Introduction - Amanda Schaarschmidt, Senior Forest & Wildlife Officer
Hi, I’m Amanda, a Senior Forest and Wildlife Officer at the Conservation Regulator.
The Conservation Regulator oversees the regulation of fire prevention, use of public land, wildlife and biodiversity in Victoria.
In this video, you’ll meet some Authorised Officers and learn what you should do if you encounter or suspect wildlife crime.
But first, let’s hear from Brad about how the Conservation Regulator manages wildlife crime reports.
How the Conservation Regulator manages wildlife and environmental crime reports- Brad Woods, Regulator Program Manager
Thanks Amanda.
The first thing to know is that all native wildlife species in Victoria are protected by law. The Conservation Regulator protects wildlife by identifying, investigating and prosecuting wildlife crimes, in accordance with Victorian legislation.
Some examples of the offences we investigate include;
- cruelty to wildlife
- taking of wildlife from the wild
- destroying or disturbing wildlife without a licence, permit or authority
- the intentional destruction of wildlife habitat; and
- unauthorised people caring for sick, injured or orphaned wildlife without.
When we uncover alleged offences or when offences are reported to us, we triage cases to ensure we are focusing on the most important, high risk and high harm issues.
During an investigation into alleged wildlife crime, there are a range of activities we can undertake such as: desktop assessments using data and mapping tools
- Attend scenes to collect and process evidence
- obtain witness statements
- Request forensic procedures such as necropsies of deceased wildlife
- Obtain and execute search warrants
- Seize evidence such as phones, documents, equipment and wildlife
- Conduct forensic examinations of phones and other digital devices; and
- Conduct records of interviews.
Once an investigation is complete, we will determine a course of action based on the available evidence and the Conservation Regulator’s Compliance and Enforcement framework.
Depending on the seriousness of the offending Authorised Officers can choose to:
- Educate or provide an official warning
- Issue an infringement.
- Compile prosecution brief for matters to be heard by a Magistrate.
- seek other regulatory outcomes like diversion orders, license cancelation
- Or apply for the forfeiture of seized items.
Now that you understand how we operate, let’s take a deeper dive into a case we’ve worked on.
Case Study - “Snatching Dragons” (Theme: Take from the wild)- Peter Simpson – Program Manager, Operations & Investigations
Thanks Brad.
The case I’m going to tell you about today involved a member of public contacting our Customer Contact Centre on 136 186 to report that they had witnessed a person catching and removing water dragons from a National Park.
Under the law, a person must not hunt, take or destroy protected wildlife, so the member of the public was right to report the incident.
Forest and Wildlife Officers gathered a witness statement and used the information to identify the alleged perpetrator.
It’s important to understand that the more information we can collect about an alleged offender, the easier it is for us to find them and take action.
Information like locations, dates, times, photos or videos, vehicle make, model and registration details can help us in finding those involved and prosecuting wildlife crime.
And It’s critical that if you come across a potential crime scene, that you do not disturb the evidence.
This includes removing any deceased animals from the area.
Disturbing the crime scene can compromise our evidence in a criminal investigation leading to us being unable to prosecute the crime.
It is also important not to share any details online as this may jeopardise the investigation or potential outcome.
In the case of the Water Dragons, after identifying the alleged offender, Forest and Wildlife officers executed a search warrant, where they located and seized a number of reptiles, including Eastern Water Dragons.
They then formally interviewed the alleged offender. A brief of evidence was submitted, resulting in the offender being fined and convicted in Court.
This is a great example of how information from an observant and aware member of the public helped stop wildlife crime.
Now that we know how important information from the public can be, let’s have a look at how we educate the community.
Video: Community Education- Megan Hain, Forest & Wildlife Officer
Thanks Pete.
At the conservation Regulator Community education and engagement are key tools we use to help prevent wildlife crime. Some examples where these tools may be used include educating the community on:
- Guidance on how to legally acquire wildlife as a pet and,
- Advice on how to responsibly care for wildlife as a pet
- The use of compliant fruit tree netting and
- The laws around relocating a possum found in a roof.
When it comes to a member of the public breaching the law we find that a lot of the time the offence is being committed through negligence or lack of awareness rather than malicious intent.
In such cases Authorised Officers take the opportunity to educate members of the community about the potential harm their actions could cause to help build a better understanding and appreciation for our environment.
We also educate the community through working with partners such as Wildlife Victoria, Zoos Victoria and the RSCPA to highlight issues, like our recent collaboration tackling non-compliant fruit tree netting. This project aims to educate the community that household fruit tree netting with holes larger than 5mm x 5mm is illegal and can fatally harm wildlife, including the threatened grey-headed flying-fox.
Now that we know about the role of community education and engagement lets hear from Tanya about the licences and permits.
Video: Licences and permits issued by Conservation Regulator- Tanya McGuckian, Program Manager, Regulatory Operations
Thanks Megan.
It’s important to know that if you do want to interact with wildlife in Victoria including to keep, trade, disturb or care for wildlife, you need a licence or permit from the Conservation Regulator.
The Conservation Regulator is responsible for issuing a range of licenses and permits to help protect Victoria’s natural environment and wildlife. These include:
- Licences for keeping and trading wildlife
- Wildlife shelter and foster carer authorisations
- Marine mammal tour permits
- Research permits; and
- Wildlife management and control authorisations.
We have teams across the state who assess permit and licence applications and provide expert advice and education to our permissions holders.
Importantly, Authorised Officers like me also monitor compliance of licences and permit holders by conducting site inspections to ensure regulations are followed and wildlife is protected.
Now that we understand how licencing works lets hear about what you should do if you encounter or suspect wildlife crime.
Video: Encountering wildlife crime- Amanda Schaarschmidt, Senior Forest & Wildlife Officer
As you can see, the public plays an important role in helping keep our wildlife safe through both their behaviour and attitudes and in providing information to help us prosecute offenders.
We encourage you to report all wildlife crime to the Conservation Regulator via Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au.
The Conservation Regulator works in partnership with Crime Stoppers Victoria as a trusted state-wide reporting agency to help us raise public awareness and gather reports of wildlife crime.
Other environmental crimes on public land such as illegal take of timber, rubbish dumping and off-road use of a vehicle, can be reported to the Conservation Regulator on 136 186.
And remember, even a small amount of information can make a big difference in helping solve a case.
Thank you for taking the time to watch this video and for your contribution to safeguarding Victoria’s wildlife.
Text on screen:
For more information visit
www.conservationregulator.vic.gov.au
or call 136 186
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We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the country on which this video was filmed. We pay respect to their elders past and present.
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