news@sunshinecoastnews.com.au<\/a>.\u00a0You must include your name and suburb.<\/p>\n\u201cEntanglements cause significant stress and distress to the animals and can result in serious injury or death. These incidents are traumatic not only for the whales but also for the community members and responders who witness or are involved in rescue efforts.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is also important to recognise that whales in distress due to entanglement can attract sharks to the area, which may paradoxically increase, rather than reduce, risk to beachgoers. This raises legitimate questions about the effectiveness of static nets as a safety measure during peak whale movement periods.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cCouncil acknowledges and respects the state\u2019s strong emphasis on protecting beach users and maintaining public safety. This motion does not seek to weaken those protections, but rather to encourage the use of modern, evidence-based approaches that better balance human safety with animal welfare and environmental responsibility.<\/p>\n
\u201cSmart drumlines and other contemporary technologies are more targeted, enable rapid response and monitoring, and significantly reduce bycatch and harm to non-target species.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2025, the council requested that the minister consider a trial of alternative shark mitigation measures, with Noosa nominated as a suitable trial location, but the minister refused.<\/p>\n
\u201cSince that correspondence there has been further consultation and discussion across local government, including through the Local Government Association of Queensland, where a majority of councils have supported the investigation and use of alternative, non-lethal mitigation measures. This motion reflects that evolving position and renewed support for a carefully scoped, time-limited trial,\u201d the notice stated.<\/p>\n
Related stories<\/p>\n
\u201cLimiting this request to a three-month trial period, rather than the full season, provides a balanced and proportionate approach. It allows the state to evaluate the effectiveness of modern technologies during the highest-risk period for whale entanglements, while maintaining a strong focus on beach safety.<\/p>\n
\u201cProposing Noosa Main Beach as a trial location provides an opportunity for the state to test and assess these technologies in a high-use, high-visibility environment. Advocating for updated mitigation approaches demonstrates leadership in sustainable coastal management and reflects council\u2019s commitment to protecting marine life while continuing to prioritise the safety of residents and visitors alike.\u201d<\/p>\n
The motion prompted a lengthy and at-times passionate discussion after Mayor Frank Wilkie twice proposed amendments to Cr Lorentson\u2019s original notice.<\/p>\n
Cr Wilkie initially proposed to add \u201cto formulate a range of advocacy strategies not limited to letter writing to achieve the objective of a trial for shark net removal during whale migration season\u201d to the motion, which was rejected in a 4-3 vote.<\/p>\n
He then proposed to change his amendment to say \u201ccouncillors discuss a range of advocacy methods\u201d instead of \u201cformulate a range of advocacy strategies\u201d, prompting Cr Lorentson to respond.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are re-prosecuting an amendment that has just been voted against,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The second amendment was also rejected 4-3.<\/p>\n
The debate came days after a 12-year-old boy was left fighting for life after being mauled by a\u00a0shark\u00a0in Sydney\u2019s eastern suburbs.<\/p>\n
Sunday\u2019s attack was the first of four\u00a0shark\u00a0bites within three days in NSW, triggering widespread community concern and beach closures.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A local council will ask the state government to conduct a trial replacing shark nets with smart drumlines…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":432359,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[64,63,128,338],"class_list":["post-432358","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-science","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/432358","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=432358"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/432358\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/432359"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=432358"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=432358"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=432358"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}