Protected Areas and Wildlife Management Bill
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PROTECTED AREAS AND WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT BILL (Bill No. # of 2017) (To be presented by the Minister of Environment and Tourism) Draft of 17 July 2017 1 PROTECTED AREAS AND WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT BILL, 2017 BILL To give effect to paragraph (l) of Article 95 of the Namibian Constitution by establishing a legal framework to provide for and promote the maintenance of ecosystems, essential ecological processes and the biological diversity of Namibia, and the utilization of living natural resources on a sustainable basis for the benefit of Namibians, both present and future, and to promote the mutually beneficial co- existence of humans with wildlife, to give effect to Namibia’s obligations under relevant international legal instruments; to repeal the Nature Conservation Ordinance 4 of 1975; and to provide for incidental matters. ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS PART I INTRODUCTORY PROVISIONS 1. Interpretation PART II PRINCIPLES OF CONSERVATION AND OBLIGATIONS TO CONSERVE INDIGENOUS BIODIVERSITY 2. Preamble 3. Application 4. Principles of conservation 5. Compliance by organs of State and other persons 2 PART III ADMINISTRATION 6. Powers of the Minister 7. Roles and functions of the Ministry 8. Designation of conservation officers 9. Powers of conservation officers 10. Honorary conservation officers 11. Powers of honorary conservation officers 12. Authorizations PART IV PROTECTED AREAS 13. Role of Protected Areas 14. Declaration of Protected Areas 15. Register of Protected Areas 16. Amendment to boundaries of Protected Areas 17. Withdrawal of declaration as a Protected Area 18. Acquisition of land and immovable property for the purposes of a State Protected Area 19. Existing Protected Areas 20. Powers and functions of the Minister within a Protected Area 21. Prospecting and mining in Protected Areas 22. Restriction on entry into or residence in a Protected Area, and prohibition of certain acts in a Protected Area 23. Purposes for which permission to enter Protected Areas may be granted 24. Hunting and collection of wild species in a Protected Areas 25. Killing and removal of unwanted animals and plants in National Parks and Nature Reserves 26. Lure of game from Protected Areas 27. Filming and photography in Protected Areas 28. Management Plan for Protected Areas 29. Use of aircraft in Protected Areas 3 30. Ownership of land inside National Park or Nature Reserve 31. Private Nature Reserves PART V CONCESSIONS 32. Granting of concessions in State Protected Areas and other areas of State land PART VI CONSERVANCIES AND CONSERVATION MANAGEMENT AREAS 33. Establishment of conservancies 34. Rights of conservancies 35. Amendment or withdrawal by the conservancy 36. Obligations of the conservancy 37. Role of Traditional Authority in conservancies 38. Registration of Conservation Management Areas 39. Rights and responsibilities of Conservation Management Areas 40. Withdrawal of registration PART VII WILD ANIMALS AND PROTECTION OF SPECIES 41. Listing of species that require protection 42. Powers of the Minister in relation to hunting seasons 43. Hunting of specially protected species 44. Hunting of protected species 45. Hunting on State land 46. Right of ownership of specially protected and protected species 47. Right of ownership to huntable species and huntable birds 48. Keeping of exotic species 49. Hunting of huntable species 50. Hunting of huntable species by owner or lessee of land 4 51. Hunting of exotic species 52. Lease of hunting rights 53. Conservation hunting for the sake of possession and export of trophies 54. Hunting of wild animal to protect grazing 55. Hunting at night 56. Powers of land owners in regard to persons found hunting 57. Catching, capturing and killing of species and wild animals 58. Poisoning of wild animals 59. Driving or luring of species from another person’s land 60. Capturing, transport and keeping of species for commercial purposes 61. Restrictions in regard to firearms and capturing apparatus 62. Use of vehicles and aircraft when hunting and capturing wild animals 63. Eggs of birds and reptiles 64. Collection of wild animals for scientific and traditional purposes 65. Donation of species and meat of wild animal 66. Sale of wild animal, meat and skins of wild animal 67. Transport of wild animal including parts and derivatives and meat of species 68. Prohibition of the removal of wild animal found dead 69. Possession of skins of specially protected and protected species 70. Inability to give satisfactory account of possession 71. Keeping of closely related species on the same piece of land or farm PART VIII COUNCIL FOR CONSERVATION HUNTING 72. Establishment of the council for conservation hunting 73. Registration a prerequisite for practicing 74. Functions of the Council 75. Composition of the Council 76. Term of office of members of the Council 77. Disqualifications for appointment as members of the Council 78. Vacation of offices and filling of vacancies on the Council 79. Meetings, quorum and procedures of the Council 5 80. Committee of the Council 81. Administration of the Council 82. Allowance of members of the Council and Committees 83. Disclosure 84. Control over training 85. Keeping of registers 86. Removal of names, from and restoration to register 87. Copy of registers as proof 88. Qualification prescribed for registration 89. Penalties for practicing or for performing certain other acts, while unregistered 90. Rules by the Council relating to improper conduct or misconduct 91. Inquiries by the Council into complaints, charges or allegations of improper conduct or misconduct 92. Procedures at inquiries 93. Penalties for false evidence 94. Penalties to be imposed by the Council 95. Postponement of imposition of penalties and suspension of execution of penalties 96. Effect of suspension or removal from register 97. Cognizance by the Council of conduct of registered persons under certain circumstances 98. Appointment of pro forma complainants 99. Limitations of liability 100. Restriction in, or suspension from, practices of incapable, unfit or incompetent registered persons 101. Offences relating to registration, registers and impersonation 102. Onus of proof 103. Levying of annual fees on registered persons PART 1X INDIGENOUS PLANTS 104. Powers of the Minister in regard to indigenous plants 105. Picking and transport of protected plants 6 106. Sale, donation, export and removal of protected plants 107. Nursery licenses 108. Receipt of protected plants 109. Picking and transport of indigenous plants 110. Collection of indigenous plants for scientific and traditional purposes PART X HUMAN WILDLIFE CONFLICT MANAGEMENT 111. Application 112. Declaration of a problem-causing animal 113. Prevention, Protection and Mitigation measures to avoid human wildlife conflict 114. Training of persons for control of problem-causing animals 115. Obstruction of persons in the performance of their duties 116. Defense of human life and other control measures 117. Destruction of problem causing animals PART XI TRADE AND RESEARCH IN WILDLIFE AND WILD ANIMALS PRODUCTS 118. Trade in wild animal and wild plant including parts and derivatives 119. Import and export of live wildlife and wild animal products 120. Presumption of content 121. Capturing, harvesting, transport and trade in wildlife 122. Breeding in captivity 123. Selective breeding 124. Genetically modified wild animals and wild plants 125. Rehabilitation centers 126. Manufacture and trade in trophies and other wildlife parts and derivatives 127. Propagation, cultivation and trade in protected plants 128. Alien or invasive species 129. Management planning and conservation strategies for wildlife, habitats and ecosystems 7 130. Wildlife Monitoring and Management 131. Wildlife Research PART XII COMPLIANCE AND ENFORCEMENT 132. Compliance order 133. Cost orders 134. Offences 135. Continuing offences 136. Forfeiture and other orders 137. Infringement Notices 138. Appeals to the Minister PART XIII GENERAL PROVISIONS 139. Repeal and amendment of laws 140. Immunity and limitations of liability 141. Codes of practice 142. International agreements 143. Regulations 144. Delegation 145. Short title and commencement SCHEDULE 1 SCHEDULE 2 SCHEDULE 3 SCHEDULE 4 8 PART I INTRODUCTORY PROVISIONS 1. Interpretation (1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, - “Act” means this Act and any regulations made under it, and includes regulations made under the Nature Conservation Ordinance, 1975 (4 of 1975) that continue to be in force under this Act; “adequate fence” means a fence that meets the standards prescribed for an “adequate stock fence” under the Fencing Proclamation, 57 of 1921; “aircraft” means an airborne craft of any type whatsoever, whether self-propelled or not, and includes a hovercraft and unmanned aerial vehicles; “alien invasive species” means any species whose establishment and spread outside of its natural distribution range- (a) threaten ecosystems, habitats or other species or have demonstrable potential to threaten ecosystems, habitats or other species; and (b) may result in economic or environmental harm, including harm to biodiversity, ecosystems and wildlife or harm to human health; “animal” includes any vertebrate or invertebrate animal and micro-organisms and the eggs, larvae and young thereof; “authorization” means a permit, license, quota, registration, approval, permission or exemption which is required, issued or granted under this Act or which was granted or issued under any law repealed by this Act; “biological diversity or biodiversity” means the variability