Right: horror on live television: Australian surfer Mick Fanning attacked while competing in a South African competition.
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Arguments in favour of shark nets being used along the northern New South Wales coast
1. There is public concern in northern New South Wales regarding the possibility of injury or death from shark attack
There were 36 unprovoked shark bites recorded in Australia in 2015 and 2016, three of them - one in Ballina and two in Western Australia - were fatal. In 2015 and 2016 there were (including the fatal attack in Ballina) 27 shark encounters along the New South Wales coast, ranging from involvements as harmless as a 71 year old man being knocked off a surf ski through to serious injury and the one fatality. Concern is particularly acute along the northern New South Wales coast, where there have been 13 shark attacks on humans in the past two years, one, as noted, fatal.
This spate of attacks in the Ballina-Byron Bay area has provoked acute community concern. One resident whose daughter recently lost the use of her thumb after a shark attack has commented, 'Places like this, until two years ago, were always really happy places - if there was swell everyone's got a big smile on their face. Now there's lots of children around the area that aren't surfing anymore because of the stress and the anxiety that they're feeling.'
One woman, who moved with her husband into the area in 2014, has stated, 'It's actually terrifying. You're just on tenterhooks and you're really, really nervous. Before, I wouldn't have any problems with him [her husband] going surfing for three or four hours. But now I'm like, "an hour, thanks, that'll do." It's too much.'
The resident went on to note, 'It is the pinnacle of the Australian lifestyle. For us, that's our life. I've got three sons and we're at the beach at eight o'clock in the morning, sometimes we're at the beach three times a day.
Now it's become a dangerous sport, which is so weird because it's always been such a free way, such a way of self-expression, of enjoying life, just, you know, living in the sun and the ocean. Hopefully, the government's going to do as much as they can to protect us.'
Mr Richard Beckers, a surf shop owner in Ballina, who had a friend and employee attacked by a shark in 2015, has stated, '99 per cent of Ballina residents want nets and other mitigation strategies. Everyone knows someone that's been attacked, so it's a personal thing. When it affects you personally, it's significant.'
Another local surfer has explained the effect the attacks have had on the whole community. He has stated, 'It's not just the people who are attacked. It's the community who are trying to enjoy their lives, the families, the paramedics, the cops, everybody is impacted. Some of these guys are trained for this sort of thing and have to take time off because it's just too gruesome to have to deal with it.'
Some critics have argued that where human lives are put at risk, they should take precedence over animal life.
Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott has stated, 'I don't know why we don't have a commercial shark fishery up there because, frankly, if it's a choice between people and animals, I'm on the side of the people every time.'
2. Shark nets have proved an effective means of protecting beaches from sharks
Defenders of shark nets point to their apparent success in New South Wales and other areas. The use of shark nets and drum lines along the Queensland coast is generally claimed to have been effective. In a background and opinion piece published in the Australian on December 5, 2015, Fred Pawle stated, 'Every popular beach all the way to Cairns has either nets or drumlines, or both. (Nets, which are 150m-200m long and 6m deep with a 500mm mesh, do not enclose a beach; rather, they trap any large marine creatures that happen to swim through them. Drumlines are large baited hooks suspended from a buoy. Both nets and drumlines are checked every few days by contractors.) In 54 years, there has been only one fatal attack at a protected beach in Queensland.'
Referring to the situation in some other coastal regions in New South Wales, Pawle notes, 'Nets were installed in Sydney in 1936, and later extended to beaches off Wollongong and Newcastle. New South Wales too has only ever had one fatality at a protected beach.'
The New South Wales department of Primary Industries offered similar data as a justification for the decision to trial nets along the northern New South Wales coast. Its Internet site states, 'There has been only one fatality at a netted beach between Newcastle and Wollongong in the last 70 years. The frequency of shark interactions with people dropped considerably after nets were installed around Sydney and in Queensland - compared to what it had been previously.'
The effectiveness of shark nets is supported by Professor Vic Peddemors, shark ecologist with the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries. Professor Peddemors has stated, 'I can definitely put my hand on my heart, I can say that I believe that shark nets work, and I believe you are a lot safer on a netted beach, not only because of the nets, but also because they are at patrolled beaches.'
The CSIRO has explained the manner in which shark nets works as a protection against shark attacks. The CSIRO Internet site states, 'In New South Wales, shark nets are set on 51 beaches spanning 200 kilometres of coastline.
The nets are 150 metres in length, 6m high and are set in 10-12m of water approx 500m from, and parallel to, the shore. In general one to two nets may be set at each beach.
Shark nets are most effective at reducing the abundance of resident sharks as these sharks have a higher chance of encountering the net over time.
They do not prevent sharks from entering or leaving the beach; they operate by entangling sharks that swim into them by chance.'
Supporters of shark nets in northern New South Wales have used the nets' apparent success along other coastal regions to argue for their extension. Former Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, has stated, 'I'm lucky to surf at Sydney beaches and the beaches in Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong since the 1940s have been protected by mesh. If it's good enough for Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong, I don't know why it's not good enough for the New South Wales north coast.''
Queensland premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, has noted that the shark nets employed along the Queensland coast have proved more effective than the protection methods offered those in northern new South Wales.
Ms Palaszczuk has stated, 'We have proven that since the 1960s, there has only been one shark fatality and that was off Amity point.
But our beaches have been protected extensively because of the use of shark nets and drumlines. I'm more than happy to work with Mike Baird. We can extend them down to NSW, and I'm very happy to offer this assistance to the Premier.'
3. The increase in shark attacks has been detrimental to the economies of northern New South Wales coastal towns
The impact of shark attacks on the economies of coastal communities can be very damaging. Coastal communities rely heavily on tourist- and recreation-based industries. Access to the ocean is a primary element in these industries. Boat sale and hire, aquatic equipment, accommodation, cafes, restaurants and gift shops all depend on people who come to the region to recreate.
In an opinion piece published in The daily Telegraph on August 13, 2015, Laura Banks claimed, 'Tourism is slowing. The people are not coming. Surfers are not surfing. If this continues into summer, the seaside towns of Lennox Head and Evans Head, even Ballina, will be no more.'
Richard Beckers, a surf shop owner in Ballina, has noted that when a former employee of his was injured through a shark attack in 2015, the shop's takings were reduced by about $200,000. He notes that surf accessories, which account for 30 per cent of his sales, dropped 90 per cent. Sales of body boards - a popular Christmas present - dropped from 200 to 20. For each of the past 18 months he has recorded lower sales than the previous corresponding month.
David Loosemore who owns a resort at Shelly beach has noted a similar impact. He has stated, 'There's a massive downturn. Parents don't want to send their children to an area where there's sharks. You've got a large group of people that don't come to the area any more. It's had a big turn for the whole community, not just me. It has a social impact as well. It affects the community all the way through.'
An attack at Shelly Beach in October led to a rush of cancellations at the Grandview Apartments in Ballina. The final week of the October school holidays, traditionally one of the busiest times of the year, was down 80 per cent.
Grandview manager Peter Campbell has claimed that about 20 apartments were usually let to tourists, but only three or four were occupied after the attack.
Mr Campbell stated, 'People aren't looking here ðbecause they are concerned, and there have been multiple cancellations, particularly after the last shark attack. Most of the ones who turn up ask if it's safe to swim. Something that would resolve this would be an ocean pool ... they keep talking about nets but they are still not there and people aren't booking.'
In September, 2015, Neil Kennedy of the Lennox Chamber of Commerce stated, 'The school holidays, the caravan parks are full. What we definitely don't want is for a perception that people shouldn't come here because of danger.'
4. Other forms of shark protection have not proved effective
Several of the personalised forms of shark protection available to swimmers and surfers have been judged ineffective.
Shark Shield is the only electrical repellent on the market that has been independently shown to be effective at deterring sharks from biting. The electrical field is created by a two-metre cord that trails behind the user. For divers and swimmers, the device is wrapped around the ankle, while for surfers and kayaks there's a different model that requires installation directly onto a board.
The most recent study of the device by scientists at the University of Western Australia (UWA) found it prevented great whites and tiger sharks from attacking most of the time, but it was not always effective. An earlier study by the South Australian Research and Development Institute also found the device was effective in deterring great whites, but noted it did not 'deter or repel this species in all situations, nor did it repel all individuals'.
Though there have been no independent studies on the effectiveness of magnetic shark repellent devices, research into using magnets to repel sharks from commercial fishing lines has generally been inconclusive as to their effectiveness.
Sprays intended to deter shark have generally been considered impractical as their potential effectiveness is dependent on the human being fearful of attack being in a position to use them and even then their effectiveness is uncertain.
In January 2016 Choice magazine gave the following advice regarding personal shark repellents, 'Be aware of their limitations - many devices haven't undergone independent testing, and no device will protect you in all circumstances.'
There are also concerns about the effectiveness of large-scale deterrent devices, such as sonic emitters, which have been suggested as ways of reducing shark risks over large areas.
A review prepared for the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries and released in October, 2015, has concluded 'Although most of the shark deterrents that operate at large-scales have potential for whole-of-beach protection we consider that they require further refinement before short-listing for potential trial at New South Wales beaches.'
In 2015 the New South Wales government introduced a $16 million shark strategy which dismissed the option of netting on north coast beaches in favour of surveillance, tagging, smart drum lines, drones and listening stations.
A number of commentators have been critical of the initiatives. Reporter and commentator for The Australian, Fred Pawle, has stated, 'Most of this year was spent implementing various aspects of the government's much-flaunted $16 million shark mitigation strategy. Attempts to install barrier nets to enclose sections of Lennox and Lighthouse beach were abandoned, as surfers predicted they would be, when it became apparent they could not withstand even moderate ocean swells.'
Pawle further noted, 'The Department of Primary Industries has hooked more than 60 great white sharks, mostly off Ballina, using smart drumlines. The drumline alerts a crew, who then rush out to insert an acoustic tag either into its fin or surgically into its belly.' Pawle then reported that when he personally sought information about the whereabouts of a tagged shark, none was supplied. As one of the purposes of tagging is to supply information to beachgoers about the location of sharks, Pawle was sceptical about the effectiveness of the program.
There has also been criticism of the shark spotting program which has volunteers sitting on elevated towers looking for sharks. Lennox Head Surf Life Saving Club president, Geoff Harris, has expressed doubts, stating, 'I don't care how good these shark spotters are, they are not going to see anything in that water. Sharks are not surface swimmers.'
5. Care is being taken to reduce the ecological impact of the newly installed shark nets
The New South Wales Department of primary Industries has taken steps to ensure that the ecological impact of the shark nets installed on northern New South Wales beaches will be kept as low as possible.
The Department has stated, 'Nets will be fitted with whale alarms and dolphin pingers to deter marine mammals. While the Sydney nets are checked at least once every 72 hours, it is proposed that more frequent checking will be done for the North Coast trial. The exact regime will be informed by community feedback. It is also proposed to trial the use of SMART automatic alert devices so that a meshing contractor can be notified and respond quickly to release any trapped animals.'
The Department is aware of the fact that different species will be affected differently, however, it is doing all it can to assist those species it can. It has stated, 'Deterrent devices will be used to deter dolphins from the immediate area of the net. However, if dolphins or green turtles are inadvertently caught, it is unlikely they would survive for more than 30 minutes. Loggerhead and Leatherback turtles are likely to be able to survive for considerably longer than this.
The trial will start in December 2016 and run for six months. This period will avoid most of the whale migration time.'
With regard to particular shark species, the Department has noted, 'It is possible that some Grey Nurse Sharks might be entangled during the course of the trial. These sharks generally have a relatively good survival rate in the Sydney meshing program and can usually be released alive.
Whenever safe and practical to do so, potentially dangerous White, Bull and Tiger sharks will be relocated further out to sea before being released.
The DPI will trial running the nets together with SMART drumlines which allow captured sharks to be tagged, relocated and released.'
The Department has also indicated that the trial will be conducted with a view to discovering potential ecological impact and that this will be one of the factors that will determine whether the use of nets continues.
The Department has stated, 'Two types of information will be used to evaluate the trial. First, how effective are the nets at catching target sharks with minimal impact on other marine animals. Second, how acceptable the approach is to the community in terms of reducing risk of shark bites.'