Environmental groups and Illawarra Greens candidates say a shark net at deserted Garie Beach should be removed, after the only road access to the swimming spot closed almost a year ago.
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Marine wildlife organisation Sea Shepherd said the shark nets being used at the Royal National Park beach showed NSW's shark netting program to be "illogical", as it has been all but inaccessible since the road closed last March due to a landslide.
The damage to Garie Road is so extensive that even foot-traffic is banned, Sea Shepherd said, which means the beach is only accessible by a steep 90 minute hiking trail.
Surf life saving patrols have also been suspended, but the beach's shark net was redeployed as usual in September.
Sea Shepherd's Threatened Species Campaigner Lauren Sandeman called this a "ridiculous scenario" which "continued to indiscriminately harm and kill marine life while the beach itself remains empty of beach-goers".
"Lifeguards have been withdrawn, only passing hikers came through and garbage collection is cancelled - the rubbish pile that greets you on arrival is a testament to that," she said.
"The NSW Government has installed a killing device in the water knowing that no one is there."
Asked why the net should remain in place with the beach closed and inaccessible, a DPI spokesperson said Garie Beach was one of the 51 beaches that are netted under the Shark Meshing Program.
Managed jointly under the NSW Fisheries Management Act and the NSW Biodiversity Conservation Act, they said the program requires nets to be in place from 1 September - 30 April each year.
"A range of measures are used to reduce the impact of the nets on non-target species such as dolphin pingers, whale alarms and removing the nets over winter for the whale migration," the spokesperson said.
"The nets are also regularly inspected by program contractors. In recent years, there has been a steady increase in the number of animals released alive from the nets, from approximately 27 per cent to 42 per cent."
"Over the last 30 years, Garie Beach has had the highest catch of bull and tiger sharks, and the fourth highest catch of white sharks, which are the three target species of shark mitigation in NSW."
According to a report from the NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) detailing the Garie net's catch between September 2021 and April 2022, five of the animals caught there were target species.
There were two tiger sharks found dead (with another one released) and one bull shark and one white shark found dead.
The remaining animals killed in the net included five smooth hammerheads sharks, a green turtle, two southern eagle rays (with another found alive and released), two bronze whalers, a spinner shark and a shortfin mako shark.
Cooper Riach, the Greens candidate for Heathcote where Garie Beach is located, said his party wanted the Department of Primary Industries' exemption to kill threatened species in shark nets to be revoked.
"How many more innocent dolphins, turtles, rays, whales and other marine animals have to die before this government removes outdated and ineffective shark nets?," he said.
"The Greens are campaigning to remove shark nets from all beaches across NSW in favour of modern, more effective shark risk management."
Wollongong councillor and Greens candidate for the state election Cath Blakey said she planned to raise the shark net at Garie Beach at the next council meeting.
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Kate McIlwain
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
