Shark conservationists slapped down over spreading SMART drum line fear
Supporters of nonlethal shark control measures argue there is "no logic" to SMART drumlines as a shark deterrent because they attract the animals to coastlines. They could make beaches more dangerous because the baited hooks encourage sharks to return rather than deter them.
NSW
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Shark conservationists say SMART drumlines — currently being trialled along parts of the NSW coast — could make beaches more dangerous because the baited hooks encourage sharks to "have a crack" rather than deter them.
Supporters of nonlethal shark control measures will this week gather at a University of Sydney shark summit where some will argue there is "no logic" to SMART drumlines as a shark deterrent if they attract the animals to coastlines.
But Primary Industries Minister Niall Blair has slapped down the claims saying sharks tagged after being caught in the drumlines often disappeared “for many months away from where they were caught”.
After trialling the technology on the state's North and South Coast, the NSW government is now testing 20 drum lines, which allow sharks to be tagged and released, from Barrenjoey to Newport and from Dee Why to Manly beaches.
Ocean Guardian chief executive officer Lindsay Lyon said the drumlines could encourage sharks to return to an area, adding: "If I continue to put food out for birds, they continue to come back".
Mr Lyon's company manufactures "Shark Shield", a device that repels sharks by emitting electromagnetic pulses underwater. It is billed as the world's first scientifically proven electrical shark deterrent.
"In a bait enticed environment in chummed-up water, you are encouraging the shark to have a crack," he said.
"Reflecting on that … that just concludes there's no way a drum line could be a deterrent.
"Is a shark smart enough to realise a piece of bait on a drum line once is the same piece of bait on another drum line twice?"
Mr Blair said the trial had been “very successful” in detecting sharks before they get anywhere near beaches — the drumlines are deployed about 500 metres off shore.
“We’ve caught over 400 target species, we’ve relocated them and we haven’t then had them coming back to those areas and we’ve got the data to back it up,” he said.
“I’m sceptical of anyone that’s in the business of fear that wants to talk down a scientifically proven product because they’re trying to sell more units through their website.”
A NSW DPI spokeswoman said “no burley or other attractants are used to attract sharks” other than a single mullet on each hook.
Humane Society International head of campaigns Nicola Beynon said SMART drumlines were a "lesser evil" to lethal shark nets, which are still used from Newcastle to Wollongong.
The Shark Conservation Summit, which begins today (Thursday), is being hosted by the Humane Society International and Australian Marine Conservation Society.
Originally published as Shark conservationists slapped down over spreading SMART drum line fear
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