[Greens-Media] Shark hunt off WA coast a drastic overreaction: Greens

[Redman, Chris (Sen R. Siewert)]

20th December 2014

Shark hunt off WA coast a drastic overreaction: Greens

The Australian Greens said today that the issuing of a catch and kill order for a white shark off Warnbro Sound is a drastic overreaction. 

"It is outrageous that the Government would be using the tagging system to hunt sharks off the WA coast," Senator Rachel Siewert, Australian Greens marine spokesperson said today.

"Preventative measures are in place and tracking and monitoring can continue. There's nothing to suggest it poses a threat and that this shark needs to be killed, simply for being in what the Government considers to be the wrong place at the wrong time.

"This sort of reckless catch and kill order shows the flaws in the deal reached between the WA and Federal Government over Colin Barnett's shark cull. 

"Ambiguity around imminent threat means the WA Government can issue catch and kill orders for this vulnerable species without proper scrutiny.

"Tagging and tracking sharks is not supposed to be used to kill them, but to better understand them.

"The WA Government needs to immediately revoke this catch and kill order," Senator Siewert concluded.