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Any trade in Australian species must follow CITES (an international agreement that protects endangered plants and animals) and Australia’s EPBC Act (the national environment law). Trade must be legal, sustainable and traceable.
The Australian Wildlife Traceability System (AWTS) is a secure digital traceability platform. It helps authorities track CITES-listed species through the supply chain and confirm where they came from and where they are going.
AWTS enables businesses to prove the origin of traded wildlife. Turning record keeping into a demonstration of stewardship.
AWTS – A world first coral traceability solution
AWTS has been designed with government, industry, scientists to make it easier to see what happens at each step of the supply chain. The platform will:
- support transparency and increased oversight of coral trade
- track and trace specimens through the supply chain
- provide confidence and assurance to domestic and international markets
- support compliance with Australian and international trade requirements
How AWTS works
AWTS uses secure tagging technology to give each coral a unique digital ID. This ID lets people track and check each coral. When they scan it, fishers, researchers, regulators and wholesale customers can:
- check where the coral came from
- tell wild coral apart from coral grown in land-based farms (aquaculture)
- follow the coral through a trusted supply chain
The system makes it easier to keep records, prepare export documents and meet CITES requirements.
Why coral traceability matters
CITES is an international agreement that helps to protect corals and other wild species, to make sure trade is not harm wild populations. Before coral can be sold overseas, countries must show that it was collected legally, managed sustainably and has the right paperwork.
AWTS helps meet these requirements by creating a digital record for every coral. The record stays with the coral as it moves through the supply chain, so it is easier to see where it came from and who owns it.
Supporting legal, sustainable and traceable coral trade
Australia is committed to making sure wildlife trade is sustainable and follows national and international rules. AWTS supports this by helping confirm that coral was either collected legally from the wild or produced by approved captive breeding operations which can reproduce, fragment and grow coral, rather than collecting it from the wild.
The system provides reliable evidence for CITES requirements. It also encourages responsible trade across the aquarium industry.
AWTS development
AWTS was developed with OriginsNext, and is an Australian-built platform. It was funded by the Australian Government’s Reef Trust.
