❓ The Minister for Fisheries outlines the expansion of shark tagging programs in the Swan and Canning Rivers, including the use of acoustic receivers and the implementation of a swimming enclosure at Bicton Baths, as part of the government's shark hazard mitigation strategy.
AnsweredQoN 128Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
SHARKS — HAZARD MITIGATION — SWAN RIVER
128. Mrs L.M. O'MALLEY to the Minister for
Fisheries:
I refer to the McGowan Labor
government's comprehensive shark management strategies to improve
safety in our waters.
(1) Can the minister advise the house how this
government's shark hazard mitigation strategy is being expanded to develop a better understanding of shark movements in the Swan River?
(2) Can the
minister advise the house how swimming enclosures are being used to mitigate
risks at popular river swimming locations, including Bicton Baths?
128. Mrs L.M. O'MALLEY to the Minister for
Fisheries:
I refer to the McGowan Labor
government's comprehensive shark management strategies to improve
safety in our waters.
(1) Can the minister advise the house how this
government's shark hazard mitigation strategy is being expanded to develop a better understanding of shark movements in the Swan River?
(2) Can the
minister advise the house how swimming enclosures are being used to mitigate
risks at popular river swimming locations, including Bicton Baths?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Bicton for
not only the question, but also her unwavering commitment to the safety of
ocean users and people within the river systems, and for the many discussions
we have had about how to improve safety and the provision of information to
ocean users in particular.
(1)–(2) Today,
I very pleased to announce joint work between the Department of Biodiversity,
Conservation and Attractions and the Department of Primary Industries and
Regional Development to expand the process of shark tagging within the Swan and
Canning River estuaries. This will involve an expansion of the existing research program into juvenile bull shark
populations in the river to include adult bull sharks. The Department of
Primary Industries and Regional Development will commence tagging programs
tonight to target adult bull sharks and place tags within those bull sharks
that will interface with three new acoustic receivers that will be placed in the
river.
This is a very new process. We
recognise that the river system is a very strong interactive zone. There is a lot
of movement of boats up and down the river. The ability of our tags and
receivers to interface through that traffic
will be an important part of assessing how we can use acoustic receivers in the
river system into the future. This is a very important piece of work.
The acoustic receivers will have the ability to interact with our shark alert
network and expand real-time opportunities to advise people of the presence of
bull sharks within the river system. Importantly, it will provide research
information about the seasonality of bull shark populations, where they are
swimming, the aggregations and potential populations within the river system.
This is part of our ongoing approach to shark mitigation by building up a solid
evidence base and understanding of the patterns of behaviour of sharks that
might present a risk. The expanded network of combining this new system with
the VR2 receivers that already exist within the river for the juvenile tagging
program will help to improve knowledge about seasonal movements and the
abundance of bull sharks. It will also provide a better understanding of the
connectivity of bull shark populations and how they interact with each other.
The new system will also assess the efficiency of detection approaches,
including real-time detection in the river system. This is a very important
step forward in how we can manage risk issues within the rivers, which we know
are very popular and mean an awful lot to our communities along the river
system.
I am very pleased to also announce
that following the announcement that I made in February with the member for
Bicton that we are progressing down the track of putting in place the first
swimming enclosure on the river, which will be at Bicton Baths. That will
provide the first opportunity, in partnership with the City of Melville, for an
enclosed area of the river that will prevent access by sharks. The river system
is very different from ocean environments. I have written to other local
governments to assess their interest in looking at all forms of shark
mitigation, but particularly enclosure options, recognising that enclosure
options will not be suitable for every location in the river as a consequence
of river stream currents and boating interactions et cetera.
That is part of our program and we
will be looking very closely at any additional opportunities that might come
out of both the shark tagging program and the beach enclosure program to
improve safety. This is part of our evidence-based shark mitigation program. We
will continue to build our knowledge base and to do our very, very best to
understand shark behaviour and the risk of interaction with our communities and
with individuals who have taken to using our oceans and river system. We are
committed to looking at how we can inform the public and can make our waterways
as safe as possible.
not only the question, but also her unwavering commitment to the safety of
ocean users and people within the river systems, and for the many discussions
we have had about how to improve safety and the provision of information to
ocean users in particular.
(1)–(2) Today,
I very pleased to announce joint work between the Department of Biodiversity,
Conservation and Attractions and the Department of Primary Industries and
Regional Development to expand the process of shark tagging within the Swan and
Canning River estuaries. This will involve an expansion of the existing research program into juvenile bull shark
populations in the river to include adult bull sharks. The Department of
Primary Industries and Regional Development will commence tagging programs
tonight to target adult bull sharks and place tags within those bull sharks
that will interface with three new acoustic receivers that will be placed in the
river.
This is a very new process. We
recognise that the river system is a very strong interactive zone. There is a lot
of movement of boats up and down the river. The ability of our tags and
receivers to interface through that traffic
will be an important part of assessing how we can use acoustic receivers in the
river system into the future. This is a very important piece of work.
The acoustic receivers will have the ability to interact with our shark alert
network and expand real-time opportunities to advise people of the presence of
bull sharks within the river system. Importantly, it will provide research
information about the seasonality of bull shark populations, where they are
swimming, the aggregations and potential populations within the river system.
This is part of our ongoing approach to shark mitigation by building up a solid
evidence base and understanding of the patterns of behaviour of sharks that
might present a risk. The expanded network of combining this new system with
the VR2 receivers that already exist within the river for the juvenile tagging
program will help to improve knowledge about seasonal movements and the
abundance of bull sharks. It will also provide a better understanding of the
connectivity of bull shark populations and how they interact with each other.
The new system will also assess the efficiency of detection approaches,
including real-time detection in the river system. This is a very important
step forward in how we can manage risk issues within the rivers, which we know
are very popular and mean an awful lot to our communities along the river
system.
I am very pleased to also announce
that following the announcement that I made in February with the member for
Bicton that we are progressing down the track of putting in place the first
swimming enclosure on the river, which will be at Bicton Baths. That will
provide the first opportunity, in partnership with the City of Melville, for an
enclosed area of the river that will prevent access by sharks. The river system
is very different from ocean environments. I have written to other local
governments to assess their interest in looking at all forms of shark
mitigation, but particularly enclosure options, recognising that enclosure
options will not be suitable for every location in the river as a consequence
of river stream currents and boating interactions et cetera.
That is part of our program and we
will be looking very closely at any additional opportunities that might come
out of both the shark tagging program and the beach enclosure program to
improve safety. This is part of our evidence-based shark mitigation program. We
will continue to build our knowledge base and to do our very, very best to
understand shark behaviour and the risk of interaction with our communities and
with individuals who have taken to using our oceans and river system. We are
committed to looking at how we can inform the public and can make our waterways
as safe as possible.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.