Invasive Species Resources

Amendments to an international treaty aimed at preventing the spread of potentially invasive species in ships' ballast water entered into force on 13 October 2019. The International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments, 2004 (the BWM Convention) was adopted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), a specialized agency of the United Nations, to address this problem. The BWM Convention entered into force in 2017. The amendments formalise an implementation schedule to ensure ships manage their ballast water to meet a specified standard ("D-2 standard") aimed at ensuring that viable organisms are not released into new sea areas, and make mandatory the Code for Approval of Ballast Water Management Systems, which sets out how ballast water management systems used to achieve the D-2 standard have to be assessed and approved. This will help ensure that aquatic organisms and pathogens are removed or rendered harmless before the ballast water is released into a new location – and avoid the spread of invasive species as well as potentially harmful pathogens.

Important changes to Australia's Biosecurity System came into effect on 16 June 2016 with commencement of the Biosecurity Act 2015. The Biosecurity Act replaced the Quarantine Act 1908 and is designed to be flexible and responsive to changes in technology and future challenges. The Biosecurity Act sets up new requirements and regulatory powers that will affect how the department manages the biosecurity risks associated with goods, people and conveyances entering Australia.

AMS enforces interstate commerce provisions of the Federal Seed Act (FSA) and provides seed testing service under the Agricultural Marketing Act. The FSA regulates the interstate shipment of agricultural and vegetable seeds. Includes the State Noxious-Weed Seed Requirements Recognized in the Administration of the Federal Seed Act (2020; PDF | 2.1 MB). This annually updated publication contains information about the various State labeling requirements and prohibitions of noxious-weed seeds and shows the scientific names and common names according to the law and regulations of the particular State in which the seed is noxious (by State and Appendices - common and scientific name cross-referenced).
See also: Items of Interest in Seed Control (publication for seed control officials and seed companies).

Includes information for Mexican Fruit Fly, Mediterranean Fruit Fly, and Oriental Fruit Fly