To further improve its monitoring and management of compliance

ANAO Report No.3 2015–16 Regulation of Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Permits and Approvals 21 high-level risk assessment of permitted activities in the Marine Park, which was prepared by GBRMPA in 2014, indicated that existing controls primarily permit conditions, deeds and bonds, intelligence gathering and analysis, patrols, and other monitoring activities are generally insufficient to detect non-compliance with permit conditions. The permit compliance management plan, to be introduced in 2015–16, is expected to rate the potential risks to the Marine Park environment from permitted activities, taking into account the risks of non-compliance, and identify a range of additional treatments to mitigate unacceptable risks. Managing Compliance Chapter 6

32. GBRMPA’s monitoring of permit holders’ compliance with

post-approval reporting requirements established for issued permits has been mixed. While GBRMPA effectively monitors the executionlodgement of deeds and bonds 21 , it has not generally monitored the receipt, nor effectively documented its assessmentapproval of, most other post-approval reporting documentation that permit holders are required to submit. For example, GBRMPA retained evidence of the receipt of 18 of 63 required documents relating to 27 permits, with evidence of assessmentapproval retained in relation to only eight documents.

33. A risk-based supplementary monitoring program is also an important

component of effective permit compliance arrangements, as patrols under the Joint Field Management Program are not well-suited to observe compliance or detect non-compliance with some permit conditions or for some permit types, including the condition of sub-surface infrastructure such as jetties, pontoons and pipelines. The conduct of supplementary monitoring has, however, been limited and not underpinned by an appropriate risk-based approach. While GBRMPA effectively monitors the commencement of permitted tourism operations and the impending expiry of permits 22 , it did not initiate or conduct monitoring activities, on a risk basis, for 104 permits 89.7 per cent examined 21 GBRMPA executed 40 of 42 deeds and oversaw the submission of all 15 bonds related to the permits examined by the ANAO. 22 GBRMPA examines its other data holdings to determine whether tourism permit holders commenced operations within the established timeframe usually two years unless an extension is granted. In advance of the expiry of permits, GBRMPA issues reminders to permit holders to submit another permit application if they wish to continue to conduct the permitted activities. ANAO Report No.3 2015–16 Regulation of Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Permits and Approvals 22 by the ANAO over the period from July 2012 to July 2014. 23 Further, there were shortcomings in GBRMPA’s delivery and documentation of some of the activities that were undertaken.

34. Overall, permit monitoring undertaken by GBRMPA has been

insufficient to determine permit holders’ compliance with permit conditions. Improved monitoring of permit holders’ compliance with post-approval reporting requirements and the establishment of a risk-based program of supplementary monitoring would better position GBRMPA to manage the risks posed to the Marine Park by permitted activities. Responding to Non-compliance Chapter 7

35. While GBRMPA is working to develop revised compliance policy,

strategy and guidance documentation, the material developed to date is generally in draft form and does not address all fundamental regulatory requirements. GBRMPA should improve compliance and enforcement guidance materials to better assist staff to effectively respond to non-compliance in a consistent and timely manner.

36. The EAP Section is well-positioned to identify non-compliance with

permit conditions, particularly in relation to post-approval reporting requirements. However, many instances of non-compliance that were evident from permit monitoring activities undertaken by the EAP Section were not reported to the FMCU and, as a result, were not recorded in the Compliance Management Information System CMIS to enable analysis and assessment for potential enforcement action. 24 The implementation of new processes for 2014–15 to record potential permit holder non-compliance with post-approval reporting requirements will better position GBRMPA to take timely and appropriate enforcement action.

37. GBRMPA’s CMIS database indicates that 59 of the 76 permit-related

non-compliance incidents identified over the period July 2012 to June 2014 were investigated. However, the reasons for deciding whether to investigate 23 The supplementary monitoring undertaken was limited to nine of the 27 facilityworksstructure and mooring permits and two of the 70 tourism-related permits in relation to ecotourism certification considerations. 24 Of the 81 instances of non-compliance detected by the ANAO over the period from July 2012 to September 2014 from an examination of GBRMPA records relating to 32 of the 185 permits examined, only 18 instances 22.2 per cent relating to one permit had been recorded as non-compliance incidents in CMIS.