OIA 17-E-0496
23 November 2017
Email
: [FYI request #6785 email]
Dear Mr Ham,
Thank you for your Official Information Act request to the Department of
Conservation, dated 2 November 2017. You requested the following:
‘A complete list of all permit conditions for Marine Mammal
tourism permits in the Bay of Islands.
What the punishments for non-compliance for Skippers and
Companies are, and what the process is in the event of a suspected
infraction including any appeals process.’
Your questions and the responses are listed below:
1. A complete list of all permit conditions for Marine Mammal tourism permits in
the Bay of Islands:
See Attachments 1, 2, 3 and 4.
2. What the punishments for non-compliance for Skippers and Companies are:
The offence for non-compliance with a marine mammal permit is Section
23(1) of the Marine Mammals Protection Act 1978:
23 Offences and penalties
(1) Every person commits an offence who—
(a)
acts in contravention of or fails to comply in any respect with
any notice, direction, restriction, requirement, or condition
given, made, or imposed under this Act;
The maximum penalty for this offence is a fine not exceeding $10,000.00.
3.
What the process is in the event of a suspected infraction including any appeals
process.
When there is a reported infringement against the Marine Mammals Protection
Regulations, the Bay of Islands Pewhairangi office investigates any complaint it
receives from third parties, or any observations of potential non-compliance made by
its staff.
Such investigations involve identifying the alleged offender and establishing whether
an offence has occurred. This process may involve interviewing or requesting a
written statement from alleged offenders and or/permit holders.
There is no appeal process in the legislation if a permit is terminated, but there is an
appeal process in the Criminal Procedure Act 2011 if a person is convicted of an
offence.
Yours sincerely
Marie Long
Director - Planning, Permissions and Land