Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996

109 Offences

• (1) Every person commits an offence against this Act who—

  • (a) Manufactures any hazardous substance in contravention of this Act; or

  • (aa) imports, manufactures, uses, or stores a persistent organic pollutant in contravention of this Act; or.

  • (b) Develops or field tests a new organism in contravention of this Act; or

  • (c) Knowingly imports or releases a new organism in contravention of this Act; or

  • (d) Knowingly, recklessly, or negligently—

    • (i) Manufactures, imports, develops, uses, or disposes of any hazardous substance or new organism where any approval is suspended in accordance with section 64 of this Act:

    • (ii) Possesses or disposes of any hazardous substance or new organism imported, manufactured, developed, or released in contravention of this Act; or

  • (e) Fails to comply with—

    • (i) Any controls imposed by any approval granted under this Act; or

    • (ii) Any controls specified in any regulations; or

    • (iii) Any requirement to obtain a test certificate specified in any regulations; or

  • (ea) fails to comply with a condition on a licence or permission granted under section 95A or section 95B; or

  • (eb) fails to comply with a condition imposed under section 96B(1)(b) on an identified group of hazardous substances; or

  • (f) Fails to comply with any compliance order served under section 107 of this Act; or

  • (g) Fails to comply with any of the requirements of section 124 of this Act; or

  • (h) Fails without any lawful justification or excuse to obtain any transferable permit when required to do so by any Order in Council in force under this Act; or

  • (i) Being a manufacturer, developer, or importer of any hazardous substance or new organism knowingly fails to report any significant new information of any adverse effect of that hazardous substance or new organism; or

  • (j) Knowingly personates any enforcement officer; or

  • (k) Wilfully obstructs any enforcement officer in the course of his or her duties; or

  • (l) Falsely informs a person that an emergency exists where that person knows the information to be false; or

  • (m) Knowingly labels any package or container in such a manner that the label could in an emergency wrongly indicate the presence of hazardous substances to an enforcement officer, fire services officer, or member of the Police.

  (2) Notwithstanding anything in the Summary Proceedings Act 1957, any information in respect of any offence against subsection (1) of this section may be laid by any person at any time within 120 working days after the time when the contravention giving rise to the information first became known, or should have become known, to that person.

  Subsection (1)(aa) was inserted, as from 23 December 2004, by section 12 Hazardous Substances and New Organisms (Stockholm Convention) Amendment Act 2003 (2003 No 37). See clause 2 Hazardous Substances and New Organisms (Stockholm Convention) Amendment Act Commencement Order 2004 (SR 2004/386).

  Subsection (1)(b) was amended, as from 7 May 1999, by section 9 Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Amendment Act 1999 (1999 No 35) by inserting the words “or field tests”.

  Subsection (1)(ea) was inserted, as from 24 March 2004, by section 7 Hazardous Substances and New Organisms (Transitional Provisions and Controls) Amendment Act 2004 (2004 No 7).

  Subsection (1)(eb) was inserted, as from 22 December 2005, by section 29 Hazardous Substances and New Organisms (Approvals and Enforcement) Amendment Act 2005 (2005 No 123).