Shark nets are out of our oceans for winter. Let’s keep them out for good!

Nets at 51 beaches stretching between Newcastle, across Sydney and down to Wollongong, are put in place every year between 1 September to 30 April. 

The nets not only kill many non-target sharks, including threatened species like the harmless critically endangered grey nurse shark, they also kill humpback and minke whales, dolphins, turtles and other marine life. In April, just one week before the nets were due to be removed, a bottlenose dolphin was found dead, trapped in the nets at Bondi. 

And the worst part is - They. Don’t. Work. 

The Labor Government made an election promise to remove the nets, but 1 September last year the nets went back in the water. 

Shark nets don’t actually keep people safe because sharks can swim under, over and around the nets. In fact, 40% of sharks are caught on the inside of the nets, trying to make their way back out to open water. Smart technology like drones and shark listening stations are all proven technologies that work without killing marine life.

Please tell Environment Minister Penny Sharpe and Agriculture Minister Tara Moriarty to make a commitment NOW that shark nets will never go back in our oceans.