21 May 2008

A two-tonne ghost net was hauled out of the water near Milman Island off Cape York as part of a multi-agency retrieval operation.

It took five field officers from the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Customs and the Water Police approximately nine hours to retrieve the ghost net from Christmas Reef.

Ghost nets are fishing nets that are either lost accidentally, deliberately discarded, or simply abandoned at sea; they travel with the ocean current and can damage the environment and vessels.

Mick Bishop from the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority praised the officers’ action in retrieving the ghost net that was reported by a trawler operator after the net became entangled in his vessel.

“This is a great example of Australian and Queensland Government agencies working together to rid the marine environment of a damaging ghost net,” he said.

“Removing this ghost net minimised any further risk it posed to the environment and vessels.

“This large mesh net is hundreds of metres long and weighs around two tonnes. It is believed to be Indonesian in origin.

“There’s evidence suggesting the net caused some environmental damage before it was detected. Large quantities of fish, some coral and at least one turtle carapace were entangled.

“While some ghost nets are nets that have been lost at sea, many of the nets in northern Australian waters appear to be from illegal foreign fishing vessels.

“While a range of organisations are working to address the problem and they’ve made some inroads, we’re relying on the community, particularly commercial operators in remote areas, to report any ghost nets they come across.”

Ghost nets are often nearly invisible in the dim light and can be left tangled on a rocky reef or drifting in the open sea, often partially or fully submerged.

They pose a significant threat to marine animals as they cannot be seen in the water. Ghost nets can entangle and kill animals like fish, dolphins, sea turtles, sharks, dugongs and seabirds.

Ghost nets can also cause significant damage to boats if they become entangled in propellers and engines. This can also lead to environmental damage and pollution by disabled vessels that run aground.

Mr Bishop said Indigenous rangers and a range of local organisations have also been proactively removing ghost nets from the west coast of Cape York.

Ghost nets posing a traffic or shipping hazard can be reported to the Australian Maritime Safety Authority on 1800 641 792.  Ghost nets found in the Marine Park can be reported to GBRMPA on (07) 3830 4919 (24-hrs).