Key events
Chris Minns announces shark-spotting drone technology to patrol NSW beaches year-round
Shark-spotting drone technology will be deployed in New South Wales year-round under a state government investment that it says will be the largest expansion of aerial shark surveillance in the world.
On Sunday, the state government announced an additional $34m in drones, including using artificial intelligence, to scale up coverage across beaches in Sydney and along the state’s coast.
Around 70 beaches will be monitored 365 days of the year, prioritising areas with high numbers of users and where shark incidents have become more common.
This expanded monitoring will start 1 July and include year-round coverage across all Sydney beaches expanding from 26 to 38. There will also be two SharkSmart listening stations in Sydney harbour to alert swimmers to the presence of tagged sharks.
The premier, Chris Minns, said people should “feel confident” visiting the state’s beaches.
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. More drones in the air means we’re getting a better picture of what’s happening offshore and it means we’ll get better at seeing them.
Welcome to Sunday 28 June
Good morning, readers.
It’s Caitlin Cassidy here with you this Sunday morning, and we’re kicking things off with a major New South Wales state government scale-up in shark-spotting drone technology after mounting concern over rising shark bites in Australia.
The state’s premier, Chris Minns, just appeared on Sky News where he spruiked the program, which follows a shock shark attack at Sydney’s popular Coogee beach.
Let’s get started.