New South Wales Consolidated Acts

NOXIOUS WEEDS ACT 1993 - SECT 31

31 Agricultural machines-spread of noxious weeds into NSW

(1) The purpose of this section is to prevent the spread into New South Wales of notifiable weeds that are prevalent in Queensland.

Note: The principal notifiable weed concerned is parthenium weed.

(2) This section applies to agricultural machines:

(a) that are of a kind declared, by order of the Minister published in the Gazette, to be agricultural machines to which this section applies, and

(b) that have already been used for the purpose for which the machines were manufactured,

being agricultural machines that are brought into New South Wales from Queensland.

(3) The following provisions apply to any agricultural machine to which this section applies:

(a) The Minister is to make arrangements for inspectors to set up places at or near the border of New South Wales and Queensland at which machines may be produced for inspection (being places set up on a regular basis or by special arrangement with a person bringing a machine into New South Wales). The machine is to be brought into New South Wales at that place and produced to an inspector without delay.

(b) A declaration in duplicate must be lodged with an inspector at that place certifying that the machine has been cleaned as required by the regulations (being a declaration signed by the person who cleaned the machine).

(c) An inspector at that place must inspect the machine.

(d) Following that inspection, the inspector is to sign a copy of the declaration and return it to the person in charge of the machine, unless the inspector is not satisfied that the machine has been cleaned as required by the regulations.

(e) If the inspector is not satisfied that the machine has been cleaned as required by the regulations, the machine is not to be moved anywhere in New South Wales, without the approval of an inspector, until the inspector is so satisfied and has signed a copy of a declaration (referred to in paragraph (b)) lodged with the inspector. Until the inspector is so satisfied, the inspector may only approve of the movement of the machine to an appropriate place to be cleaned or for its return to Queensland.

(f) A copy of the declaration signed by the inspector must accompany the machine while it is in New South Wales (but only for the period of 12 months after the machine was last brought into New South Wales).

(4) A person who moves, or permits the movement of, an agricultural machine within New South Wales, knowing that subsection (3) has been contravened in relation to the machine, is guilty of an offence.

Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units.

(5) A person who, for the purposes of this section, lodges a declaration with an inspector that the person knows, or ought reasonably to know, is false or misleading in a material particular is guilty of an offence.

Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units.

(6) An inspector may:

(a) stop and inspect an agricultural machine that the inspector reasonably suspects to have been moved in New South Wales in contravention of subsection (3), and

(b) require any such agricultural machine to be cleaned as required by the regulations under subsection (3) if the inspector reasonably suspects that it contains notifiable weed material.

(7) The person in charge of an agricultural machine that is required under subsection (3) to be accompanied by a copy of a declaration must, on demand by an inspector, produce for inspection the copy of the declaration.

Maximum penalty: 20 penalty units.

(8) In this section, "inspector" includes a border inspector or an authorised officer.