Despite unanimous political support for the removal of the shark netting program across the Central Coast, tenders have been issued by the Department of Primary Industry.
Marine Wildlife Rescue Central Coast coordinator Ronny Ling was shocked after he was contacted by a friend who informed him of tenders being issued.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Ling said.
“We’re dealing with the most incredibly dangerous creatures on the planet, politicians and bureaucrats”
In an interview on ABC radio this week Minister for the Central Coast David Harris said he only found out about the issuing of tenders on Wednesday.
He went on to say that he immediately contacted the Minister responsible for the Department of Primary Industries Tara Moriarty who replied by saying no final decision had been made about the installation of nets this summer.
Harris told CCN that targeted consultation is being undertaken to coincide with the tender release to provide a fresh opportunity for the eight councils with nets to provide their position on shark nets, as well as other shark mitigation measures.
Councils were sent consultation packs on July 7, following an email on 30 June advising them of Shark Mesh Program tenders and further consultation which invites them to nominate their preferred shark mitigation options for their LGA.
Feedback received through the consultation process will be considered and inform the development of the 2023/24 Shark Management Program.
Harris reiterated his commitment to get rid of shark nets on the Central Coast.
However, Member for Terrigal Adam Crouch said he had contacted Minister Moriarty’s office as far back as May to encourage her to enact new smart drum line technologies to replace the shark nets from being installed.
“I got a non-response response from the Minister on the 14th of June, not committing to funding drum lines for Central Coast Council,” he said.
Crouch went on to say that budget allocations for so-called smart drum lines had been given to the DPI to fund the Council to carry out the installation.
The shark net program has been heavily criticised for being both ineffective and indiscriminately killing other marine wildlife including dolphins, turtles, seals and smaller sharks.
In June the Department of Primary Industry released data it had collected from contractors about the b-catch.
In the data 11 leatherback turtles were reported as having been killed.
The 2023/2024 Shark Management Program will be announced in September ahead of the annual season.
David Abrahams
Why on earth would Adam Crouch want drum lines installed when they are known to kill rays, turtles and dolphins and do little to protect swimmers from sharks?
An article in Australian Marine Conservation Society website quoted Dr Leonardo Guida, shark scientist at the society as saying: “The only guarantee we have from these nets is the drowning of iconic wildlife like dolphins and turtles. For over 80 years in NSW, tens of thousands of animals have drowned at netted beaches.”
It also quoted a marine biologist with Humane Society International as saying: “Shark nets are a relic of the past having been introduced in the 1930s when little was known about shark behaviour and their importance in the ecosystem. The truth is shark nets don’t make swimmers safer and they take a terrible toll on marine life—costing the lives of turtles, dolphins, sharks and rays. It is high time the NSW Government consigns shark nets to the history books where they belong.”
So on what grounds is local Lib MP Crouch calling for a return to an outdated, unscientific practice from the last century? As a journalist I wrote about outcries about dolphin deaths in shark netting in South Africa in the 1980s!
The biggest killer is entanglement with the nets, replace the nets with galvanized or stainless steel nets like concrete steel mesh hung from boys, this allows fish movement, boats to cross and depending on mesh size 300 m/m recommended eliminates shark and whales’ movement thru it. no more entanglement and safe for swimmers and reduced inspection required