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Sunday 17th Feb – Drumlines or Dumblines?

17/02/201916

Sharks, some of the most perfectly constructed creatures in the whole of nature.

They have survived for over 200 million years.

Take away these apex predators of the ocean and we destroy the entire food chain.

Swimmers 574

Newbies 61

Temp 22.2

 

 

Redevelopment of Manly Surf Club

Alex Prendergast is the B&B representative on the steering committee overseeing the proposed redevelopment of the surf club. Alex has been asked to canvass the opinion of the B&B membership regarding improvements that we see would be beneficial to our group. So, now is your chance to have a say in this matter. If you have any suggestions, regarding the development can you please send them to Alex at openwater37@gmail.com.

DRUM LINES AT MANLY

SMART (Shark Management Alert in Real Time) drumlines will be trialled off Sydney beaches from Barrenjoey to Newport and from Dee Why to Manly as part of a three month trial.

From 10 February to 12 May 2019, 20 SMART drumlines will be trialled at Palm, Whale, Avalon, Bilgola, Newport, Manly, Queenscliff, Freshwater, Curl Curl and Dee Why beaches near existing shark nets.

This technology has achieved strong results on both the North and South Coast and will now be tested at some of the State’s most popular beaches. There is no intention to remove shark nets from Sydney, Wollongong or Newcastle beaches.

SMART drumlines allow contractors to humanely and safely catch sharks, tag them and then relocate them away from swimmers and surfers before releasing them. When a tagged shark is detected, the community is instantly alerted through the SharkSmart App and Twitter feeds.Watch the SMART drumline video

The drumlines will be set 500 metres offshore every morning (weather permitting) and collected at the end of each day. They consist of two buoys and a satellite-linked communications unit, which is attached to a hook baited with a single mullet.

DPI will host a series of community drop-in stands at trial beaches today and in the coming weeks to speak with locals about how SMART drumlines operate and share results from previous trials.

 


16 comments

  • Gemma

    17/02/2019 at 12:01 pm

    Awesomely awesome, Michael! Smiling swimmers, singing sharks and thought-provoking themes. Sheer brilliance.

  • Robyn

    17/02/2019 at 12:30 pm

    Thunderbird, you have excelled on this one. Terrific and very thought provoking. Absolutely fabulous.

  • Truth Fairy

    17/02/2019 at 5:09 pm

    Please take the time to look at the SMART drumline video to get the real story.

  • Thunderbird

    17/02/2019 at 5:41 pm

    This was never written as an opinion piece which is why the attempts to include humour. . I tried to keep tabloid reactionary attitudes out of it but do recocognise that it may initiate discussion due to the polarity of current viewpoints.

  • Thunderbird

    17/02/2019 at 5:42 pm

    This was never written as an opinion piece which is why the attempts to include humour. . I tried to keep tabloid reactionary attitudes out of it but do recocognise that it may initiate discussion due to the polarity of current viewpoints.

  • Shelley K

    17/02/2019 at 5:43 pm

    Now that’s what I call an action-packed blog

  • Lucy C

    18/02/2019 at 8:05 am

    Now that is a corker!! Excellent Michael!!! Love it!!

  • Lainey Loo

    18/02/2019 at 1:19 pm

    A masterpiece of a blog! Thank you Michael.
    I attended the Dumb line meeting yesterday and it really does sound such an incredible waste of money. We don’t have dangerous sharks in CTB but these baited lines could bring them in. We know other marine life will be harmed in this costly, futile experiment and so it could have a real impact on our marine reserve. Please email kim.wolfenden@dpi.nsw.gov. au to give feedback.

  • Inge

    19/02/2019 at 12:26 pm

    WOW Michael this is food for thought…. when I never really gave it much thought.
    Not only can you swim like a fish you can just put something this together…very impressive!

  • Michael S

    19/02/2019 at 12:39 pm

    Thank you. It was a labour of love as you never know how many people actually look at the blog.

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