A REVIEW into the WA Government’s controversial shark baiting program has found it was successful, and should be continued.
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The review was conducted internally by the Department of Premier and Cabinet, with advice from various third parties.
WA Premier Colin Barnett said the baiting program, which ran amidst public outcry between January and April of this year, catching 172 sharks of varying species, said the program was successful in terms of its limited environmental impact.
Mr Barnett said the drum lines did not catch any marine mammals, and that the 50 sharks that were three metres or longer and therefore deemed a greater threat by the government, were destroyed accordingly.
“The data collected from January to April this year will substantially add to the body of research already undertaken by the WA Government,” Mr Barnett said.
“Data such as catch species and numbers, where the sharks were caught and when, will help contribute to our knowledge of sharks off the WA coast and help the Department of Fisheries and The University of Western Australia.”
However, UWA professor Jessica Meeuwig said the Government are measuring the success of the program under the wrong terms.
Professor Meeuwig said the core of the issue was about making the oceans safer for human use, and there was no data to suggest that had been achieved.
“The measure of success should not be that they’ve killed sharks but that they’ve improved safety for humans,” Professor Meeuwig said.
She said all of the sharks destroyed under the program were tiger sharks 3 metres or greater in length, despite a tiger shark not having been involved in a human fatality between Perth and Esperance since 1925.
“I think the Government are underestimating the potential impact on shark populations.
“ We know they caught 172 sharks, and it is reasonable to assume even the ones that were let go didn’t survive due to the nature of their injuries.”
She said four females over three metres in length were caught for every one male of the same size, and they are the ones that contribute most significantly to the sustainability of the population.
Mr Barnett said the WA program was designed to be environmentally sensitive, and that authorities running shark control programs in other parts of the world had shown interest in the WA model.
The government will spend $22 million on its shark mitigation policy over four years.
