‘Big and bold’: $90m for shark nets and drumlines in wake of fatal attacks

In the biggest overhaul of shark safety on Queensland beaches in 60 years, the government will spend $90 million on new nets, drumlines and drone patrols. SEE WHICH BEACHES

A shark caught on a drum line.

Queensland’s shark control program is getting extra teeth, with more nets and drumlines to protect the state’s beaches as well as increased drone surveillance, in a $90m overhaul the Crisafulli government says will put swimmer safety first.

The move comes after a horror fatal attack on shark-protected Bribie Island in February which claimed the life of teenage lifesaver Charlize Zmuda.

It also follows an external review of the program commissioned by the former Labor government which the LNP has accused of appeasing “radical agendas” to protect whales and other marine creatures at the expense of humans.

Shark attack victim Charlize Zmuda from her TikTok account. Source: TikTok

In what the current government says will be the program’s biggest shake-up in its 63-year history, extra nets and drumlines will be installed at up to seven beaches from Palm Beach on the Gold Coast to Moore Park in Bundaberg.

Drone surveillance will also be extended to up to six beaches between the Gold Coast and Agnes Waters.

Primary Industries Minister Tony Perrett said the government was delivering “the largest investment into shark management in Queensland history, to strengthen swimmer safety and protect Queensland’s $33 billion tourism industry”.

Flowers left for Charlize Zmuda at Woorim beach, Bribe Island. Picture: Liam Kidston

“The $88.228 million investment over four years includes additional shark nets, drumlines and drone protection, at more Queensland beaches whilst prioritising innovative technologies like whale-deterrent measures and shark research,” he said.

“This announcement is big and bold, it puts swimmer safety first, and it’s the largest overhaul of funds this program has seen in over 60 years.

“Under the Crisafulli Government’s plan, more beaches will have more protections in place, there will be more money spent on new technologies and innovation, and more investment in leading research.

“We’re striking the right balance between ensuring swimmer safety and maintaining a healthy marine environment, as well as upholding Queensland’s international tourism reputation as a safe place to enjoy some of the best beaches in the world.

A drum line off Burleigh Heads.

“It’s clear the program had lost its way under previous Labor governments who failed to act and put people after the demands of environmental activists.”

Surf Life Saving Queensland has helped identify beaches earmarked as potential sites for extra shark nets and/or drumlines, based on increased visitor numbers.

They are Pacific (Palm Beach) and The Spit on the Gold Coast; Happy Valley, Coolum North and Peregian North on the Sunshine Coast, and Elliott Heads and Moore Park at Wide Bay.

Beaches mooted for increased drone patrols are Rainbow Bay/Greenmount on the Gold Coast, Cylinder Beach on North Stradbroke Island, Mooloolaba on the Sunshine Coast, Tangalooma on Moreton Bay, Elliott Heads/Moore Park at Bundaberg and Main Beach at Agnes Waters.

No extra shark control equipment has been slated for Bribie Island, where 17-year-old Charlize Zmuda was killed by a suspected bull shark despite the protection of 18 drumlines at Woorim Beach.

She was swimming on an unpatrolled stretch of the beach in what Bond University shark expert Daryl McPhee said at the time was a “freak tragic accident”.

Three people have been killed on protected beaches since the shark control program began in 1962, and critics have slammed it as providing a false sense of security.

But successive governments have ruled out calls from environmentalists to remove the nets and drumlines, at least during the winter whale migration season.

The Sunday Mail revealed earlier this year that more than 4800 sharks, some as big as 5.6m, had been caught in the nets and drumlines in the last five years.

Almost 700 sharks were spotted in a drone surveillance trial which ran between 2020 and April last year.