Fatal attack fuels shark protection debate
July 16, 2012
Questions are being asked as to whether the great white shark should remain a protected species following the weekend death of a surfer near Wedge Island, 160 kilometres north of Perth.
Surfer Ben Linden, 24, was fatally attacked about 100 metres offshore when he was attacked by what witnesses believe was a five-metre great white shark.
It is the fifth fatal shark attack in Western Australian waters in less than a year.
Western Austrakian Fisheries Minister Norman Moore says the trend is distressing and raises the question of whether great white sharks should still be protected.
Minister Moore told the ABC "we have allocated some $14 million extra to get a better understanding of the great white sharks and the reasons why the fatalities are occurring.
"I wonder if research might tell us that there are now ... greater number of great whites than ever before."
Minister Moore says he will write to the Federal Environment Minister Tony Burke to see if there is any evidence to show that the Great White shark population is increasing and, if there is, to lift the protective status.
Minister Moore added "they have been protected by the Commonwealth and by the state for about 20 years because they were considered to be a threatened species but, there seems to be a view that there's an increase in the number of great whites within our waters in recent times.
"This is a very distressing event and to add to the previous four fatalities, it is of great concern to me and to the fisheries department, indeed the Government as a whole.
"We have done everything so far in the last little while to deal with the issues as we understand them, but I'm open to any suggestions from anybody as to where we go to now, because we seriously have got a problem and this is a very distressing occurrence."
Sydney Aquarium scientist Martin Garwood says the number of attacks over the past year is "unusual".
Garwood told ABC News 24 "adventure sports and surfing in remote locations has gotten a lot more popular over the last decade.
"It is showing people are using the ocean in a broader sense than we ever used to and in much more remote locations.
"It is really more indicative how humans are using the ocean as opposed to the amount of sharks in this instance."
However, Garwood says there is no way to prove the deaths are not related to increasing shark numbers, as there is no reliable data on how many sharks are in the water, adding "one of the best suggestions that's come out of this is the Fisheries Minister potentially reassessing whether great sharks belong on the protected species list.
"That reassessment would involve an accurate population study specifically for Australia and the West Australian coast.
"Getting that up-to-date information would provide us all with whether or not there's more sharks and whether action needs to be taken."
Janita Enevoldsen from the Wilderness Society of Western Australia says taking the great white off the protected species list is not the right way to approach the problem.
Enevoldsen explains "we need to really understand them and not resort to the neanderthal reaction of a hunt and kill."
Western Australian Fisheries officers tried unsuccessfully to find the animal on Saturday and resumed the search on Sunday.
Beaches around Wedge Island remain closed.
Surfer Ben Linden, 24, was fatally attacked about 100 metres offshore when he was attacked by what witnesses believe was a five-metre great white shark.
It is the fifth fatal shark attack in Western Australian waters in less than a year.
Western Austrakian Fisheries Minister Norman Moore says the trend is distressing and raises the question of whether great white sharks should still be protected.
Minister Moore told the ABC "we have allocated some $14 million extra to get a better understanding of the great white sharks and the reasons why the fatalities are occurring.
"I wonder if research might tell us that there are now ... greater number of great whites than ever before."
Minister Moore says he will write to the Federal Environment Minister Tony Burke to see if there is any evidence to show that the Great White shark population is increasing and, if there is, to lift the protective status.
Minister Moore added "they have been protected by the Commonwealth and by the state for about 20 years because they were considered to be a threatened species but, there seems to be a view that there's an increase in the number of great whites within our waters in recent times.
"This is a very distressing event and to add to the previous four fatalities, it is of great concern to me and to the fisheries department, indeed the Government as a whole.
"We have done everything so far in the last little while to deal with the issues as we understand them, but I'm open to any suggestions from anybody as to where we go to now, because we seriously have got a problem and this is a very distressing occurrence."
Sydney Aquarium scientist Martin Garwood says the number of attacks over the past year is "unusual".
Garwood told ABC News 24 "adventure sports and surfing in remote locations has gotten a lot more popular over the last decade.
"It is showing people are using the ocean in a broader sense than we ever used to and in much more remote locations.
"It is really more indicative how humans are using the ocean as opposed to the amount of sharks in this instance."
However, Garwood says there is no way to prove the deaths are not related to increasing shark numbers, as there is no reliable data on how many sharks are in the water, adding "one of the best suggestions that's come out of this is the Fisheries Minister potentially reassessing whether great sharks belong on the protected species list.
"That reassessment would involve an accurate population study specifically for Australia and the West Australian coast.
"Getting that up-to-date information would provide us all with whether or not there's more sharks and whether action needs to be taken."
Janita Enevoldsen from the Wilderness Society of Western Australia says taking the great white off the protected species list is not the right way to approach the problem.
Enevoldsen explains "we need to really understand them and not resort to the neanderthal reaction of a hunt and kill."
Western Australian Fisheries officers tried unsuccessfully to find the animal on Saturday and resumed the search on Sunday.
Beaches around Wedge Island remain closed.
