Supplement 5: Restricted Access Species Data Metadata Statement Template
(Version 8/12/2022)
The intent of the Restricted Access Species Data Framework is to encourage the maximum possible sharing of restricted data under the auspices of a negotiated legal agreement. However, in certain circumstances such as before a dataset is made public, or (in some cases) shared with an approved user, the data may need to be transformed to protect or remove RASD. The following explains why an individual record may be restricted, what the treatment method is for that category and what metadata are required.
It is important to note that RASD classifications and treatments may be relevant to only a certain geographic area e.g. a state or territory and, as such, a treatment may only be required to be applied to data within that area or to a dataset e.g. where a third-party Restricted Access Species List (RASL) applies to a particular dataset only. In addition, some records / datasets may require more than one of the treatments outlined in the Table below. This is particularly true in the case of data requiring geographic obfuscation, where generalising the collection date and collector (for example) as well as obfuscating the geo-locality will prevent reverse engineering of the location from associated points. In these cases, the dataset metadata / row-level metadata (attribute metadata) should reflect this.
The reasons outlined below for restricting access to species data are intended to be descriptive rather than exhaustive, and so are not aligned with reasons for listing species as threatened under international conventions nor Commonwealth or State and Territory legislation. Not all restricted access species are listed as threatened nor are all threatened species considered restricted access species.
NB: Currently state and territory sensitive species categories do not align directly with the restricted access reasons in this Table. A national effort is needed to align restricted access terminology and classifications for species records.
Text in bold (e.g. [XX]) is intended to be replaced by the data custodian when clause is in use.
Table: Restricted Access Treatments and Metadata
| Sensitivity Reason | Treatment | Metadata* | RASD Restriction Type(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Species under extreme risk of exploitation / harm | Withhold records of species | Dataset Metadata: Records may have been withheld for [XX] species at [XX] level (resolution at which the policy is being applied e.g. jurisdiction) | Location data |
| Dataset contains information about species regarding their habitat or physical attributes which could result in exploitation or increased risk to populations e.g. nesting sites, reproductive status etc. | Remove the dataset attribute containing the sensitive information for this species | Dataset Metadata: The attribute [XX] has been removed from this dataset as it contains potentially sensitive information regarding a species | Attribute data |
| Species for which the release of precise locations would subject it to a high risk of exploitation and disturbance | Location coordinates for records of this obfuscated to 1 decimal place AND Ensure that locality information is removed |
Row-Level Metadata: coordinates generalised to 1 decimal place and location information removed for sensitivity reasons AND (in the case of where a whole dataset contains these species) Dataset Metadata: All coordinates have been generalised to 1 decimal place and location information removed for sensitivity reasons |
Location data |
| Species for which the release of precise locations could subject it to a moderate risk of exploitation or disturbance | Location coordinates obfuscated to 2 decimal places AND Ensure that locality information is removed. |
Row-Level Metadata: coordinates generalised to 2 decimal places and location information removed for sensitivity reasons AND (in the case of where a whole dataset contains these species) Dataset Metadata: All coordinates have been generalised to 2 decimal places and location information generalised for sensitivity reasons |
Location data |
| Record contains information regarding the management of species that the land manager considers mildly sensitive e.g. pest control on private property | Location coordinates obfuscated to 2 decimal places AND Ensure that locality information is removed AND Attribute information removed where it pertains to a sensitive activity |
Row-Level Metadata: coordinates generalised to 2 decimal places and location information removed for sensitivity reasons AND (in the case of where a whole dataset contains these species) Dataset Metadata: All coordinates have been generalised to 2 decimal places and location information removed for sensitivity reasons |
Location data and / or Attribute data |
| Record contains species information that the landholder or land manager considers sensitive from a privacy perspective | Location coordinates for records of this obfuscated to 1 decimal place AND Ensure that locality information is removed |
Row-Level Metadata: coordinates generalised to 1 decimal place and location information removed for sensitivity reasons AND (in the case of where a whole dataset contains these species) Dataset Metadata: All coordinates have been generalised to 1 decimal place and location information removed for sensitivity reasons |
Location data |
| Dataset contains personal identifiable information e.g. names of individuals or any personal identifiers | Remove the dataset attribute containing the personal identifiable information | Dataset Metadata: The attribute [XX] has been removed from this dataset as it contains personal identifiable information | Personal identifiable information |
| Species at a high to moderate risk of exploitation that have been recorded as part of a survey where a survey identifier can be resolved to a precise locality | For datasets which contain multiple surveys: remove survey identifier from the record AND Obfuscate location coordinates to 1 (high risk) – 2 (moderate risk) decimal places dependent if moderate or high risk AND Ensure that locality information is removed For datasets which include only an individual survey: Withhold records for the species of high to moderate risk |
Row-Level Metadata: coordinates generalised to 1 (high risk) or 2 (moderate risk) decimal places and location information removed for sensitivity reasons AND (in the case of where a whole dataset is for an individual survey) Dataset Metadata: Some records have been withheld from this dataset for sensitivity reasons |
Location data / attribute data |
| Data contains records of declared biosecurity species outside of exclusion zones e.g. fruit fly location recorded inaccurately | Withhold records of species | Dataset Metadata: Records withheld for biosecurity reasons | Identification data |
| Data contains declared biosecurity species which may be of concern to biosecurity or trade e.g. a species of concern recorded as a quarantine intercept | Withhold records of species | Dataset Metadata: Records withheld for biosecurity reasons | Identification data |
| Data contains potentially culturally sensitive information relating to species | Pending national consultation with first nations people | Pending national consultation with first nations people | Indigenous data |
* Where possible, it is desirable to represent obfuscated records as polygons rather than points e.g. a 0.01 x 0.01 degree square or a 0.1 x 0.1 degree square with the centroid defined