Koorana Crocodile Farm owner John Lever suggests croc removal

Renowned crocodile expert John Lever has a simple solution to make an Olympic rowing event on the Fitzroy River in Rockhampton work.

A pair of Stuartholme School rowers head out on to the course during the Queensland Secondary Schools Rowing Championships in Rockhampton.

One of the nation’s foremost croc experts has thrown his support behind hosting the Olympics 2032 rowing event on the Fitzroy River, suggesting one caveat - “common sense”.

Koorana Crocodile Farm owner John Lever said while a rowing event in a known crocodile habitat “tended to be little bit risky”, he suggested the State Government have the stretch of the river surveyed and the crocodiles moved.

There are concerns about holding the event on the Fitzroy because of croc sightings and whether the river meets World Rowing’s strict rules, despite hosting national championships, due to hyacinth and the river current.

There has been suggestion the Queensland Government turned to Rockhampton to avoid having to turn over the event to a dedicated rowing facility in Sydney.

Koorana Crocodile Farm's John Lever with two new croc hatchlings.

“There has been rowing and water skiing, canoeing and paddle boarding and everything going on for decades there so it’s probably not going to be that much different,” he said.

“Crocodiles are extending their range in Queensland so you can pick an area down to Fraser Island (454.3km south east of Rockhampton), there could be crocodiles there,” he said.

“There is no reason why they shouldn’t use the Fitzroy River here.

“It is the most idyllic place for the events that they want to hold.

“We’ve just got to show a little bit of common sense and get out and make that area an active removal for crocodiles which means it is a constant thing from now till the Olympics and beyond.”

A CROC’S VIEW

Mr Lever said crocodiles generally don’t attack kayaks or canoes and due to the location of the proposed events on the Fitzroy, risks would be reduced.

“Most of this (rowing and canoeing) is conducted in the deep water areas in the middle of the Fitzroy River,” he said.

“The dangerous area where crocodiles are territorial and their feeding areas is on the water’s edge.

“So even if there is a crocodile population there, the risk is very slim that the crocodiles are going to go away and attack something in deep water. That’s not likely at all.”

Mr Lever is no stranger to the prehistoric reptiles which inhabit the waterway in Rockhampton, having worked with them since 1972.

According to him the biggest crocodile he has ever seen in the Fitzroy was 5.2m and weighed just over one tonne.

Mr Lever said removing crocodiles isn’t as simple as it sounds.

“The (crocodile) surveys are normally done by night time activities - spotlighting the crocodiles. But that section of the river is very, very difficult to spotlight because the crocodiles can see you coming because of the city lights that reflect back off clouds onto the water and by the time you get a dark area you’re halfway up towards Etna Creek and then you get the prison lights reflecting off the sky,” he said.

AI image of 2032 Brisbane Olympic Games venues: Rowing at the Fitzroy River in Rockhampton.

“So it’s not an easy river to survey but it can be done and you have to choose your nights and of course wait for lowish water, not when it’s in flood.

“There is going to have to be a concerted effort to go out and survey the river regularly, find out what’s there and remove any crocodiles that could be considered dangerous so we can conduct this competition with some degree of safety and knowledge we have done our best.”

A Rockhampton Grammar crew prepare for the Queensland Secondary Schools Rowing Championships on the Fitzroy River.

COULD NETS BE USED?

Though they are often used to protect water-goers from crocodiles, Mr Lever said it is not feasible to use nets in the Fitzroy River and the only way to make it safe is to declare it an area of active removal of crocodiles.

“This is a State Government decision to do that, then there has to be increased activity in the removal of those crocs which probably means setting traps in there and checking those traps on a regular basis,” he said.

Saltwater crocodiles are known to have the most powerful bite force of any currently living creature with a chomp force of 3700 pounds per square inch (PSI).

In comparison, lions and tigers have a 1000 PSI bite and a human has between 150-200 PSI.

John Lever pictured feeding one of his large crocodiles.

Mr Lever said the government could never declare an area croc-free nor would they.

“You could survey the river ten times and say you know there are four crocs but you go out on the eleventh night and you find 18,” he said.

Since calls have been made to host the Olympic rowing and canoeing events in the Fitzroy, there has been a surge of interest in Rockhampton’s reptilian locals.

Mr Lever believes this is a good thing.

“I think anything that makes the public, even the travelling public and the residential public as well, aware that there are crocodiles there is a good thing,” he said.

Rockhampton Grammar School’s rowing clubhouse at the Ski Gardens on the Fitzroy River.

“The more that we talk about this issue the more people recognise it could be an issue, that it could be potentially dangerous though not that dangerous.

“People will start to talk about it more and develop an understanding about crocodile behaviours.”

Though it is nearly certain that crocodiles will have to be removed from the area prior to the Olympics it is unlikely Mr Lever will be involved despite having run his own crocodile removal service which operated across the state as far back as the 80s.

“There was a change in government policy and now only wildlife rangers are allowed to track and catch the crocodiles,” he explained.

Originally published as Koorana Crocodile Farm owner John Lever suggests croc removal