TRANSCRIPT
From September, when you go to a beach in New South Wales, you are likely to see a giant net under the water not far from the swimming areas.
They are shark nets, used to prevent sharks from attacking swimmers. Since 2011, the New South Wales government has been funding 51 beaches in the state to roll out shark nets.
But beach goers have various views on whether it works.
"I quite like not having the sharks in the surf, so yeah, I actually prefer having them here. I mean, it keeps other people safer, keeps myself and more in a safe spirit."
"I think shark nets are pointless, in my opinion, respect to the government, I completely understand they want the public to be safe. But for me, the ocean is their home, we are basically invading their home every day when we are swimming and surfing, so we just have to respect the ocean as it is."
Amid the ongoing controversies, three councils have decided to trial removing shark nets this year.
That includes Waverley, Central Coasts and Northern Beaches, which manage some of the state's most popular beaches, such as Manly Beach and Palm Beach.
In the eyes of many marine scientists, the trial should have been done earlier.
r Vanessa Pirotta is a wildlife scientist. She says shark nets aren't a silver bullet to prevent swimmers from shark bites.
"But the reality is that a shark net is kind of like a band aid. Sharks can swim around it, and then underneath it. It's not a complete way of blocking sharks. Unfortunately, the reason why so many people don't want them there is because they not only kill sharks, but they kill other animals like whales, dolphins, turtles and a whole other marine life."
According to records, during the 2023 to 2024 season, more than 250 animals were entangled. 94 per cent were non-target animals, and nearly a third of them were endangered or threatened species.
The first shark nets in Australia were put in place in 1935, as part of a two-year trial. No shark bites were reported during those two years.
In 2011, as New South Wales celebrated the 150th anniversary of the state, state politicians proposed installing shark nets, as they were worried that shark attacks might disturb the celebrations.
Dr Christopher Pepin-Neff studies shark nets and public attitudes at the University of Sydney.
They say the Australian public is smart enough to treat the beaches carefully.
"Politicians however, seem to think the risks of a shark bite on their watch - even the nets attract sharks - is still too high. So the public is in one place, and politicians is in another, and shark nets help politicians. They don't help the public."
Despite supporting the trial, the three councils that will remove shark nets this season say they still want to see the state government invest in alternative anti-shark measures.
These include SMART drumlines, listening stations and drone surveillance - all methods used year-round along the state's coast.
Dr Pirotta also suggests New South Wales beach goers check the state's SharkSmart website regularly.
"The best thing for people to do is to be SharkSmart - by going to the New South Wales SharkSmart website. This includes things like swimming between the flags, avoid swimming at dawn or dusk, or across an overnight period. If you feel safer, you can swim within the harbour in those netted areas, or avoiding areas where it is very murky or just had a lot of rain. These can all ways that we can be shark-smart, but also be mindful that sharks are just simply part of the natural environment."
Queensland and Western Australia are the only other jurisdictions with shark nets in use.
