NSW beaches to get dawn-to-dusk drone patrols in $34m anti-shark program

New South Wales is launching an expanded shark monitoring program, deploying drones for year-round, dawn-to-dusk patrols at 70 beaches across the state. The $34 million initiative, announced by NSW Premier Chris Minns, aims to bolster beachgoer confidence following a series of shark sightings and attacks.

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While no one can ever promise no shark interactions, this investment is about putting more eyes in the sky so we can spot sharks earlier and give people a clear heads-up when they’re in the water.

The program will cover all 38 of Sydney's ocean beaches and 32 additional beaches statewide, with increased monitoring during peak seasons and weekends. Surf Life Saving NSW, already experienced in drone surveillance, will manage the operations. Their chief executive, Steve Pearce, highlighted the drones' effectiveness, noting they have identified and prevented over 2,000 shark interactions with swimmers and surfers this year alone.

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having this year alone identified and prevented over 2000 sharks interacting with swimmers and surfers, and conducting over 100,000 flights

In addition to current drone technology, the funding will support trials of new artificial intelligence shark detection systems over the summer. Associate Professor Christopher Pepin-Neff from the University of Sydney described the AI integration as ambitious but urged realism about the technology's capabilities. He emphasized that increased drone presence will naturally lead to more discussion about sharks on beaches, likening the beach environment to the wild bush.

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But we need to be realistic about what drones can do and what they can’t do. With more drones in the air, that is going to mean sharks are discussed a lot more across Australian beaches. We need to treat the beach like the bush. It’s the wild.

The state government has resisted calls for a cull of protected species like great white sharks, opting instead for enhanced surveillance. Premier Minns stressed the vast migratory patterns of white sharks, suggesting that localized culling is not a viable solution. The initiative represents a significant investment in technology and resources to improve safety and manage human-shark interactions along the NSW coastline.

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the distances these [white] sharks travel are massive. It’s not like we can knock a few off and send a message to th