Coastal councils in New South Wales may soon be able to decide whether they want to use nets to mitigate the risk of shark attacks at local beaches.
Agriculture Minister Dugald Saunders confirmed the plan was being discussed as part of a wider and ongoing review of the state's existing shark meshing program at 51 beaches between Wollongong and Newcastle.
"At some point, it will be a discussion with local councils about what they want to do for their local communities around a meshing program, a drum-line program, a bit of both, or how they want to do things," Mr Saunders said.
"That movement towards council's having the ability to make that decision is a good one."
Threatened species entangled
The plan comes after the Department of Primary Industries (DPI) released its annual report last week that detailed the performance of the nets.
The report revealed of the 376 animals entangled, 203 were threatened or protected species and only 51 were the targeted shark species. Of those animals, 234 were killed, including five critically endangered grey nurse sharks and 14 green turtles.
While eight local councils with shark nets have previously revoked their support for the program, Mr Saunders said it was too soon to remove the nets altogether.
"If a shark net was removed and suddenly a fatality occurred, what do you think public reaction would be then?
"We are actively engaging in all the new technology to make sure that if and when those meshing programs stop, we have the technology and the ability to track meaningfully and trap sharks in a far better way.
"We'll work with councils as we get closer to the heavier swimming seasons and talk about the wants that they have but I think a mix of everything at this stage is what people are pretty happy with."
'We can do better'
Wollongong's Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery said it was time for the nets to go.
"The marine environment is so fragile, and we need to protect it.
"We can do better than this sort of approach."
According to the data, 44 southern eagle rays, 11 hammerhead sharks and 15 bronze whalers were among the bycatch stuck in the nets of the Illawarra coastline.
Twelve of the target shark species were detected.
The report also revealed a net at Coledale that was dislodged and washed out to sea during rough swells in March was never found.
"It's a clumsy and almost crass way of dealing with problem when we've got more sophisticated ways of protecting those who use the ocean," Mr Bradbery said.
A total of 13 shark interactions were reported and investigated in NSW waters during 2021-22, including two fatal attacks.
The only reported interaction at a meshed beach was a surfer who was uninjured when bumped by an unidentified shark at Maroubra Beach in March this year.
'Static fishing devices'
Marine conservation groups have argued the nets can no longer be justified.
"It's as clear as day that this program is just a blunt instrument and really not doing what it is intended to," Humane Society International marine biologist Lawrence Chlebeck said.
"These nets are static fishing devices.
"They don't reach from the bottom to the top of the water, they're not spanning from headland to headland, they're not a barrier to the sea."
Ms Chlebeck applauded the state government for its investment trialling non-lethal technologies including drone surveillance and smart drum lines.
Three hundred of the drum lines, which alert contractors as soon as a shark is captured, have been deployed along the state's coastline.
"DPI has made great progress in a lot of these areas," Mr Chlebeck said.
"It's just going to take that last bit of courage from our ministers that have the decision-making power to make the final step of removing these nets."
