Seas and Submerged Lands (Historic Bays) Proclamation 2016

The Proclamation builds on a small set of interlocked technical concepts. These concepts determine how to convert the textual coordinates into lines on charts and maps that will carry legal effect under the enabling Act.

• Historic bay declaration: The core legal act in this instrument is a declaration under paragraph 8(a) of the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973 that the four named bays are historic bays (s 6). The text does not restate the content of paragraph 8(a); it implements that paragraph by naming the bays and by fixing their sea‑ward limits in subsequent sections.

• Sea‑ward limit defined by coordinates and low‑water line: For each bay the Proclamation specifies points of latitude and longitude (in degrees, minutes, seconds) and then directs that the sea‑ward limits are the straight lines constituted by joining the points on the low‑water line of the coast that are on, or closest to, the specified coordinates (ss 7(1), 8(1), 9(1), 10(1)). The key mapping rule is therefore: locate the coordinate; identify the point on the low‑water coastline that is either coincident with or closest to that coordinate; then construct the geodetic straight line between those coastal low‑water points to obtain the sea‑ward limit.

• Geodesic straight lines: The instrument defines straight line as a geodesic line (s 5(1)). That choice makes clear that plotting the sea‑ward limits must use geodesics on the specified datum, not planar approximations or rhumb lines.

• Low‑water standard: The instrument defines low‑water as lowest astronomical tide (s 5(1)). That is a precise tidal datum rather than mean low water or observed shoreline. Any survey or charting exercise must therefore reference an L.A.T. tidal datum when identifying the “low‑water line of the coast”.

• Datum and realisation: The instrument prescribes the Geocentric Datum of Australia for determining positions (s 5(2)). Schedule 1 gives the reference ellipsoid (GRS80) and a concrete realisation by listing Australian Fiducial Network geodetic stations with coordinates and ellipsoidal heights (Schedule 1, cl 1-2). The instrument therefore sets both the geometric model (ellipsoid) and the practical realisation to be used for geodetic positioning tied to an epoch (the realisation is referred to the International Earth Rotation Service Terrestrial Reference Frame 1992 at the epoch of 1994.0, Schedule 1, cl 2).

• Island exception for low‑water segments: Section 11 addresses a mapping exception. If the straight lines specified in ss 7-10 join two different points on the low‑water line of the same island, the sea‑ward limit between those two points is not the geodesic between them but the line constituted by following the low‑water line of the sea‑ward part of the island between the points (s 11(1)). The instrument defines the sea‑ward part of the coast of an island as that part including the most sea‑ward point of the island (s 11(2)). That rule prevents the sea‑ward limit from cutting across the seaward edge of small islands where the specified coordinate pairs fall on the island’s low‑water line.

• Repeal of former instrument: Schedule 2 repeals the entire Seas and Submerged Lands (Historic Bays) Proclamation 2006. That means the 2016 instrument is intended to supplant the earlier proclamation as of its commencement (Schedule 2).

All of those elements interact to convert the textual coordinates into legally effective maritime boundaries: the datum choice fixes which numeric coordinate system to implement; the low‑water definition fixes the coastal reference; the geodesic definition fixes how lines are drawn; and the island exception adjusts the mapping rule where both endpoints fall on the same island’s low‑water line.

The instrument itself is short and technical. The parties whose legal position or operational practice will be directly affected are those whose rights, obligations, mapping activities or administrative decisions depend on whether a named bay is an historic bay and on the exact position of a bay’s sea‑ward limit as declared under paragraph 8(a) of the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973.

• Commonwealth agencies and regulators that apply the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973: The Proclamation is made under paragraph 8(a) of that Act (s 3) and declares the four bays to be historic bays under the same paragraph (s 6). Any agency tasking that depends on the status of a bay under the Act will need to apply the new declarations and the sea‑ward limits fixed here.

• Surveyors, cartographers, hydrographic offices and chart producers: The instrument mandates use of the Geocentric Datum of Australia for determining positions (s 5(2)) and specifies the GRS80 ellipsoid and fiducial station coordinates that realise the datum (Schedule 1). Those producing legal maps, nautical charts, cadastral datasets or GIS layers that represent the declared historic bays must adopt the specified datum, use lowest astronomical tide as the low‑water line (s 5(1)) and draw straight lines as geodesics (s 5(1)). The mapping rule in s 11 for islands will affect how coastal islands are represented.

• Coastal landowners, local governments, and users of the bays: Entities with activities influenced by the legal extent of bays , for example resource users, operators of marine installations, ports interests or property holders involved in matters contingent on the bay boundary , will see the declared limits as the legal instrument to consult when the Act’s regimes are engaged. The Proclamation itself does not list downstream regulatory consequences, but it fixes the spatial facts that are the input to any legal test relying on a bay being declared historic under the Act (s 6).

• Parties relying on the previous 2006 proclamation: The Proclamation repeals the 2006 instrument in full (Schedule 2). Anyone whose contractual, regulatory or compliance position referenced the 2006 proclamation will need to check whether the new coordinates and rules alter the spatial boundaries on which those positions turned.

• Practitioners advising clients on maritime boundaries or survey evidence: Lawyers, compliance professionals and consultants must use the definitions and datum in this instrument (s 5, Schedule 1) when preparing evidence, land boundary reports or legal advice about the spatial scope of the historic bays declared here.

The instrument does not itself create offences or new permit regimes. It is a cadastral and declaratory instrument that fixes a legal label and coordinates. The parties most practically affected are those who create or rely on geospatial representations of the coastline and bays for legal, regulatory or commercial purposes, and institutions that apply the enabling Act by reference to declarations made under paragraph 8(a).

The Proclamation primarily creates spatial facts; it contains prescriptions about how to determine those facts rather than setting out operational duties or rights in the sense of licences or prohibitions. The key operative effects that give rise to duties or rights derive from what it declares and how it directs positioning.

• Declaration duty: The instrument declares the four bays to be historic bays under paragraph 8(a) of the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973 (s 6). The immediate legal consequence is that the named bays are to be treated as historic bays for the purposes of that paragraph. Any duties, rights or consequences that the Act attaches to a bay because it is an historic bay will therefore be engaged by the declared status. The Proclamation itself does not enumerate those downstream duties or rights; it is the Act that will contain the substantive regulatory consequences.

• Positional determination duty: The instrument requires that the position on the surface of the Earth of any point, line or area referred to in the instrument be determined by reference to the Geocentric Datum of Australia (s 5(2)). That is a mandatory rule for technical compliance: surveyors, mappers and legal advisers must adopt the specified datum and its Schedule 1 realisation when locating the coordinates that appear in the instrument.

• Mapping rule duties: For each bay the Proclamation sets a mapping rule: identify the low‑water line point that is on, or closest to, each specified coordinate and join those low‑water points with straight lines to obtain the sea‑ward limit (ss 7(1), 8(1), 9(1), 10(1)). The duty is therefore to perform that geometric operation in accordance with the defined terms: low‑water means lowest astronomical tide (s 5(1)); straight line means geodesic line (s 5(1)).

• Island exception duty: Where the straight lines specified would join two different points on the low‑water line of the same island, the duty is instead to define the sea‑ward limit by a line following the low‑water line of the sea‑ward part of the island between those points (s 11(1)). The Proclamation defines the sea‑ward part as that including the most sea‑ward point of the island (s 11(2)). This creates a different mapping obligation where both endpoints lie on the same island.

• Commencement and temporal status: The instrument commenced the day after registration, recorded as 12 March 2016 (s 2). Practitioners should treat the declared status and the spatial limits as effective from that commencement date for any legal or mapping purposes that require a temporal reference.

• Repeal effect: The Proclamation repeals the earlier 2006 Proclamation (Schedule 2). The duty for any party that previously referenced the 2006 instrument is to substitute the 2016 instrument’s coordinates and mapping rules when the legal question depends on which proclamation applies.

The instrument does not itself create permitting obligations, authorise particular activities or set out penalties. Those substantive duties or rights will arise under the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973 and any other laws that apply conditioned on whether a bay is an historic bay. The duties imposed by this instrument are therefore technical: use the specified definitions, datum and mapping rules when determining the physical extent of the declared historic bays.

The Proclamation contains no express civil or criminal penalties, and it does not establish an enforcement mechanism in its text. The instrument is a declaratory and technical instrument that sets spatial facts; it does not itself create offences, fines or enforcement regimes.

• No internal sanctions: There are no penalty provisions, infringement notices, or enforcement powers contained in any section of the document. The instrument makes declarations (s 6), prescribes positioning and mapping methods (ss 5, 7-11) and sets out Schedule 1 and Schedule 2 matters. None of those provisions impose criminal sanctions or administrative penalties within the Proclamation itself.

• Enforcement by reference to the Act: The Proclamation is made under paragraph 8(a) of the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973 (s 3), and it declares the bays to be historic bays for the purposes of that Act (s 6). Any regulatory consequences, duties, rights or penalties that flow from a bay being an historic bay must be sought in the Act or in subordinate instruments made under the Act. The Proclamation provides the spatial facts that will be applied by the Act and by any agency exercising functions under the Act, but enforcement of those functions is a matter for the Act and for agencies acting under that Act, not for the Proclamation text.

• Compliance evidence: Because the Proclamation fixes coordinates, definitions and a datum, disputes about the spatial limit of a bay will be resolved by applying the Proclamation’s technical rules (for example s 5 definitions and ss 7-11 mapping rules) together with the evidence of survey or charting. Any enforcement action that depends on the location of a bay’s sea‑ward limit will therefore pivot on whether the prescribed mapping methodology has been followed and whether the coordinates have been properly realised using the Geocentric Datum of Australia specified in Schedule 1.

• Repeal and transitional enforcement considerations: Schedule 2 repeals the entire 2006 Proclamation. The Proclamation contains no transitional provisions describing how ongoing enforcement or proceedings under the 2006 instrument should be treated. Any question about transitional enforcement must therefore be resolved by reference to the enabling Act and general principles, not by provisions in this Proclamation.

In short, the Proclamation creates the spatial and technical base that other laws and agencies will apply and enforce. It does not itself specify penalties or enforcement machinery.

The Proclamation is an instrument under the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973 and interacts directly with that Act. It also interacts practically with any legal or administrative processes that rely on geodetic positions, tidal datums or the label “historic bay”. The text itself limits what it can be said to do; the interaction points that follow are contained in or implied by the instrument’s provisions.

• Enabling Act interaction: The instrument is made under paragraph 8(a) of the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973 (s 3), and it expressly declares bays to be historic bays for the purposes of that paragraph (s 6). Therefore the Proclamation’s operative legal interaction is with the Act: it supplies the determinate factual predicate (the declared status and spatial limits) that will be applied under the Act. The Proclamation does not restate or alter the content of the Act beyond supplying those facts.

• Supersession of prior subordinate instrument: Schedule 2 repeals the Seas and Submerged Lands (Historic Bays) Proclamation 2006 in whole. The 2016 instrument therefore replaces the 2006 instrument as the current Proclamation governing the declared historic bays named here. Any statute, regulation, contract or other instrument that referenced the 2006 proclamation must, where relevant, be read in light of the repeal and substitution effected by Schedule 2.

• Technical interactions with surveying and chart standards: The instrument mandates the Geocentric Datum of Australia for positional determinations (s 5(2)) and specifies GRS80 ellipsoid parameters and a set of fiducial stations with coordinates and heights (Schedule 1). Those specifications create an interaction with any statutory or administrative regimes that require or assume use of a geodetic datum for legal boundary work. Practitioners must ensure consistency with the specified datum when producing the spatial evidence that other laws will call upon.

• Tidal datum interaction: The instrument defines low‑water as lowest astronomical tide (s 5(1)). This interacts with any legal rule elsewhere that references a low‑water line, foreshore, high‑water mark or other tidal datum. Where a separate statute or administrative test uses a different tidal datum, care will be needed to reconcile which datum applies to which legal context. The Proclamation itself requires L.A.T. for its purposes.

• Geodesic plotting and maritime geometry: The instrument defines straight line as geodesic (s 5(1)). That requires use of geodesic methods on the Geocentric Datum of Australia when translating the coordinate pairs into sea‑ward limits. Any law or practice that previously used non‑geodesic plotting for legal boundary reasons will interact with this instrument when the declared bays are relevant.

• No express interaction with other named statutes: The text does not mention any other Commonwealth or state statutes explicitly, nor does it provide transitional clauses about overlapping regimes. The only statutory link expressly stated in the instrument is to the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973.

Where inter‑statutory questions arise , for example whether a regulatory regime in another statute that references historic bays is affected , the Proclamation will be the authoritative subordinate instrument declaring the bays and fixing their sea‑ward limits. Application of those facts to another statute will depend on that statute’s own text and cross‑references.

The instrument contains the following amendment and commencement history information within its own text. There are no other amendments recorded in the instrument.

• Commencement: The instrument’s commencement table states that the whole of the instrument commenced the day after it was registered; the date shown is 12 March 2016 (s 2 and Commencement table). The note under the table states that the table relates only to the provisions of this instrument as originally made and will not be amended there to deal with later amendments (s 2(1) note).

• Authority for making and procedural effect: It was made under paragraph 8(a) of the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973 (s 3). The introductory material records that it was signed and sealed by the Governor‑General on 10 March 2016; the formal commencement is one day after registration, as noted.

• Repeal of prior instrument: Schedule 2 effects a full repeal of the Seas and Submerged Lands (Historic Bays) Proclamation 2006. The Schedule gives a single item that repeals the whole of the 2006 Proclamation. The instrument therefore represents a replacement of the earlier instrument rather than an amendment to it.

• No amendments recorded within the instrument: Other than the repeal of the 2006 Proclamation, the text contains no amending schedule or recorded variations. There are no transitional provisions or savings provisions included in this instrument.

• Schedule 1 technical definitions: Schedule 1 supplies the Geocentric Datum of Australia reference ellipsoid parameters and lists the realisation by named geodetic stations with their coordinates and ellipsoidal heights (Schedule 1, cl 1-2). Schedule 1 is presented as a note to the definition of Geocentric Datum of Australia in s 5(1) and is therefore an intrinsic part of the instrument’s technical specification.

• Footnotes and editorial notes: The instrument includes an editorial note that the table in s 2 relates only to the instrument as originally made and will not be amended there to deal with later amendments. The rest of the text does not show subsequent amending instruments or schedules.

For practical purposes the amendment history that matters to users is that the 2006 instrument has been repealed (Schedule 2) and that the 2016 Proclamation took effect from 12 March 2016. There is no further amendment history contained within the document.

The Proclamation as presented contains no references to litigation, no notes of judicial consideration, and no claims about past or pending legal proceedings. The text does not cite cases, does not record challenges, and does not include transitional litigation provisions. Accordingly:

• There is no litigation history recorded in the instrument itself. The Proclamation includes only declaratory, definitional and technical provisions (ss 5-11; Schedule 1; Schedule 2) and does not describe or summarise any court decisions or disputes.

• Any litigation that might concern the status or the precise spatial limits of these historic bays would have to be identified from external sources or from proceedings that arose after the instrument’s commencement. The instrument gives the spatial rules and datum that would be binding in evidence in any such proceedings; it does not record how those rules have been judicially applied.

• Practitioners preparing to litigate or to advise on disputes that turn on the position of a declared historic bay will therefore need to rely on the Proclamation as the primary source for the coordinates and mapping rules (ss 6-11 and Schedule 1) and to check court records and case law databases separately for any judicial treatment that post‑dates the instrument.

Because the instrument itself contains no litigation history, this section records only that absence. Any authoritative statement about judicial interpretation or contention must be taken from court materials external to this Proclamation.

This Proclamation is short and technical, but a number of concrete points can cause mapping, evidentiary and compliance surprises if overlooked. The following are specific practical issues to watch for, all grounded in the instrument’s text.

• Datum and realisation matter: The Proclamation requires that the position of a point, line or area be determined by reference to the Geocentric Datum of Australia (s 5(2)). Schedule 1 then prescribes the GRS80 ellipsoid (Schedule 1, cl 1) and a realisation by specified fiducial stations with coordinates and ellipsoidal heights in the IERS TRF92 at epoch 1994.0 (Schedule 1, cl 2). Small differences in datum realisation or epoch can shift coordinates by metres. Anyone plotting these limits must use the exact datum and, for high accuracy, account for the realisation specified.

• “Closest to” language for coastal points: The mapping rule for the sea‑ward limits uses the phrase “the 2 points on the low‑water line of the coast that are on, or closest to, 2 points of latitude and longitude specified” (for example s 7(1)). That language anticipates that the specified coordinate may not fall exactly on the low‑water line and directs the mapmaker to find the nearest low‑water point. The computation of “closest to” will require an objectively defined algorithm: practitioners must use the same datum, map projection and geodesic distance computation to determine closeness. Different choices here can alter whether a point is treated as lying on the low‑water line or merely closest to it.

• Geodesic plotting, not planar straight lines: Straight line is expressly defined as a geodesic line (s 5(1)). Plotting the sea‑ward limits in a GIS or on a chart using simple planar straight segments or rhumb lines will produce errors. The lines must be geodesics on the GDA realisation. The Proclamation’s terms therefore require geodetic computations.

• Low‑water datum is L.A.T., not mean low water: Low‑water is defined as lowest astronomical tide (s 5(1)). Practitioners who are used to mean low water or observed shoreline must ensure the dataset used to identify the low‑water line is specifically an L.A.T. trace. Tidal datum choice affects the low‑water line location and hence the boundary.

• Multiple line segments for some bays: For Anxious Bay and Rivoli Bay the Proclamation lists multiple pairs of coordinates to be joined as separate straight lines (s 7(2) subparas (a)-(c); s 10(2) subparas (a)-(b)). That indicates that the sea‑ward limit is composed of multiple geodesic segments. Care is required to assemble these segments in the correct order and orientation to form the overall boundary.

• Island exception can change the geometry substantially: Section 11 provides that where the straight lines would join two different points on the low‑water line of the same island, the sea‑ward limit between those points is the low‑water line of the sea‑ward part of the island (s 11(1)). Because an island’s low‑water line may be highly convoluted, following it between the two points can create a much longer and indented sea‑ward limit than the direct geodesic. Determining whether the endpoints are on the “same island” and applying the rule requires careful definition of island boundaries and the identity of the sea‑ward part (s 11(2)). That test may turn on fine coastal geography.

• Repeal requires dataset updates: The 2006 Proclamation is repealed in full (Schedule 2). Organisations that maintain legal boundary layers or compliance maps must replace any reliance on the 2006 coordinates with the 2016 coordinates and mapping rules as of the instrument’s commencement date (s 2).

• No transitional or saving clauses: The Proclamation has no transitional provisions addressing ongoing permits, licences, or proceedings that referenced the 2006 instrument. In the absence of such text, administrative practice or the enabling Act will determine how to treat ongoing matters. That can produce uncertainty until agencies or courts resolve which proclamation governs a given situation.

• Epoch and station coordinates: Schedule 1 realises the datum by reference to AFN stations “referred to the Geodetic Reference System 1980 ellipsoid determined within the International Earth Rotation Service Terrestrial Reference Frame 1992 at the epoch of 1994.0” (Schedule 1, cl 2). The specific epoch can be a relevant detail for high‑precision work; it signals that historical transformations or modern realisations with different epochs must be managed carefully.

• Lack of explicit downstream guidance: The Proclamation does not specify how the declared status interfaces with other regulatory provisions, nor does it state whether any administrative acts are required to notify stakeholders. Users should not assume procedural steps beyond what the instrument prescribes.

Each of these items is grounded in the instrument’s text (ss 2, 3, 5-11, Schedule 1, Schedule 2) and can produce practical divergence between an initial reading of the coordinates and the legally authoritative boundary that results once the correct datum, tidal datum, geodesic computations and island exception are applied.

Compliance with this instrument is, in practice, compliance with the technical rules it sets out for determining the spatial extent of the four declared historic bays. The Proclamation imposes no permitting or reporting obligations itself. The following steps describe concrete actions to implement the instrument’s requirements for mapping, legal advice, evidence preparation and administrative application.

1. Establish the legal framing

• Confirm that the matter you are advising on or surveying requires application of the Proclamation. The instrument declares the bays for the purposes of paragraph 8(a) of the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973 (s 6). If your question is whether a bay is an historic bay under that Act, treat the Proclamation as the authoritative subordinate instrument for those four bays.

2. Use the prescribed datum and realisation

• For all positional work adopt the Geocentric Datum of Australia as required by s 5(2).
• Implement the GRS80 ellipsoid parameters specified in Schedule 1, cl 1.
• Where high accuracy is required, adopt the realisation by the listed Australian Fiducial Network stations and consider transformations consistent with the IERS TRF92 epoch 1994.0 reference mentioned in Schedule 1, cl 2.

3. Determine the low‑water line using the prescribed tidal datum

• Use lowest astronomical tide (L.A.T.) as the low‑water datum, consistent with the instrument’s definition (s 5(1)). Obtain or generate an L.A.T. shoreline dataset for the relevant coastlines and islands using recognised tidal models or authoritative tidal datum products.

4. Locate the specified coordinates and identify the nearest low‑water points

• For each coordinate pair listed in ss 7-10, convert the degrees/minutes/seconds values to the GDA coordinate system.
• Identify the point on the low‑water line of the coast that is either coincident with that coordinate or closest to it, using geodesic distance computed on the GDA realisation. Document the method used to determine “closest to” and retain metadata on projections, transformations and tolerances.

5. Draw geodesic straight lines between the low‑water points

• Join the identified low‑water points using geodesic lines, consistent with the instrument’s definition of straight line (s 5(1)). Where a bay involves multiple straight segments (for example Anxious Bay s 7(2)), assemble the segments into the overall sea‑ward limit in the order dictated by the coordinates.

6. Apply the island exception where relevant

• Check whether any straight lines would join two different points on the low‑water line of the same island. If so, replace the geodesic segment by the low‑water line of the sea‑ward part of the island between those points, as required by s 11(1). Determine the “sea‑ward part” by identifying the island’s most sea‑ward point and following the low‑water line that includes that point (s 11(2)). Document the reasoning and the cartographic steps.

7. Update datasets and records, and reconcile prior instruments

• Where datasets previously referenced the 2006 Proclamation, replace those representations with the geometry arising from the 2016 Proclamation. The 2006 instrument is repealed in Schedule 2, so do not rely on it for current boundary positions.
• Where legal documents, contracts, or administrative decisions relied on earlier coordinates, advise on whether the new coordinates alter any legal positions and whether further steps are required under other statutes or contractual terms.

8. Prepare evidence and metadata for disputes or applications

• Maintain full metadata: datum realisation, epoch, transformation parameters used, tidal datum source and date, method for identifying “closest to” points, geodesic computation method, and a clear emendation history showing replacement of 2006 geometries by 2016 geometries.
• For expert reports, explain and exhibit the exact application of ss 5-11 and Schedule 1 so decision‑makers or courts can verify that the Proclamation’s mapping rules were followed.

9. Coordinate with relevant agencies

• If the spatial limits are material to regulatory licences, resource management, port operations or other administered regimes, confirm with the relevant administering agency how that agency intends to apply the Proclamation in its decision‑making, particularly if the agency previously relied on the 2006 Proclamation.

10. Legal advice considerations

• When advising clients about rights or duties that depend on whether a bay is an historic bay under the Act, make clear that the Proclamation fixes the bay status (s 6) and the sea‑ward limits (ss 7-11) but that any substantive rights, duties, or penalties are to be found in the enabling Act or other statutes. Tailor advice to include the potential need to reconcile the Proclamation’s spatial facts with the statutory tests in the relevant regulatory regimes.

Those steps implement the instrument’s mandatory technical rules: use the Geocentric Datum of Australia, apply lowest astronomical tide as the low‑water line, use geodesic plotting for straight lines, apply the island exception from s 11 where it arises, and replace any reliance on the 2006 Proclamation because it has been repealed (Schedule 2). The instrument does not require notification or filings; it requires accurate geodetic work and careful documentation where its geometries are used in legal or administrative contexts.