)     has special protection status.

Maximum penalty: 200 penalty units, imprisonment for 2 years or both.

Note     Special protection status —see s 109.

    (3)     This section does not apply to a person if the person believed on reasonable grounds that—

        (a)     the danger did not exist; or

        (b)     for an offence involving interference with a nest—the thing interfered with was not a nest; or

        (c)     for an offence involving interference with something in the immediate environment of a nest—the thing interfered with was not in the immediate environment of a nest.

Note     The defendant has an evidential burden in relation to the matters mentioned in s (3) (see Criminal Code

, s 58).

    (4)     A person has the benefit of the chapter 6 exceptions for an offence against this section.

Note     The chapter 6 exceptions are set out in s 153.

    (5)     In this section:

"progeny", of an animal—

        (a)     means any descendant of the animal; and

        (b)     includes any animal reproductive material of the animal.