NSW SAVES THE SHARKS

THE NSW Government will have blood on its hands if a shark attack occurs off Northern NSW beaches previously protected by nets.

The Minister for Primary Industries Niall Blair has announced a six-month trial of nets at Ballina, Lennox Head and Evans Head is over and the barriers will be removed.

The nets were installed after a spate of shark attacks over the border claimed lives and damaged the region’s tourism industry.

In the two-and-a-half years preceding the nets there were 12 attacks. Since their installation there have been none.

Proof that nets work is obvious on the Gold Coast where there has not been a fatal shark attack at netted beaches since they were first utilised in the 1960s.

The NSW Government must have plenty of taxpayers’ dough to burn. It wasted millions of dollars on half-baked ‘solutions’ before finally seeing the sense of nets.

There were ‘eco barriers’ that were massively expensive and washed up on the shore. There were drones that did nothing to deter sharks. Then there were ‘smart’ drumlines that sent messages to boats to go out and unhook the predators so they could be released alive. What’s the point?

Northern NSW can't afford another tragedy. The region is still recovering from the worst flooding in 60 years and tourismrelated businesses are reporting trade is down by 50 per cent in some instances.

Nets provide an extra layer of security, especially at this time of year, the prime season for great whites that follow migrating humpback whales.

Is the NSW Government planning on permanently removing shark nets from Sydney beaches? Of course not. Heaven forbid someone should be attacked down there. Up north it’s sharks first, people and their livlihoods second.