38General prohibition on exploring and mining in offshore areas without appropriate authorisation under this Act

#### 38 General prohibition on exploring and mining in offshore areas without appropriate authorisation under this Act A person must not: (a) explore for minerals in an offshore area; or (b) recover minerals from an offshore area; unless the exploration or recovery is authorised by a licence or special purpose consent granted under this Act. > Note: A works licence may be necessary because exploration includes activities that are directly related to exploration (see subsection 23(1)) and recovery includes activities that are directly related to recovery (see subsection 24(1)). Penalty: 300 penalty units.