{"id":"F2015L01633","name":"Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 - section 269a - Instrument making recovery plan (Recovery Plan for Balaenoptera musculus – Blue Whale) (28/09/2015)","slug":"environment-protection-and-biodiversity-conservation-act-1999-section-269a-instrument-making-recover","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":93455,"registerId":"commonwealth-F2015L01633-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-02","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 - section 269a - Instrument making recovery plan (Recovery Plan for Balaenoptera musculus – Blue Whale) (28/09/2015)","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\nmeta-generator: Aspose.Words for .NET 20.2\ntitle: Attachment D - Legislative Instrument\n---\n\n?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"utf-8\" standalone=\"no\"?>\n\n![](image.001.png)\n\nCommonwealth of Australia\n\nEnvironment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999\n\nSection 269A\n\nInstrument making recovery plan\n\n \n\nI, Greg Hunt, Minister for the Environment, according to:\n\n(a)   section 269A(2) of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth), make a recovery plan for Balaenoptera musculus – Blue Whale (endangered) entitled “Conservation Management Plan for the Blue Whale”.\n\nThe recovery plan specified in paragraph (a) will come into force on the day after the plan is registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments or on 1 October 2015, whichever is the later.\n\n \n\nDated this 28th day of September 2015\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nGreg Hunt\n\nMinister for the Environment\n\n \n\n \n\n \n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This instrument does not change the statutory scope of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. It records the Minister's exercise of the existing power in section 269A(2) to make a recovery plan and fixes the plan's title and commencement rule. The instrument does not add new obligations, definitions, or powers in itself; any change in obligations or scope would arise only from the content of the recovery plan that is referred to but not reproduced here."},"complexity_factors":["Short, single-purpose instrument: only records the Minister's making of a recovery plan and its commencement rule.","Reference to statutory power (section 269A(2)) creates a legal anchor but no substantive provisions in the instrument itself.","Commencement tied to administrative registration or fixed date requires awareness of administrative procedure (Federal Register of Legislative Instruments).","Substantive details (plan contents, obligations, funding, enforcement) are absent from the instrument, meaning legal effects depend on separate documents."],"plain_english_summary":"The Minister for the Environment has used s.269A(2) of the EPBC Act to make a recovery plan titled \"Conservation Management Plan for the Blue Whale\" and fixes its commencement as the later of registration on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments or 1 October 2015.\n\nThe instrument records the plan's creation but contains no plan text, duties, funding or enforcement details—those and who must act or pay are left to the recovery plan or other instruments; legal force depends on the registration step."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This instrument performs exactly the function intended by section 269A of the EPBC Act: making a recovery plan for a listed threatened species. There is no scope creep or expansion beyond the original statutory purpose."},"complexity_factors":["Single operative provision making a recovery plan","No defined terms within the instrument itself","No cross-references to other sections beyond the empowering provision (s 269A(2))","Simple commencement clause with basic 'whichever is later' logic","Total length: approximately 150 words","Standard ministerial instrument format with no conditional provisions or exceptions"],"plain_english_summary":"This is a formal legal instrument made by the Minister for the Environment, Greg Hunt, under Australia's main environmental law (the EPBC Act). It creates a **recovery plan** (a legally-binding conservation strategy) for the **Blue Whale** (*Balaenoptera musculus*), which is listed as an endangered species in Australia.\n\n**What it does:**\n- Officially adopts the \"Conservation Management Plan for the Blue Whale\" as the legally required recovery plan for this species\n- Sets when the plan takes effect: the later of either the day after it's registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments, or 1 October 2015\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- Government agencies responsible for environmental protection and marine management\n- Any person or organisation whose activities might impact Blue Whales (such as shipping, fishing, or offshore energy industries)\n- The Blue Whale itself, as the plan sets out measures to protect and recover the species\n\n**Why it matters:**\nRecovery plans under the EPBC Act are legally enforceable documents. Once in force, federal government decisions that might affect Blue Whales must be consistent with this plan. It provides the framework for conservation actions, research priorities, and threat management to help the species recover from its endangered status."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/environment-protection-and-biodiversity-conservation-act-1999-section-269a-instrument-making-recover","history":"/api/acts/environment-protection-and-biodiversity-conservation-act-1999-section-269a-instrument-making-recover/history","analysis":"/api/acts/environment-protection-and-biodiversity-conservation-act-1999-section-269a-instrument-making-recover/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/environment-protection-and-biodiversity-conservation-act-1999-section-269a-instrument-making-recover/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/environment-protection-and-biodiversity-conservation-act-1999-section-269a-instrument-making-recover/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/environment-protection-and-biodiversity-conservation-act-1999-section-269a-instrument-making-recover/documents"}}