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Quarantine (Cocos Islands) Regulations
I, THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL of the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, hereby make the following Regulations under the Quarantine Act 1908.
Dated 11 August 1982.
N. M. STEPHEN
Governor-General
By His Excellency’s Command,
J. J. CARLTON
Minister of State for Health
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Citation
1. These Regulations may be cited as the Quarantine (Cocos Islands) Regulations.
Interpretation
2. In these Regulations, unless the contrary intention appears—
“certificate of registration” means a certificate of registration issued under these Regulations;
“domestic animal” includes poultry, any other livestock or any animal kept by a person as a domestic pet or otherwise;
“premises” includes any land or waters and any structure, vehicle or vessel on, or in, any land or waters;
“register” means the register kept under these Regulations;
“registered” means registered under these Regulations;
“Registrar” means the quarantine officer for the time being in charge of the quarantine station in the Cocos Islands;
“registration tag” means a tag, disc or other device issued under these Regulations for attachment to a registered animal for the purpose of identifying the animal.
Register of domestic animals
3. The Registrar shall, for the purposes of these Regulations, keep a register of domestic animals.
Keeping of unregistered domestic animals
4. (1) Subject to this regulation, a person shall not, without reasonable excuse, keep a domestic animal that is not registered or in respect of which he is not shown in the register as its keeper.
Penalty: $100.
(2) A person does not commit an offence against sub-regulation (1) in respect of a domestic animal if—
(a) the animal is under the age of 3 months;
(b) the animal has been kept by that person for less than 14 days; or
(c) that person has been resident in the Cocos Islands for less than 21 days.
Applications for registration of domestic animals
5. An application by a person for registration of a domestic animal—
(a) shall be made in writing by the person;
(b) shall set out—
(i) the name and address of the owner of the animal;
(ii) the name and address of the keeper of the animal;
(iii) the kind of animal that is proposed to be registered;
(iv) the total number of animals of that kind kept by the keeper of the animal;
(v) the address of the premises where the animal is ordinarily kept;
(vi) the sex of the animal;
(vii) the age of the animal;
(viii) the colour and distinctive markings (if any) of the animal;
(ix) the breed, if known, of the animal; and
(x) if the breed of the animal is not known—a description of the animal; and
(c) shall be lodged at the office of the Registrar.
Notification of changes in information set out in applications
6. Where any part of the information set out in an application for the registration of a domestic animal ceases to be true, the keeper of the animal shall notify the Registrar of the changed information within 14 days after the change occurs.
Penalty: $20.
Matters to be entered in register
7. Upon receiving an application in accordance with regulation 5 for the registration of a domestic animal, the Registrar shall register the animal by entering in the register—
(a) the information set out in the application in accordance with
paragraph 5 (b); and
(b) the registration number allocated by the Registrar to the animal.
Period of registration
8. Subject to these Regulations, the registration of a domestic animal remains in force for a period of 1 year.
Certificates of registration and registration tags
9. (1) Upon registering a domestic animal, the Registrar shall issue to the applicant for registration—
(a) a certificate of registration; and
(b) a registration tag for the animal.
(2) A certificate of registration of a domestic animal shall set out—
(a) the name and address of the owner of the animal;
(b) the name and address of the keeper of the animal;
(c) the kind of animal to which the certificate applies;
(d) the registration number allocated by the Registrar to the animal; and
(e) the date on which the period of registration expires.
(3) A registration tag for a domestic animal shall bear the registration number allocated by the Registrar to the animal.
Registration tags to be attached to domestic animals
10. (1) Upon receiving a registration tag for a domestic animal, the applicant for registration of the animal shall cause the tag to be attached to, and remain upon, the animal.
(2) A person who fails, without reasonable excuse, to comply with
sub-regulation (1) is guilty of an offence.
Penalty: $20.
(3) A person shall not, without reasonable excuse, remove a registration tag from a domestic animal.
Penalty: $20.
(4) A person shall not cause or permit a domestic animal to bear a registration tag that was not issued for the animal.
Penalty: $20.
Fees not to be charged for registration of domestic animals
11. A fee shall not be charged for the registration of a domestic animal, for the issue of a registration tag or on notifying the Registrar in accordance with
regulation 6.
Domestic animals not to be abandoned
12. (1) A person who keeps a live domestic animal shall not cease to keep the animal otherwise than by delivering it into the keeping of another person.
Penalty: $100.
(2) A person may deliver a live domestic animal to a quarantine officer.
(3) Where a person delivers a live domestic animal to a quarantine officer, the officer may keep it for a quarantine purpose or cause it to be destroyed.
(4) A fee shall not be charged on delivering an animal to a quarantine officer under this regulation.
Unregistered domestic animals to be kept for a quarantine purpose or destroyed
13. (1) A quarantine officer shall cause any domestic animal that is not registered or does not bear a registration tag to be seized and—
(a) kept for a quarantine purpose; or
(b) destroyed.
(2) Sub-regulation (1) does not apply in respect of a domestic animal—
(a) that is under the age of 3 months; or
(b) that is kept by a person who has been resident in the Cocos Islands for less than 21 days.
Entry to premises for certain purposes
14. (1) Where there are reasonable grounds for believing that a domestic animal is on any premises, a quarantine officer may—
(a) for the purposes of causing an examination of the animal and of the premises to be carried out to ensure that the animal is healthy and that the premises are clean and free from infection; or
(b) for any quarantine purpose,
enter the premises, if necessary by force, at any reasonable time, and at reasonable intervals, with such assistance as he thinks necessary.
(2) The right of a quarantine officer to enter premises under sub-regulation (1) includes—
(a) where an examination is to be made by a person other than the quarantine officer, the right to enter the premises accompanied by that other person;
(b) the right to search the premises for animals and for that purpose to break open any gate, door structure, container or receptacle, whether a fixture or not, on the premises;
(c) the right to take whatever measures are required to improve the health of the animal, including the disinfection, vaccination, testing and veterinary treatment of the animal;
(d) the right to take whatever measures are required to clean and disinfect the premises;
(e) the right to give any person on the premises any directions that are required for any purpose referred to in paragraph (1) (a) or (b) or for exercising any right referred to in paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d).
(3) A person shall not, without reasonable excuse, fail to comply with a direction given to him under this regulation.
Penalty: $100.
Enquiries concerning health of animals
15. (1) Where there are reasonable grounds for believing that a person owns or keeps an animal, a quarantine officer may ask the person any question the answer to which is likely to contribute to the maintenance of the health of the animal or the achievement of a quarantine purpose, including a question concerning the number, origin, movement, location and health of any other animals that the person owns or keeps.
(2) A person shall not, without reasonable excuse, refuse or fail to answer a question put to him under sub-regulation (1).
Penalty: $100.
Death of domestic animals to be notified
16. (1) Where a domestic animal dies in circumstances that indicate that the animal may have been infected with a disease, the person who kept the animal at the time of its death shall, as soon as practicable, notify a quarantine officer of the death of the animal.
(2) A person who fails, without reasonable excuse, to comply with
sub-regulation (1) is guilty of an offence.
Penalty: $100.
Enquiries concerning diseased goods
17. (1) Where there are reasonable grounds for believing that goods have been, or are likely to have been—
(a) infected with a disease;
(b) a source of infection; or
(c) exposed to infection from goods infected with a disease,
a quarantine officer may ask any person who may have information in respect of the goods any question the answer to which is likely to contribute to the achievement of a quarantine purpose.
(2) A person shall not, without reasonable excuse, fail to answer a question put to him under this regulation.
Penalty: $100.
Symptoms of diseases in goods to be notified
18. (1) Where a person finds in goods symptoms that indicate that the goods are, or are likely to be, infected with a disease, the person shall, as soon as practicable, notify a quarantine officer of those symptoms and of the location of the goods.
(2) A person who fails, without reasonable excuse, to comply with
sub-regulation (1) is guilty of an offence.
Penalty: $100.
Duty to enter premises to examine infected goods
19. (1) Where there are reasonable grounds for believing that there are on premises—
(a) goods that are, or are likely to be—
(i) infected with a disease; or
(ii) a source of infection;
(b) goods that have been, or are likely to have been, exposed to infection from goods infected with a disease; or
(c) goods that should, for any other reason, be examined for a quarantine purpose,
a quarantine officer shall, with such assistance as he requires, enter the premises at any reasonable time, if necessary by force, for the purpose of searching for and seizing the goods and causing them to be examined.
(2) The right of a quarantine officer to enter premises under sub-regulation (1) for the purpose of an examination of goods on premises includes—
(a) where the examination is to be made by a person other than the quarantine officer, the right to enter the premises accompanied by that other person;
(b) the right to search the premises for the goods and, for that purpose, to break open any gate, door, structure, container or receptacle, whether a fixture or not, on the premises;
(c) the right to remove the goods from the premises for examination;
(d) the right to stop and detain any vehicle; and
(e) the right to give to any person on the premises any directions that are required for any purpose referred to in sub-regulation (1) or for exercising any right referred to in paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d).
(3) A person shall not, without reasonable excuse, fail to comply with a direction given to him under this regulation.
Penalty: $100.
Duty to prevent spread of disease—destruction of goods
20. (1) Where a quarantine officer certifies, by instrument in writing, that goods—
(a) are infected with a disease; or
(b) have been exposed to infection from goods infected with a disease,
and that the goods are a source of danger to other goods, he shall—
(c) take whatever measures are required to prevent the spread of the disease; and
(d) if he certifies that the goods ought to be destroyed—cause them to be destroyed.
(2) For the purposes of this regulation, the measures required to prevent the spread of a disease include the examination, disinfection, fumigation, vaccination, sampling, testing and treatment of the goods notwithstanding that those measures may result in the destruction, or a reduction in the value, of the goods.
Power to order goods into quarantine
21. Where there are reasonable grounds for believing that goods are, or are likely to be, infected with a disease of an animal or a plant, a quarantine officer may, for the purpose of isolating the goods, order the goods into quarantine.
Notification of owner of, or agent for, goods
22. Where the address of an owner, or of an agent for an owner, of goods in respect of which a quarantine officer has taken action in accordance with
regulation 20 or 21 is, at the time of that action, known to the quarantine officer, the quarantine officer shall cause notice in writing of the action so taken to be given to that owner or agent, either personally or by post.
Prohibited areas—domestic animals
23. (1) For the purposes of this regulation, a prohibited area is an area
(a) that is within 200 metres from a fence or other structure that marks the boundary of the quarantine station in the Cocos Islands; and
(b) that is marked, by means of signs erected by authority of a quarantine officer, as an area from which domestic animals may be required to be removed.
(2) A person in charge of a domestic animal that is within a prohibited area shall, if required to do so by a quarantine officer, cause the animal to be removed from the prohibited area.
Penalty: $100.
(3) Where a domestic animal is within a prohibited area in contravention of a requirement made under sub-regulation (2), a quarantine officer may cause the animal to be seized and shall cause it to be—
(a) removed from the area;
(b) kept for a quarantine purpose; or
(c) destroyed.
(4) Where a domestic animal bearing a registration tag is removed, kept or destroyed under sub-regulation (3), the Registrar shall notify the person who is registered as the owner of the animal and the person who is registered as the keeper of the animal of that removal, keeping or destruction.
(5) The writing on the signs referred to in paragraph (1) (b) shall be written in the English and Cocos Malay languages.
Prohibited areas—plants
24. (1) A person shall not cause or permit a plant included in a prohibited class of plants to grow in a prohibited area.
(2) For the purposes of this regulation—
(a) an area is a prohibited area in respect of the growth in that area of a plant included in a class of plants if it is an area (that may be the whole of the Territory) that is declared by the Minister, by notice published in the Gazette, to be a prohibited area in respect of the growth in that area of a plant included in that class of plants; and
(b) a class of plants is a prohibited class of plants in relation to a prohibited area if it is a class of plants that is declared by the Minister, in a notice referred to in paragraph (a) that refers to that prohibited area, to be a prohibited class of plants in relation to that prohibited area.
Wild animals
25. A quarantine officer may, for a quarantine purpose, seize, keep or destroy any animal that is not a domestic animal.
Records to be kept of goods destroyed
26. The Registrar shall keep a record of the quantity and kinds of goods destroyed under these Regulations and of the purpose for which they were destroyed.
False or misleading statements
27. A person shall not, in answer to a question put to him under these Regulations, make a statement to a quarantine officer that is false or misleading in a material particular.
Penalty: $100.
Compensation for goods destroyed or damaged
28. (1) Subject to this regulation, where goods are destroyed or damaged by virtue of action taken under these Regulations, compensation is payable for the destruction, or loss in value, of the goods.
(2) The compensation payable under this regulation for goods destroyed is an amount equal to the market value that the goods would have had at the time of their destruction if they had not been infected with a disease or exposed to infection.
(3) The compensation payable under this regulation for goods damaged is an amount equal to the amount of the loss in the market value of the goods that occurs by reason of that damage, being the market value that the goods would have had at the time when they were damaged if they had not been infected with a disease or exposed to infection.
(4) Compensation payable under this regulation for goods shall—
(a) where only one person owns the goods—be paid to that person;
(b) where 2 or more persons have interests in the goods—be divided among those persons in proportion to the value of each person's interest in the goods at the time of destruction.
(5) Where the Minister and the persons entitled under this regulation to compensation for goods do not agree as to the amount of compensation payable under these Regulations, that amount shall be determined—
(a) by a person agreed upon by the Minister and those persons; or
(b) in the absence of an agreement referred to in paragraph (a)—by the Supreme Court.
(6) Compensation is not payable under this regulation to a person for goods in respect of which the person, or a keeper of the goods, has been convicted of an offence under these Regulations.
NOTES
1. Notified in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette on 18 August 1982.