Species
Listing - Chapter 4 and 5, Biodiversity Act 10 of 2004
Introduction
The National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act (No 10 of 2004) was signed
into law earlier this year, and entered into effect on 1 September 2004. This
Act provides for the consolidation of biodiversity legislation through establishing
national norms and standards for the management of biodiversity across all sectors
and by different management authorities. The provisions of the Act further seek
to allow regulatory oversight at appropriate levels whilst avoiding unnecessary
duplication of functions. An important aspect of the biodiversity legislation
is to facilitate both conservation and sustainable use of species through management
interventions at species level. The provisions of the Act dealing with species
in need of protection aim to ensure their survival in the wild while regulating
activities, including trade, which may involve such threatened or protected species
and activities which may have a potential impact on their long-term survival.
These provisions however, will only become enforceable when appropriate species
lists have been published in regulations under the Act, a process intended to
be completed by 1 April 2005 by which date the relevant sections of the Act are
set to enter into effect. Message
