The Western Australian Organism List (WAOL) database allows you to search for organisms declared under the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007 (BAM Act). It is not a complete list of all organisms in Western Australia or their attributes. Use the database to find the legal status of organisms, control requirements, declared pest species and more.
You can search scientific name, common name, phylum, class, order or family name.
BAM Act Definitions
Legal status
Each listed organism is declared under the Biosecurity Management act with certain legal requirements:
Declared Pest, Prohibited - s12
Prohibited organisms are declared pests by virtue of section 22(1), and may only be imported and kept subject to permits. Permit conditions applicable to some species may only be appropriate or available to research organisations or similarly secure institutions.
Permitted - s11
Permitted organisms must satisfy any applicable import requirements when imported. They may be subject to an import permit if they are potential carriers of high-risk organisms.
Declared Pest - s22(2)
Declared pests must satisfy any applicable import requirements when imported, and may be subject to an import permit if they are potential carriers of high-risk organisms. They may also be subject to control and keeping requirements once within Western Australia.
Permitted, Requires Permit - r73
Regulation 73 permitted organisms may only be imported subject to an import permit. These organisms may be subject to restriction under legislation other than the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007. Permit conditions applicable to some species may only be appropriate or available to research organisations or similarly secure institutions.
Unlisted - s14
If you are considering importing an unlisted organism/s you will need to submit the name/s for assessment, as unlisted organisms are automatically prohibited entry into WA.
Control categories
Declared pests can be assigned to a C1, C2 or C3 control category under the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Regulations 2013. Prohibited organisms can be assigned to a C1 or C2 control category, the control categories are:
C1 Exclusion
Organisms which should be excluded from part or all of Western Australia.
C2 Eradication
Organisms which should be eradicated from part or all of Western Australia.
C3 Management
Organisms that should have some form of management applied that will alleviate the harmful impact of the organism, reduce the numbers or distribution of the organism or prevent or contain the spread of the organism.
Unassigned
Unassigned: Declared pests that are recognised as having a harmful impact under certain circumstances, where their subsequent control requirements are determined by a Plan or other legislative arrangements under the Act.
Keeping categories
The Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Regulations 2013 (BAM Regs) specify prohibited and restricted keeping categories for the purposes of regulating organisms declared under the BAM Act. In regards to the purposes for which they can be kept, and the entities that can keep them for that purpose. A keeping permit is the administrative tool used to assign specific conditions to the keeping of an organism.
Prohibited keeping
Can only be kept under a permit for public display and education purposes, and/or genuine scientific research, by entities approved by the state authority.
Restricted keeping
Organisms which, relative to other species, have a low risk of becoming a problem for the environment, primary industry or public safety and can be kept under a permit by private individuals.
Exempt keeping
No permit or conditions are required for keeping. There may be other requirements under BAMA such as those required for entry of livestock, pigeons and doves, or waybill requirements for stock movement. An organism in the exempt keeping category may also be regulated by other legislation such as the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950 (WCA), administered by DPaW.
