11 July 2023
We invite you to comment on the draft BIRA report by 11 September 2023.
The draft BIRA report is available on our Import for live sturgeon for aquaculture website.
You can submit your comments to the Have Your Say website.
In 2015, the then Australian Government Department of the Environment and Energy added Siberian sturgeon (Acipenser baerii) and beluga sturgeon (Huso huso) to the list of specimens taken to be suitable for live import (live import list) under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act).
Before these species of live sturgeon can be imported into Australia, the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (the department) must also conduct a Biosecurity Import Risk Analysis (BIRA) to ensure the import achieves Australia’s Appropriate Level of Protection (ALOP). On 21 June 2022, the department released a Notice of Intention to conduct a BIRA under the Biosecurity Act 2015 and the Biosecurity Regulation 2016, for the importation of live sturgeon (Acipenser and Huso species) from all countries for aquaculture purposes to Australia (the sturgeon BIRA). This commenced a 30-month timeframe to complete the sturgeon BIRA.
The sturgeon BIRA considered the current scientific information, international standards developed by the World Organisation for Animal Health, advice from international scientific experts, submissions received from stakeholders on the issues paper, relevant industry practices and operational practicalities.
The sturgeon BIRA identified 13 hazards of biosecurity concern for imported live sturgeon and their reproductive material. The department undertook risk assessments for each and proposed measures to manage the biosecurity risks.
The draft BIRA report proposes that Acipenser and Huso species be permitted import into Australia, provided they comply with appropriate biosecurity measures. Because Siberian and beluga sturgeon are currently the only sturgeon species on the live import list, they are the only species permitted for import. Other Acipenser and Huso species may be permitted for import if approved and added to the live import list.
Stakeholders are invited to provide comments on the draft BIRA report by 5pm AEST, 11 September 2023 via Have Your Say. Requests for extensions to the comment period past this date will be considered.
The department will carefully consider all submissions before preparing the provisional BIRA report.
For further inquiries, please contact abra@aff.gov.au.
Dr Peter Finnin
Assistant Secretary
Animal Biosecurity
Email: animalbiosecurity@aff.gov.au