This case stopped the Queensland Government using baited drumlines to kill sharks in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.
The Queensland Government had operated a Shark Control Program (SCP) to kill sharks along the Queensland coast since the 1960s but, in 2009, was forced to reapply for approval under the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 (Cth).
The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) approved the Queensland Government’s application to renew the permit for the SCP but a conservation group, the Humane Society International (Australia), applied for review of this decision by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT).
The AAT found (at [94]):
The lethal component of the SCP does not reduce the risk of unprovoked shark interactions. The scientific evidence before us is overwhelming in this regard. Most compelling is the evidence of Associate Professor McPhee who gave evidence that he would never recommend a lethal program, and could never imagine advocating for a lethal shark program anywhere. He agreed that it was “highly plausible” that if the SCP became non-lethal tomorrow, we would see “no discernible change in unprovoked shark bites, in particular fatalities.”
On the basis of this finding in particular, the AAT limited the SCP to non-lethal take of sharks (with exceptions for euthanasia of injured sharks caught on drumlines that could not be released).
The Queensland Government appealed against the AAT’s decision on a number of alleged errors of law. The Full Court rejected all of these grounds and dismissed the appeal.
Key documents
Application in the AAT
- AAT decision stopping lethal component of the SCP: Humane Society International (Australia) Inc and Department of Agriculture & Fisheries (Qld) [2019] AATA 617 (2 April 2019).
Appeal to the Federal Court
- Grant of stay: State of Queensland (Department of Agriculture and Fisheries) v Humane Society International (Australia) Inc [2019] FCA 534 (12 April 2019).
- Full Court decision dismissing the appeal: State of Queensland (Department of Agriculture and Fisheries) v Humane Society International (Australia) Inc [2019] FCAFC 163 (18 September 2019).
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A dead shark hooked on a drumline off the coast of Magnetic Island in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.
Source: HSI / AAP / Brisbane Times
Media reports about this case
Queensland Government Kills Sharks, Faces Court Challenge, The Maritime Executive, 4 September 2018.
Green groups show photos of sharks left to die on Queensland drumlines, Brisbane Times, 18 March 2019.
Sharks caught on drum lines must be released, Federal Court rules, ABC News, 18 September 2019.
Queensland forced to stop marine park shark cull for now, but wants laws changed, ABC News, 18 September 2019.
Tourism industry says lethal shark control measures threaten Great Barrier Reef, The Guardian, 4 November 2019.