jaybee
26-11-2003, 05:02 PM
ABC News
Last Update: Tuesday, November 25, 2003. 2:24pm (AEDT)
Sunshine Coast researcher says the Queensland State Government should re-think plans to toughen protection for the endangered grey nurse shark.
Community consultation closed last week on a Government proposal to prohibit fishing and diving in a number of grey nurse shark habitats in south-east Queensland, including a site off Wolf Rock, near Double-Island Point.
Marine biologist Julian Pepperell says the government is over-reacting, as the species' numbers may be far higher than current figures suggest.
"I think what's happened is there's been a knee jerk reaction to these current surveys," he said.
"They've actually mainly happened in NSW, it was a three-year period of surveys there using volunteer divers and the reaction to say, 'no fishing in areas where remnant shark populations exist', again is, to me a bit extreme."
Posted: Tue, 25 Nov 2003 10:31am AEST
Last Update: Tuesday, November 25, 2003. 2:24pm (AEDT)
Sunshine Coast researcher says the Queensland State Government should re-think plans to toughen protection for the endangered grey nurse shark.
Community consultation closed last week on a Government proposal to prohibit fishing and diving in a number of grey nurse shark habitats in south-east Queensland, including a site off Wolf Rock, near Double-Island Point.
Marine biologist Julian Pepperell says the government is over-reacting, as the species' numbers may be far higher than current figures suggest.
"I think what's happened is there's been a knee jerk reaction to these current surveys," he said.
"They've actually mainly happened in NSW, it was a three-year period of surveys there using volunteer divers and the reaction to say, 'no fishing in areas where remnant shark populations exist', again is, to me a bit extreme."
Posted: Tue, 25 Nov 2003 10:31am AEST