Right: a fisherman leaps for his life as a crocodile leaps for a meal on a northern Australian river. The croc missed.
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Background information
The information found below regarding crocodiles, especially in Queensland, has been taken from that supplied by the Queensland Government and is accessible in full at
The information supplied regarding Bob Katter's Safer Waterways Bill, 2017, can be accessed in full at
This is a link to a summary of the Bill. The Bill can be read in its entirety at
Queensland crocodiles
Australia is home to two species of crocodile, the freshwater crocodile (Crocodylus johnstoni), which is found nowhere else in the world, and the estuarine crocodile (Crocodylus porosus). Both species can live in fresh or salt water.
Freshwater crocodiles live in the inland waterways of northern Australia. In Queensland, they are found in the rivers and swamps of Cape York Peninsula, areas bordering the Gulf of Carpentaria and the north-west. East coast populations exist in the upper Herbert River, the Burdekin River catchment and the Ross River. Freshwater crocodiles also live in tidal reaches of some rivers.
Estuarine crocodiles are found in India, throughout South-East Asia and New Guinea, in northern Australia, Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands. In Queensland, they are known to live between Gladstone and Cape York Peninsula, and throughout the Gulf of Carpentaria. Although most commonly seen in tidal reaches of rivers, they also live in freshwater lagoons, rivers, and swamps hundreds of kilometres inland from the coast. They can even be found along beaches and around offshore islands in the Great Barrier Reef and Torres Strait.
People and crocodiles
Traditionally, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have had a special relationship with crocodiles. They are the focus of stories, songs, dances and art. Some groups regard crocodiles as religious icons or totems, while others believe they are spirits of ancestors. Crocodiles are also a food source for some traditional groups who take eggs from nests and hunt adults.
Commercially, crocodiles are now an important resource. Farmed crocodile meat is a gourmet item on many menus around the world, and their skins are recognised as a durable leather that is made into a variety of products. Crocodiles are also a major tourist attraction throughout northern Australia, both in the wild and in wildlife sanctuaries.
Conservation status
Until 1974, estuarine crocodiles in Queensland were hunted close to extinction for their prized skins. Both species are now protected in Australia, but their numbers continue to be threatened.
Habitat destruction is now considered a major threat to crocodile survival in Queensland. Increasingly, humans are crowding crocodile territory-developments in swamps, mangroves and rivers are displacing crocodiles from their homes.
The growing human population along the east coast of Queensland ultimately means more frequent encounters with crocodiles. Unless the community values crocodiles and their habitats, it will be a challenge to ensure their long-term conservation.
Management and research
While thousands of crocodiles are killed in other countries for their skins, Australia's two crocodile species are protected in the wild. This means that it is illegal to interfere with these animals, which includes removing eggs, and possessing or taking crocodile parts (such as skulls and skins) without a licence.
Dangerous crocodiles in populated areas are investigated and those that are deemed to be a threat to people, dogs or stock are captured and removed. These crocodiles are then made available to commercial crocodile farms and zoos. Destroying a wild crocodile is the last resort.
Some features of the Katter's Australia Party's Safer Waterways Bill, 2017
The Bill seeks to ensure that crocodiles are removed by an authorised person if they are a threat to humans. This removal may involve killing or relocating the crocodile to an authorised farm. It would involve the removal of crocodiles from urban or public
areas commonly used by people for recreation.
The Bill seeks to extend the number of people able to kill or remove crocodiles. The Safer Waterways Bill 2017 gives power to landholders to apply to manage crocodiles on their land.
Indigenous landholders have a connection with and understanding of the land and should be
empowered to manage that land as they see fit. This Bill allows them to apply to do that in
relation to crocodiles. Non-Indigenous private landholders can apply for the same rights. As well as empowering landholders, it places a value on crocodiles and creates an unprecedented economic opportunity for the landholder.
Authorised landholders will be empowered in regards to all aspects of crocodile management
on their property. If a crocodile is on their property, they may choose whether to kill it, have it relocated to a farm, or let it remain on their property. If they choose for it to be euthanised,
they may do this themselves, or accept payment from another person who wishes to kill the
crocodile.
If there are crocodile eggs on their land, they can choose to leave the eggs, harvest the eggs and sell them, or have someone else pay to come onto their land and harvest them.