{"id":"biodiversity-conservation-exemptions-order-2018","name":"Biodiversity Conservation (Exemptions) Order 2018","slug":"biodiversity-conservation-exemptions-order-2018","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"wa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":174104,"registerId":"wa-biodiversity-conservation-exemptions-order-2018-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Biodiversity Conservation (Exemptions) Order 2018","content":"![Crest]()Western Australia\n\nBiodiversity Conservation Act 2016\n\nBiodiversity Conservation (Exemptions) Order 2018\n\nWestern Australia\n\nBiodiversity Conservation (Exemptions) Order 2018\n\nContents\n\n1. Citation 1\n\n2. Commencement 1\n\n3. Existing authorities to modify occurrence of threatened ecological community 1\n\n4. Activities involving dingoes 2\n\n5. Activities involving flora cultivars 3\n\n6. Dealing in flora 3\n\n7. Bush fire mitigation and suppression activities 4\n\nNotes\n\nCompilation table 7\n\nDefined terms\n\n  \n\nBiodiversity Conservation Act 2016\n\nBiodiversity Conservation (Exemptions) Order 2018\n\n##### 1. Citation\n\n\t\tThis order is the *Biodiversity Conservation (Exemptions) Order 2018*.\n\n##### 2. Commencement\n\nThis order comes into operation as follows —\n\n(a) clauses 1 and 2 — on the day on which this order is published in the *Gazette*;\n\n(b) the rest of the order — on the day after that day.\n\n##### 3. Existing authorities to modify occurrence of threatened ecological community\n\n(1) In this clause —\n\nexisting authority means a licence, permit, approval, consent, registration or other authority —\n\n(a) issued, granted, conferred or given under a written law or a State agreement; and\n\n(b) in force immediately before the day on which section 48 of the Act comes into operation; and\n\n(c) in force on the day on which the activity mentioned in subclause (2) is carried out.\n\n(2) An activity that modifies an occurrence of a threatened ecological community is exempt from section 48(1) of the Act in circumstances where —\n\n(a) the activity is authorised by an existing authority; and\n\n(b) the activity is carried out in accordance with any conditions to which the existing authority is subject; and\n\n(c) any clearing permit required under the *Environmental Protection Act 1986* in respect of the activity has been obtained.\n\n##### 4. Activities involving dingoes\n\n(1) In this clause —\n\nbiosecurity requirement means —\n\n(a) a pest exclusion notice under the *Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007* section 27(1); or\n\n(b) a requirement to take prescribed control measures under the *Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007* section 30(3); or\n\n(c) a pest control notice under the *Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007* section 31(1);\n\ndingo means an animal that belongs to the native species *Canis familiaris dingo* (also referred to as *Canis lupus dingo*).\n\n(2) A person who takes a dingo is exempt from section 149(1) of the Act in relation to that taking if the person takes the dingo in accordance with a biosecurity requirement.\n\n(3) A person who possesses a dingo is exempt from section 152(1) of the Act in relation to that possession.\n\n(4) A person who disturbs a dingo is exempt from section 153(1) of the Act in relation to that disturbance if the person disturbs the dingo in accordance with a biosecurity requirement.\n\n[Clause 4 inserted: Gazette 5 Nov 2019 p. 3878‑9.]\n\n##### 5. Activities involving flora cultivars\n\n(1) In this clause —\n\nflora cultivar means flora that —\n\n(a) has been produced by selective breeding either through hybridisation or form selection; and\n\n(b) is in a form that is morphologically distinguishable from its parent species growing in the wild.\n\n(2) The activity of supplying a flora cultivar is exempt from section 176(1) of the Act.\n\n(3) The activity of dealing in a flora cultivar is exempt from section 177(1) of the Act.\n\n(4) The activity of processing a flora cultivar is exempt from section 178(2) of the Act.\n\n##### 6. Dealing in flora\n\n(1) In this clause —\n\nflora does not include specifically controlled sandalwood as defined in the *Biodiversity Conservation Regulations 2018* regulation 3.\n\n(2) The activity of dealing in flora is exempt from section 177(1) of the Act in circumstances where the flora is purchased from —\n\n(a) the holder of a licence authorising the supply of flora; or\n\n(b) a person who otherwise has lawful authority to supply flora.\n\n(3) The exemption provided for in subclause (2) is subject to the condition that a person who deals in flora in reliance on the exemption must —\n\n(a) make a record of the flora purchased that contains the following information —\n\n(i) a description of the flora;\n\n(ii) the quantity of the flora;\n\n(iii) the day on which the flora is purchased;\n\n(iv) the name and address of the person from whom the flora is purchased;\n\nand\n\n(b) keep the record —\n\n(i) for at least 2 years after the day on which the flora is purchased; and\n\n(ii) at the place where the person deals in flora;\n\nand\n\n(c) make the record available to a wildlife officer if asked by the wildlife officer to do so.\n\n(4) The activity of dealing in flora is also exempt from section 177(1) of the Act in circumstances where the flora is supplied as a living potted plant or by retail directly to the public.\n\n##### 7. Bush fire mitigation and suppression activities\n\n(1) In this clause —\n\nburning, of vegetation in an area, means —\n\n(a) fire hazard reduction burning in the area; or\n\n(b) burning or partial burning of vegetation in the area by an uncontrolled fire that reduces the risk of injury or damage to persons or property from a subsequent uncontrolled fire in the vegetation;\n\nbush fire mitigation activity means the following —\n\n(a) burning permitted under the *Bush Fires Act 1954* section 17(5);\n\n(b) burning done in accordance with a permit obtained under the *Bush Fires Act 1954* section 18;\n\n(c) burning done under the *Bush Fires Act 1954* section 22(2);\n\n(d) burning done under the *Bush Fires Act 1954* section 23;\n\n(e) things done to comply with a notice given under the *Bush Fires Act 1954* section 33(1);\n\n(f) things done pursuant to a direction of a local government under the *Bush Fires Act 1954* section 33(4);\n\n(g) clearing done by a local government under the *Bush Fires Act 1954* section 36(b);\n\n(h) things done under the *Bush Fire Risk Treatment Standards 2020* clause 6;\n\n(i) clearing described in the *Environmental Protection (Clearing of Native Vegetation) Regulations 2004* regulation 5(1) Table item 3 or 15;\n\n(j) things done for fire prevention or control purposes or other fire management works on Crown land by the FES Commissioner (as defined in the *Fire and Emergency Services Act 1998* section 3);\n\nbush fire suppression activity means the following —\n\n(a) things done under the *Bush Fires Act 1954* section 39(1)(d) or 44(1)(c);\n\n(b) things done in relation to fire under the *Fire Brigades Act 1942* section 34(a), (c) or (j);\n\nfire hazard reduction burning means burning or partial burning of vegetation to reduce the risk of injury or damage to persons or property from an uncontrolled fire in the vegetation.\n\n(2) A person who carries out a bush fire mitigation activity or bush fire suppression activity is exempt from —\n\n(a) section 48(1) of the Act in relation to any modification of an occurrence of a threatened ecological community that occurs in the course of, or as a result of, the activity; and\n\n(b) section 149(1) of the Act in relation to any taking of fauna that occurs in the course of, or as a result of, the activity; and\n\n(c) section 150(1) of the Act in relation to any taking of threatened fauna that occurs in the course of, or as a result of, the activity; and\n\n(d) section 153(1) of the Act in relation to any disturbance of fauna that occurs in the course of, or as a result of, the activity; and\n\n(e) section 173(1) or (2) of the Act in relation to any taking of threatened flora that occurs in the course of, or as a result of, the activity.\n\n(3) Subclause (2) does not apply to a bush fire mitigation activity to the extent that the activity consists of fire hazard reduction burning in an area if —\n\n(a) the activity is of a kind referred to in paragraph (a), (b), (d), (h), (i) or (j) of the definition of ***bush fire mitigation activity***; and\n\n(b) burning of vegetation in the area has occurred within the past 6 years.\n\n(4) Subclause (2)(b) and (c) do not apply to the extent that the taking of fauna consists of harvesting or capturing the fauna or causing or permitting harvest or capture of the fauna.\n\n(5) Subclause (2)(e) does not apply to the extent that the taking of threatened flora consists of harvesting the flora or causing or permitting harvest of the flora.\n\n[Clause 7 inserted: SL 2021/175 cl. 4.]\n\n![]()\n\nNotes\n\nThis is a compilation of the *Biodiversity Conservation (Exemptions) Order 2018* and includes amendments made by other written laws. For provisions that have come into operation see the compilation table.\n\nCompilation table\n\n| **Citation** | **Published** | **Commencement** |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| *Biodiversity Conservation (Exemptions) Order 2018* | 21 Dec 2018 p. 4847‑50 | cl. 1 and 2: 21 Dec 2018 (see cl. 2(a));   Order other than cl. 1 and 2: 22 Dec 2018 (see cl. 2(b)) |\n| *Biodiversity Conservation (Exemptions) Amendment Order 2019* | 5 Nov 2019 p. 3878‑9 | cl. 1 and 2: 5 Nov 2019 (see cl. 2(a));   Order other than cl. 1 and 2: 6 Nov 2019 (see cl. 2(b)) |\n| *Biodiversity Conservation (Exemptions) Amendment Order 2021* | SL 2021/175 15 Oct 2021 | cl. 1 and 2: 15 Oct 2021 (see cl. 2(a));   Order other than cl. 1 and 2: 16 Oct 2021 (see cl. 2(b)) |\n\n\nDefined terms\n\n*[This is a list of terms defined and the provisions where they are defined. The list is not part of the law.]*\n\n**Defined term Provision(s)**\n\nbiosecurity requirement 4(1)\n\nburning 7(1)\n\nbush fire mitigation activity 7(1)\n\nbush fire suppression activity 7(1)\n\ndingo 4(1)\n\nexisting authority 3(1)\n\nfire hazard reduction burning 7(1)\n\nflora 6(1)\n\nflora cultivar 5(1)\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":5,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The Order narrows the practical reach of specified prohibitions in the Biodiversity Conservation Act by creating targeted exemptions. It exempts activities authorised by pre-existing written‑law authorities (cl.3), actions taken under biosecurity requirements for dingoes (cl.4), supply/dealing/processing of flora cultivars and retail potted plants subject to record rules (cl.5–6), and a defined list of bush‑fire mitigation and suppression activities while setting limits and exceptions (cl.7(2)–(5)). These exemptions are conditional (e.g. clearing permits, records) and shift compliance costs and decision-making burdens to licence‑holders, suppliers/purchasers, local government and fire‑management agencies (see cl.3(2), cl.6(3), cl.7)."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple cross-references to other statutes (Environmental Protection Act 1986; Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007; Bush Fires Act 1954; Fire and Emergency Services Act 1998) increasing legal interdependence","Conditional exemptions rather than blanket carve-outs (e.g. must comply with existing authority conditions cl.3(2); clearing permit requirement cl.3(2)(c))","Defined technical terms that narrow application (e.g. \"existing authority\" cl.3(1); \"flora cultivar\" cl.5(1); \"dingo\" cl.4(1))","Record-keeping and evidentiary obligations for commercial dealers (cl.6(3)) creating ongoing compliance costs","Exceptions and limits within exemptions (e.g. six‑year restriction on repeated burning cl.7(3); exclusions for harvesting/cl.7(4)–(5))","Multiple regulated actors affected (licensees, purchasers, local governments, FES Commissioner, wildlife officers) increasing administrative coordination","Amendments over time (2019, 2021) meaning temporal complexity for commencement and transitional arrangements"],"plain_english_summary":"This Order creates targeted exemptions to the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 so specified activities are not offences under named sections. It affects licence-holders, land managers, fire and emergency services, biosecurity officers and businesses that supply or deal in plants. Mechanically, it exempts activities authorised by pre-existing permits (cl.3), biosecurity-driven dingo control (cl.4), trade and processing of cultivated plants (cl.5–6) and a listed set of bush‑fire mitigation/suppression actions (cl.7). Exemptions carry conditions such as permits, records and statutory limits."},"summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Unable to assess whether the scope of this Order changed from its original intent — the legislative text was not available for review. No amendments or scope changes can be identified from the information provided."},"complexity_factors":["The actual legislative text was not retrievable — the source page returned a 404-style error","Without the text, no assessment of operative provisions, cross-references, or defined terms is possible","Subordinate legislation (Orders) under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 can involve complex scientific classifications and regulatory carve-outs, but this cannot be confirmed here","Score reflects minimum assignable complexity given total absence of content, not simplicity of the underlying law"],"plain_english_summary":"This Order (made under WA’s Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016) identifies which activities, people or situations are exempt from certain obligations protecting native plants, animals and ecosystems. It mainly affects landowners, farmers, developers, researchers and agencies by determining when licences or permits are not required to disturb protected biodiversity—making it crucial for compliance and risk of fines or prosecution. The Order’s text wasn’t retrievable here; check the WA legislation site for the current wording."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The legislation has grown significantly beyond its original scope. The original 2018 order covered existing authorities, flora cultivars, and flora dealing. It was subsequently amended in 2019 to add dingo exemptions (clause 4) and again in 2021 to add extensive bushfire mitigation and suppression exemptions (clause 7). The 2021 amendments in particular added substantial complexity with detailed definitions, multiple cross-references to the Bush Fires Act, and conditional limitations. What began as a relatively narrow administrative instrument has expanded to cover biosecurity operations and emergency management activities."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple cross-references to other Acts (Bush Fires Act 1954, Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007, Environmental Protection Act 1986, Fire and Emergency Services Act 1998) requiring external knowledge","Nested conditional logic in clause 7(3) with dual requirements (activity type AND temporal restriction)","Specific exclusions within exemptions (clauses 7(4) and 7(5) carve out harvesting activities from the firefighting exemption)","Record-keeping requirements with specific retention periods and location requirements (clause 6(3))","Defined terms that incorporate external statutory definitions (e.g., 'specifically controlled sandalwood' defined in separate regulations)","Temporal limitations (6-year lookback period for burning in clause 7(3))","Multiple amendment insertions noted in text (clauses 4 and 7 inserted by later amendments) indicating evolving scope"],"plain_english_summary":"This Western Australian law creates specific exemptions from the state's main biodiversity protection rules. It lets certain people carry out activities that would normally be illegal under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016.\n\n**Who gets exemptions:**\n- **Landholders with old permits**: People who already had approval to modify threatened ecological communities before new stricter rules kicked in can keep operating under their old permits (provided they also have any required environmental clearing permits).\n- **Farmers and biosecurity officers**: People can take, possess, or disturb dingoes if required to do so under biosecurity laws (pest control notices, etc.).\n- **Nurseries and plant sellers**: People can sell cultivated plants (flora cultivars) bred through selective breeding, and retailers can sell living potted plants directly to the public. People buying flora from licensed suppliers can also deal in it, provided they keep detailed purchase records for 2 years.\n- **Firefighters and land managers**: People carrying out bushfire prevention and firefighting activities are exempt from biodiversity protection rules for any damage caused during legitimate fire mitigation or suppression work. However, this doesn't apply if the same area was burned within the last 6 years (to prevent over-clearing under the guise of fire safety), and it doesn't cover harvesting animals or plants for commercial purposes.\n\n**Why it matters**: This law balances environmental protection with practical needs—allowing continued farming, gardening, fire safety, and honoring existing permits without requiring everyone to apply for new biodiversity permits."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/biodiversity-conservation-exemptions-order-2018","history":"/api/acts/biodiversity-conservation-exemptions-order-2018/history","analysis":"/api/acts/biodiversity-conservation-exemptions-order-2018/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/biodiversity-conservation-exemptions-order-2018/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/biodiversity-conservation-exemptions-order-2018/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/biodiversity-conservation-exemptions-order-2018/documents"}}