SYDNEY, Australia - Drones will circle popular swimming spots in eastern
Australia and "listening stations" track tagged sharks as part of a
new strategy announced Sunday to keep beachgoers safe after a spate of bloody
attacks.
The country has one of the world's highest incidences of
shark attacks with 13 in New South Wales this year leaving one dead and seven
injured, threatening the beach tourism industry.
In response the nation's most populous state, which has
ruled out culling sharks, unveiled a five-year plan to address the issue,
including next-generation sonar systems and boosted aerial surveillance.
- The state's primary industries minister Niall Blair said the multi-faceted approach followed advice from experts attending a recent shark summit in Sydney and community consultation.
- "We are proud to be the first jurisdiction anywhere in the world to adopt an integrated approach toward keeping our beaches safe," he said.
The wide-ranging AUD16 million (RM49.13 million) plan to
protect swimmers and surfers, while minimizing harm to sharks, will see the
trial of drones to provide real-time vision, while boosting helicopter
surveillance.
The tagging of sharks will be stepped up, sonar detecting
buoys deployed and 20 "listening stations" built at known hot spots
using 4G technology to allow tagged animals to be monitored.
Source: The Sun Daily
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