Humane World for Animals corrects misinformation on shark net trials

14 AUGUST 2025 - SYDNEY

There have been false reports in the media that trial removals of shark nets in New South Wales are not going ahead. It is not clear where this misinformation has originated. 

The NSW Agriculture Minister, Tara Moriarty, wrote to three councils (Central Coast, Northern Beaches and Waverley) asking them to take part in the trials and choose one beach each where a shark net will not be installed during the upcoming shark net season (1 September 2025 – 31 March 2026).  

Councils were given until 22 August to respond.  

Councils have since requested assistance from the state government in the decision-making process, remarking that it is the state that has the responsibility and expertise on the Shark Meshing Program through the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development.  

However, all three councils have also expressed their desire to see the end of the use of shark nets and have not declined the invitation to participate in the trial. The government has also assured us that they have not withdrawn the trial. 

“In our conversations with mayors and councillors, they have shown a real desire to take part in the removal of shark nets. They are asking for assistance and clarity from the state government,” said Lawrence Chlebeck, marine biologist with Humane World for Animals.  

“Humane World for Animals urges the state government to make a clear statement about the trials to avoid ongoing misinformation.” 

The government initiated this trial following advice from its scientific committees and evidence that shark nets do not make beaches safer. 

Humane World has seen significant photographic evidence obtained under Freedom of Information which shows the animals caught in shark nets are attracting large sharks into shore for a feed. Images showing bite marks in entangled carcasses can be found here. 

“Shark nets are dangerous not only because they create a false sense of security but because the dead and dying animals caught in them serve to attract large sharks to the beach.”  

Notes to Image Editor: 

Media often mistakenly show pictures of shark net enclosures at harbour beaches to illustrate stories about shark culling nets. They are completely different apparatus. No one is campaigning to get rid of shark net enclosures. The shark nets at issue are the shark fishing gill nets the NSW Government installs in the summer 500 metres off shore of 51 ocean beaches. The shark culling nets are not barriers but are instead designed to catch and kill sharks and other wildlife. More than 40% of animals in the nets are caught on the inside. Humane World for Animals has images of shark culling nets and the wildlife caught in them here. 3D model images of the shark nets which cover only a small portion of the beach can be viewed here.