Pursuant to section 26 of the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996 (“Act”), the Environmental Protection Authority hereby determines that vertebrate (phylum Chordata; subphylum Vertebrata) organisms that do not otherwise meet the definitions of ‘new organism’ in section 2A of the Act, specifically, organisms that:

• were present in New Zealand immediately before 29 July 1998;
• have not been prescribed as risk species;
• have not been approved to be held in containment or released with controls;
• have not previously been genetically modified;
• are not members of species that have been eradicated from New Zealand;
• are not named in Schedule 2 of the Act;
• are not unwanted organisms as defined in section 2 of the Biosecurity Act 1993;

and that are treated in vivo with the replication-defective recombinant adeno-associated viral vectors of the genus Dependoparvovirus are not new organisms for the purpose of the Act.

Dated at Wellington this 16th day of February 2018.

Dr KERRY LAING, Chair, Decision-making Committee of the Authority.