Drone Trial Evidence Exposes the Failure of Queensland’s Shark Nets

The release of Queensland’s drone trial report last year marks a turning point in the shark safety debate. The report provides clear evidence that drones are a priceless beach safety tool, not only excelling at spotting sharks, but also beachgoers in distress. The raw data behind the report however also gave us new damning evidence regarding the lack of effectiveness of shark nets. We can now finally move beyond speculation, and examine verifiable evidence regarding the efficacy, or lack thereof, of shark nets as a public safety tool.

When the public drone report is paired with it’s raw shark sighting GPS data, omitted from the report but obtained by Envoy Foundation via Right to Information (RTI), the findings expose a fundamental flaw in the continued use of lethal Shark Control Program (SCP) equipment.

Our investigation of GPS shark sighting data focused not only on the success of the Queensland drone trial, but on where sharks are actually being detected in relation to shark nets.

Our analysis focused on seven key beaches where drone trials and shark nets operated concurrently:

• Rainbow Beach & Noosa Main Beach

• Alexandra Headland

• Gold Coast (Main Beach, Surfers Paradise, Kurrawa, and Burleigh)

By overlaying precise GPS shark sighting coordinates with the locations of deployed nets, the results were unequivocal. Shark nets do not keep sharks away from beaches, not only highlighting their ineffectiveness, but also highlighting the importance of drones. 

Drone Shark Sightings at Noosa, QLD

Across all seven beaches, over 95% of target¹ shark species detected by drones were observed on the beach side of the shark nets - the zone occupied by swimmers, surfers, and paddlers.

At Burleigh Beach, 100% of all sightings occurred on the beach side.

This data dismantles the central justification for shark nets: that they act as a barrier or deterrent, or they keep sharks away from swimmers or surfers. Instead, the evidence shows that sharks routinely bypass this equipment, occupying the very areas the SCP claims to protect. 

100% of Drone Sightings on Beach Side at Burleigh Beach, QLD

Drone Trial Positioning - Figure 3 [Queensland SharkSmart Drone Trial (2020 – 2024) Final Report]

A common defence of the lethal SCP gear is that drones are only operated approximately 400–500 metres parallel to the shoreline, primarily focusing on the beach side of the nets, so logically that is where they will spot most sharks. This argument ignores two key facts.

The drone flights use a 45 degree camera angle, they do no not look directly down, meaning they do not just look on their flightpath, but have a much broader view and can most certainly spot sharks outside of their flightpath.

Shark nets aim to keep people safe by removing sharks from the area (that is, catching and killing them) and preventing them from encountering swimmers. The sheer number of shark sightings inside SCP equipment shows this is a futile approach to beach safety, doomed to fail.

The government’s own data proves that target sharks are consistently present in the swimmer zone despite the presence of nets and drumlines. While the nets fail as barriers or deterrents of any kind, drones are successfully performing the exact tasks the SCP should be:

1. Real-time detection of potential threats.

2. Immediate situational awareness for lifeguards.

3. Non-lethal risk mitigation that doesn't damage the ecosystem.

It is important to note that a shark sighting does not automatically mean that there is an imminent risk of a bite. There is no evidence to suggest that any sighted shark was likely to want to interact with an ocean user. However, real-time detection allows surf lifesavers to make precautionary, informed beach safety decisions - including temporary water evacuations where appropriate. Throughout the space of the drone trial, the majority of the sharks sighted were on the beach side of the nets and drumlines, yet none of these sightings resulted in a shark bite, deeming the practical value of early drone detection and rapid response accordingly. 

The question is no longer whether shark nets are ineffective - the data has answered that.

The question is why Queensland continues to deploy them providing beachgoers with a false sense of security while proven, modern solutions are available but wildly underfunded, whilst disproven solutions are heavily overfunded. 

Stay connected with us on our socials and join our broadcasting channel for the latest updates, and - to address the persistent arguments used to justify shark culling, we have compiled a comprehensive, evidence-based e-document that debunks each claim; it is available as a free download!

*Queensland's SCP identifies seven target shark species. However, the RTI dataset did not consistently specify species beyond broad classifications such as “reef shark” or “whaler shark”. Thus, for the purposes of this analysis, we conservatively assumed that all sharks labelled as reef or whaler fell within the SCP’s own definition of target species. This assumption favours the SCP’s position rather than undermining it, in that even the other subspecies of reef/whaler sharks can be steel manned to be considered as ‘dangerous’.