Several years ago, Han-de-Beaux and others started “Saving Norman,” a campaign to advocate for the removal of the nets. (Many Sydney residents refer to grey nurse sharks as “Norman,” a name coined by a local drone photographer).
In recent months, she’s given up most of her weekends to campaign for the removal of the nets, manning booths at local beaches to educate the public.
“People think they stretch the whole beach,” she says, but all shark nets in NSW span 150 meters (about 500 feet) and are just six meters tall.
Han-de-Beaux says that it’s been a year of progress. This summer, the frequency of net inspections went up to every two days from every three days, to increase the possibility of releasing entangled animals alive. (The previous summer, only 36% of the 255 creatures caught in the nets were released alive).
Other measures to protect accidental catch, like installing lights on the nets to deter turtles, were trialed. And in recent weeks, local officials have been posting signs warning the public of the early removal of the nets.
Now, a decision is expected from the New South Wales government on if the nets will go back in next September. Pepin-Neff estimates that the decision might be clear when the next state budget is announced, generally around June.
The government will consider feedback from the surveys it sent out to coastal councils, and other data as it develops its shark management program for the 2025 to 2026 season, according to Green. “Our program is evidence-based after many years of trials and research,” he added.
In the meantime, swimmers like Miller plan to keep taking to the water, nets or not, accepting the risk of entering a shark’s natural habitat.
“Every time I get in the ocean, I assume that there are sharks in there. It’s where they live,” she says. “We’d have to be super unlucky for something to go terribly wrong.”
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