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Environment
ENVIRONMENT
Marine conservationists want ‘nets out now’ for our humpbacks
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Australian Marine Conservation Society
Modernising beach safety and moving to non-lethal shark control in Queensland is affordable and supports local industry, reveals a new report by a coalition of concerned stakeholders including Humane Society International (HSI) and Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS).
The Queensland Shark Control Program Modernisation Proposal and Cost Estimate, investigated the funding required for non-lethal solutions outlined in the Cardno Review of Alternative Approaches report commissioned by the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (QDAF) last year.
Non-lethal, modern solutions considered in the cost estimate include drones, new barrier technologies, and education. Using costs provided by the Australian contractors and businesses named in QDAF’s report, the estimated annual operating cost of non-lethal shark control throughout Queensland is $4.16 million. This is cheaper than the current amount of $17.1 million over four years proposed by Minister Furner in June 2019. “This report demonstrates how easily Queensland could update their program to keep swimmers and marine wildlife safe,” Lawrence Chlebeck, marine biologist with HSI said. “There’s been 60 years of progress in our understanding of shark behaviour and technology, and it’s long past time for a change.”
“Shark culling does not reduce the risk of shark bite. It’s been independently proven by shark researchers and in legal proceedings. If human safety is truly Queensland’s first priority, then they will heed the science and begin modernising this program immediately.”
Dr Leonardo Guida, Shark Scientist with AMCS said: “The only thing the current program does well is take a terrible toll on marine wildlife. Just this year we’ve seen six humpbacks get caught, and a dugong wash up on a beach dead after drowning in a shark net. Since 2001, thousands of animals have died including dolphins, turtles, rays, and all for a false sense of security,” Dr Guida said.
Last year, HSI challenged the lethal Queensland Shark Control Program in the Great Barrier Reef in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal and won, with the Tribunal declaring the program “unscientific” and out of step with current national and international developments. The Tribunal also stated that there was overwhelming evidence that shark culling does not reduce the risk of shark bite.
Why do we still use shark nets in Australia?
SARAH JACOB
Shark nets are not fit-for-purpose. They do not protect swimmers and kill hundreds of other marine animals, including threatened species. So why do we still deploy them in Australia, and what other technologies should we be using instead? Sarah Jacob asks the Australian Marine Conservation Society’s shark scientist, Leonardo Guida.
The statistics coming out of shark control programs are quite worrying from a conservation standpoint, with more than 60% of species caught in NSW being threatened species. How do the two main lethal techniques – shark nets and drumlines – compare, and what kinds of non-target animals are captured?
A drumline is a baited fishing hook. In Queensland the shark nets are about 186 metres wide and 4-6 metres in depth. So they don’t stretch to the length of the entire beach. Nets are essentially invisible in the water and will capture almost anything that hits it. There’s a greater degree of bycatch. What that means is that you’re not only catching sharks but you’re also catching turtles, dolphins, dugongs, and as we’ve seen in Queensland recently, whales as well. In NSW in particular, they are a [sting] ray killing machine. There are hundreds of rays that are caught every year, more so than other animals. Drumlines still catch turtles and that bite the bait, but generally the variety of animals is much less than for nets.
How do SMART drumlines work?
The Shark Management Alert in Real Time (SMART) drumline is a piece of technology that’s linked up to a satellite. If a shark or any other animal bites that hook it will pull a trigger, and that sends a GEORGIA FRANC achieved when you unite to protect the oceans and marine life, Sea Shepherd and the Dhimurru Aboriginal Corporation of Northeast Arnhem Land, have again joined forces for a remote beach cleanup campaign at Djulpan in the Northern Territory.
Around 2.5 hours from the nearest town, Djulpan is culturally significant for the Yolgnu people but tragically this isolated and beautiful stretch of coastline is inundated by marine plastic pollution. This area along the western side of the Gulf of Carpentaria is also an important nesting ground for six of the seven species of marine turtles which are listed as either
As Australian humpback whales start to migrate south from North Queensland to Antarctica for the summer, many are still wondering why nets are atill necessary. (Image SUPPLIED.) signal to a satellite which is beamed back to Fisheries offices, then they head out to A 2017 study of public perceptions of the drumline, and release the animal with shark nets at Sydney beaches found a tag. that there was strong support for shark
nets but much less support for direct Why are tagging programs important? culling measures like hunting of sharks. It was suggested by the authors that the
The benefit of shark tagging programs reason for this is that public education is that we get this wealth of information is lacking. How important is public that can tell us how sharks move, where education on this issue? they go, why they move. This translates into resources that not only help us manage There seems to be this perception our fisheries, and our interactions with that shark nets are a barrier, and they’re sharks, but also to communicate to the not. There’s a perception that a shark net public about certain conditions where the extends from surface to bottom, that it [likelihood of] presence of sharks might be extends across the whole beach and no higher than normal. Then people can make shark can get through. But sharks can swim informed decisions about whether they around, under and over the net. One study
Demonstrating what can be
want to go into the water at that time. that found 40% of sharks caught in nets endangered or vulnerable.
When the Sea Shepherd crew and Rangers returned to Djulpan for the second year, they were more determined than ever to free the sacred shoreline of Djulpan of trash. Despite the heat and long days together they removed 12.1 tonnes of debris including consumer plastics and large fishing nets from 8.5 kilometres of beach. This surpassed the previous year’s achievement of 7.1 tonnes from 4 kilometre of beach.
Liza Dicks, Arnhem Campaign Leader said the volume and density of debris was still a shock to the 11 experienced Sea Shepherd volunteers, many of whom had returned to Djulpan for a second time.
Most surprising to the team on the first day was the astonishing sight of Djulpan covered with dozens and dozens of turtle tracks and nests. Seeing so many turtle nests on the areas of Djulpan cleaned last year demonstrates that beach clean-ups make a direct difference for marine life. Their clean-ups have one goal – to remove as much plastic pollution as possible to give immediate relief to the area’s marine life. Sadly, whilst cleaning up the beach the crew came across a number of turtles that had died as a result of debris including turtle hatchlings trapped in plastic
Why do we still use shark nets in Australia?
As Australian humpback whales start to migrate south from North Queensland to Antarctica for the summer, many are still wondering why nets are atill necessary. (Image SUPPLIED.) were actually on the shore side of the net. Partly it’s because it’s entrenched in Public education is fundamental for any culture, and there’s a reluctance to change strategy to improve bather safety. In NSW, because [nets] have been around for so as part of their Shark SMART strategy, they long with the perception that it “seems have huts on the beach where people can to work”. NSW is a bit more progressive, go and ask questions. Queensland does recently they announced greater not [have a public education program]. investment in drones for use along the The Australian Marine Conservation coast. Queensland is considerably further Society and Humane Society International behind, they haven’t implemented any are partners on a campaign called Shark non-lethal technologies as yet. I think that Champions, which is an effort to educate there is perhaps a political disincentive to people on how shark control works. move towards [non-lethal] technologies, as no politician wants to be the one who takes Why are shark nets still a major part of out a drumline or a net and then someone risk mitigation on Australian beaches, gets bitten, because then that can be used considering that they have been politically against them.
proven not to be effective in protecting swimmers?
containers and turtles found entangled in fishing nets.
Female turtles coming ashore to lay their eggs were documented navigating through plastic debris as they dug their nests. This shows the devastating impact and consequences that plastic is having on wildlife.
Volunteers also found evidence of animals biting or eating the plastic – clear bite marks were discovered from turtles and fish on a range of plastic packaging but notably, most bites were found on either food or personal care items.
Inspections and surveys of the remote 14-kilometre length of Djulpan found the entire coastal strip affected by pollution. Areas in and around the rocky outcrops were hardest hit with the high densities of broken plastic and fishing nets. The surveys also revealed there was a material difference in the first 2 kilometres of beach from last year – but still 50% of the debris had returned to Djulpan in a year.
While seeing all this plastic is devastating, it also shows that beach cleans are a key strategic tool in reducing plastic accumulation and giving protection to marine life in remote coastal areas.
For Sea Shepherd, with their partnership with Dhimurru becoming stronger and their cultural and environmental outcomes becoming greater, they are looking forward to returning to Djulpan in October 2020 to achieve even more together.
When good people come together, ordinary people can achieve the extraordinary, for the benefit of the oceans and future generations.
Is there anything that swimmers can do The 2017 public perception survey to reduce their risk? found that most people interviewed
There is the Shark Shield device which oversensationalised shark attacks. What has been shown to reduce the risk. In can the media do better in this regard? NSW the Shark SMART app gives you information on whether you should go The media has an important role to into the water in the first place. There are play, given that it’s from the media that environmental conditions that can help most people learn of shark bites – and you judge the risk of going into the water. you’ve probably noticed that I haven’t For example, at river mouths, particularly used the word “attack”. That’s a simple after a storm or heavy rainfall, you will thing that the media can do, is to call see a spike in shark activity, especially them shark “bites”. The word “attack” is bull sharks. That’s because conditions are very inaccurate. The definition of that favourable for them to hunt. Another word is to consciously pursue someone thing is when you see a flock of seabirds with the intention of injuring or killing congregated in one area, repeatedly diving it. Sharks are very curious but they don’t into the water, that’s an indication of a high have hands like we do, they have mouths concentration of fish. If there are sharks full of razor blades – that’s all they have. nearby, it’s an easy feed for them, so they will probably be involved in the feeding as well. Bushfire Royal Commission: How to prevent wildlife going up in flames
Humane Society International
Humane Society International (HSI) welcomes the wildlife rescue findings of the Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements report released in late October. The need for emergency response training for volunteer wildlife rescuers and for governments to work with the wildlife sector to develop emergency protocols and improve onground coordination were among priorities identified. “Wildlife rescue is highly reliant on volunteers in Australia, and if we’re going to continue turning to them in times of emergency there’s an urgent need to provide emergency training and respect their role by including them in emergency response protocols,” Humane Society International’s Head of Programs Evan Quartermain said. HSI has first-hand experience with bushfire wildlife rescue having deployed a response team to Kangaroo Island across three months at the start of the year. We are also providing significant financial assistance to wildlife rescuers and carers across the country as they rehabilitate survivors from the Black Summer and prepare for future disasters. The report has significant commonalities with recommendations featured in HSI’s Safeguarding Australia’s Wildlife analysis of the wildlife rescue response to the Black Summer bushfires, which is set ENVIRONMENT
considered that the media
to be released next week. The wide-ranging Royal Commission report also included conservation recommendations, detailing the catastrophic impacts suffered by threatened species and habitats and the need to better integrate environment and heritage matters into emergency planning and response. It also highlighted the importance of having a comprehensive and up to date understanding of threatened species and habitat status to rapidly guide intervention and recovery efforts. HSI is responsible for initiating more than 40% of habitats currently recognised as nationally threatened through our Threatened Ecological Community nomination program, with these listings providing a solid information base to assess bushfire impacts on biodiversity and rapidly prioritise recovery efforts. Following the Black Summer fires, HSI has shifted the focus of our habitat protection efforts to bushfire impacted landscapes, particularly those unaccustomed to fire such as rainforests. “The report shows how vital having up to date and comprehensive information on Australia’s biodiversity is when responding to threats and prioritising recovery. But more Departmental funding is needed as their current capacity to assess the nominations we’re submitting is far outpaced by the impacts these habitats are facing,” Mr Quartermain concluded.
ENVIRONMENT Mismanagement of Murray-Darling Basin has caused rivers to run dry Water infrastructure projects in the Nyah-Vinifera region led by state and federal governments have caused neighbouring forests and riverbanks to remain tinder dry.
GEORGIA FRANC
Water infrastructure projects in the Nyah-Vinifera region led by state and federal governments have caused neighbouring forests and riverbanks to remain tinder dry.
Despite being the largest river system in Australia, the Murray-Darling Basin is dealing with drought and prospects of extinction for various flora and fauna in the district. Significant wetlands such as the Coorong and Menindee Lakes are at risk of collapse, threatening migratory birds that travel from Siberia and Alaska.
The River Country Campaign was formed in 2000, starting out as a solidarity
WIRES year grant to the Koala Health Hub (KHH) a University of Sydney initiative to support koala care, management and research. The grant will sustain the KHH and allow it to respond to increasing need for koala care and management following recent bushfires and droughts.
“WIRES fully support the critical work being undertaken by Koala
Health Hub,” said WIRES CEO Leanne
Taylor. “Thanks to the incredible financial support we received in response to Australia’s bushfires we are now in the position to fund this significant research initiative.”
“The plight of Australian native animals and in particular the koala is in the spotlight and we need to take action now and do whatever it takes to halt the decline of their numbers in the wild,” she said.
The donation of $1,012,399 is the largest one-off living gift made to the University’s School of Veterinary
Science, where the Koala Health Hub sits. Donations to WIRES were made by both local and international donors including from the US, UK, Asia and
Europe.
KHH benefits koala welfare and conservation by providing laboratory support and evidence-based information to those at the coalface of care and management of koalas, whether in the clinic or in the wild.
WIRES’ funding will be used to group supporting the Watti Watti Nation to make the Nyah-Vinifera national park more secure. 20 years later the campaign is calling for the Murray-Darling Basin Plan to be reviewed to restore health to the Murray-Darling.
River Country Coordinator Megan Williams describes how Indigenous knowledge is vital in properly rehabilitating the water management system.
“We are supportive of Indigenous Nations to have sovereign rights to country and in being able to utilise their knowledge to apply them in water management… this is not currently playing a huge role in management.” help KHH provide diagnostic support, expertise and coordination and communication to rehabilitation, university and government sectors. This includes funding a postdoctoral researcher and three PhD students, which will contribute to Australia’s pool of wildlife expertise and provide ‘boots on the ground’ to answer key questions to assist koala management.
Prior to the bushfires WIRES worked with KHH and the University’s wildlife clinic at Camden to clinically assess koalas in care and as a referral resource for rescues needing rehabilitation.
According to Koala Health Hub Director, Associate Professor Damien Higgins, this grant honours the generous public donations to WIRES during the bushfires by providing the means to better manage the recovery of surviving koalas, and to better prepare for future events.
“The Koala Health Hub was established
In March this year, the first flush of water down the lower Darling in 3 years was celebrated, however people are still tense amidst the COVID-19 health crisis.
Towns in far west NSW have relied on drinking water to be trucked in by volunteers with residents having limited access to safe quality water to meet their needs. This situation was not going to be viable during the pandemic, as transport and travel became more restricted.
“We’ve been adapting to do what we can with government guidelines,” Williams said of the COVID-19 restrictions.
“Engaging with people online and hosting online events continues to get in 2015 and WIRES has been a valued collaborator from the start. Their support now will make a really significant difference to what we can achieve for koala care and conservation following the recent bushfires and drought. On top of the importance of health and disease to individual welfare, it is a key part of the viability and recovery of koala populations and their management. Koalas have long been under pressure from a range of threats and the recent bushfires have added to that,” Higgins said. “The need for diagnostic support and disease expertise is greater than ever. Numbers of koalas in care is increasing due to drought, longer term impacts from fire, and the ongoing pressures of habitat loss,” he said. information out there and work with local communities to put in submissions.”
Wilcannia, a town in north-western NSW, recently had their water supply switched back to their local weir pool after being connected to groundwater. This change ensures residents have ease of access to safe drinking water.
Despite the obvious value of these flows, they are still not being protected. River Country is calling upon NSW Water Minister Melinda Pavey to re-instate the embargo on the Barwon Darling catchment.
The River Country Appeal page is still accepting donations here: https://www. melbournefoe.org.au/river_country_donate
be signed here: https://www.melbournefoe.org.au/buybacks
WIRES uses bushfire donations to support University koala research
WIRES (NSW Wildlife Information, Rescue and Education Service Inc) has announced a three-
The petition to Revive the Rivers can
ENVIRONMENT
Giant Antarctic killing machine not welcome in Antarctica’s gateway city
Bob Brown Foundation Hobart’s - and Australia’s - reputation as a bulwark for the environment of Antarctica is at stake after the controversial killing machine, the Antarctic Aurora, docked in Hobart on Friday, 6 November. “Antarctica and sub-Antarctic oceans are complex ecosystems that need protection from longline fishing for toothfish. This ship is unashamedly on its way to plunder Antarctica’s marine ecosystem for private profit,” Bob Brown Foundation’s Campaign Manager Jenny Weber said. “We appealed through letters to the Prime Minister and Tasmanian Premier to urgently ban this Antarctic longline fishing ship from Hobart and all Australian ports. They have failed to prioritise the protection of the Great White Continent and its oceans. “What happens in Antarctica has a critical impact on the global climate and Bob Brown Foundation is on the road to launch a campaign to fight for Antarctica’s protection from marauding ships such as the Antarctic Aurora. Its presence in Hobart will give us a good target to highlight the problems which continue to destroy the great southern Oceans wildness. The Antarctica Aurora is part-owned by former Japanese whalers. “This longline ship has no place in Australian waters or any global oceans. Earth’s oceans are in urgent need of preservation of the remaining life left in them,” Jenny Weber said.
Beautiful Ningaloo: One of WA’s biggest ever conservation communications campaigns launched to protect Exmouth Gulf
RYAN FRITZ
Beautiful Ningaloo – one of WA’s biggest ever conservation communications campaigns – kicked off in August with a series of major print, radio and online advertisements, and the mass distribution of postcards across Perth.
The campaign was designed to alert the broad community to the risks posed by a massive oil and gas pipeline fabrication facility and towing operation earmarked for an undeveloped, highly biodiverse part of Exmouth Gulf, Ningaloo, prized by tourism businesses, locals and scientists, alike.
Paul Gamblin, Director, Protect Ningaloo, said: “We’re up against Subsea 7, a multi-billion-dollar global corporation, so it’ll be a David and Goliath struggle but we’re determined to protect our beautiful Ningaloo.”
“For two years, we’ve implored Subsea 7 to do the right thing by withdrawing their controversial proposal and avoiding harming Exmouth Gulf, Ningaloo. But it’s been to no avail. So now we need to ramp it up.”
In addition to full-page newspaper advertisements, and on AM and FM radio, online promotion and a giant ‘postcard’ mobile billboard, the Protect Ningaloo campaign is distributing postcards initially to around a quarter of the households in the wider Perth metropolitan area, and Parks & Wildlife (FNPW). RYAN FRITZ mental Association (MMEA) is pleased to announce the launch of the Manyana Conservation Fund, managed by the charity partner for Australia’s National Parks, the Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife (FNPW).
It is a significant step forward for the community and their supporters, who have been striving for several months to protect a biodiversity hotspot from residential development.
Donations made to the fund will go towards the purchase of unburnt habitat, as well as ongoing conservation and management of native forest in and around Manyana, a region on the south coast of New South Wales.
As the fundraising partner, FNPW will provide a platform for donations to be
The beautiful Point Heron in Western Australia.
posters to venues across the State.
“Tens of thousands of people have already joined our campaign and this enormous support means we can now take up the cause in a much bigger way than ever before. Ningaloo-Exmouth Gulf is a special place to so many people – it’s a beloved part of our shared heritage – which explains the torrent of letters that people have sent to Government asking it to stop industrialisation of this area.”
“It’s just common sense to protect the ecosystem that supports the region’s famed made securely by the Australian community in support of the cause.
FNPW’s Chief Executive Officer, Ian Darbyshire, says that there has never been a more important time to conserve what remains of Australia’s natural environment, particularly following the horrific bushfires of 2019-20.
“Now more than ever we are committed to healing our land. We lost so much in the devastating bushfires, so every single tree, plant and animal plays a vital role in healing our damaged habitats and landscapes.
“We’re proud to support the Manyana community to protect our natural environment for the generations to come,” Mr Darbyshire said.
MMEA President, Bill Eger, says that he is delighted to have the support of such an experienced and respected national body.
“The Foundation has achieved some important milestones over the past 50 years in conserving Australia’s wilderness and tourism industry which sustains the bulk of jobs there. Scientists are regularly discovering new natural wonders in Exmouth Gulf, and if we look after it, it will generate tourism, education and research jobs for decades to come. It’s time to draw a line in the sand and stop heavy industry from getting a foothold at Ningaloo.”
The Protect Ningaloo campaign understands that instead of risking Exmouth Gulf, Ningaloo, oil and gas pipelines can be deployed offshore as per current practice, or industrialised sites in the Pilbara could also potentially be used, meaning the Subsea 7 proposal for Exmouth Gulf is unnecessary.
“To know that pipelines can be deployed from ships or potentially from industrialised areas in the Pilbara is another reason observers are incredulous that the proposal for Exmouth Gulf ever got off the drawing board.”
“The ball is in Subsea 7’s court. It can withdraw this highly controversial proposal at any time, and should do so now. Subsea 7 could still be doing business in the North West without risking one of our most precious natural and tourism assets. It’s time to end the uncertainty, and protect Beautiful Ningaloo.” wildlife. Having them onboard as a fundraising partner is a major step forward in our campaign to save the Manyana forest,” Mr Eger said.
The launch of the Manyana Conservation Fund coincides with a public commitment by NSW Planning Minister Rob Stokes to make a contribution to the purchase of the 20 hectares of native forest in Manyana slated to become a housing ENVIRONMENT Subsea 7’s pipeline plans put on hold
The WA Minister for Environment, Hon. Stephen Dawson, has confirmed that the Subsea 7 pipeline fabrication facility earmarked for Exmouth Gulf, Ningaloo has been put on hold. Furthermore, in recognition of the potential impacts of development proposals on Exmouth Gulf, the Minister has instructed the WA Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to undertake a broad assessment of Exmouth Gulf, due in mid-2021. Protect Ningaloo Director, Paul Gamblin said, “We think the case to stop the controversial Subsea 7 oil and gas pipeline facility dead in its tracks is clear. However, we welcome this decision to delay the consideration of the project by at least a year while a wider assessment is undertaken because any independent scientific review would show emphatically that Exmouth Gulf should not be industrialised. “While postponing the decision is better than imminent construction of the Subsea 7 project, in reality, the community faces
Manyana Conservation Fund launches to save unburnt land Manyana Matters Environmental Association (MMEA) is pleased to announce the launch of the Manyana Conservation Fund, managed by the charity partner for Australia’s National Parks, the Foundation for National
Manyana Matters Environ-
further uncertainty,” Gamblin said. development.
Mr Eger says the timing could not be better. “This Fund gives our community and supporters the opportunity to show Minister Stokes we’re willing to be part of saving this forest forever.
“Our vision is to turn this beautiful habitat into a nature reserve honouring the human and animal lives lost in the Currowan megafire. This fund is another big step towards achieving this.
“The next piece in the puzzle is a commitment of a contribution from Shoalhaven City Council. It’s time for our councillors to represent the interests of the community who elected them,” Mr Eger added.
Donations to the Manyana Conservation Fund can be made at: https:// support.fnpw.org.au/FNPW/Fundraising/FNPW-Gift-Items/Help-FNPW-protect-Manyana-forest.aspx
