Council launches plan to save wildlife from fishing lines

WITH its vast array of rivers, lakes, and ocean foreshores, the Mid North Coast region is a magnet for those who love fishing; but there is a dark side to this which often goes unseen. 

Nylon fishing lines take 100 years to break down, and stainless-steel hooks take 50 years, making discarded fishing tackle a significant environmental issue.

A joint project has been launched involving Port Macquarie Hastings Council, FAWNA, and Ozfish to raise awareness of the issue and to encourage water users to be aware of the ongoing effect of line entanglements to local wildlife.

According to FAWNA, researchers from Griffith and Charles Darwin University have identified that fishing tackle litter poses the most lethal threat of all to coastal birds of prey including Ospreys, Sea-eagles and Brahminy Kites.

Vice President of FAWNA Kym Kilpatrick told News Of The Area, “all seabirds and wading birds, all marine animals such as turtles, dolphins, sharks, dugongs and whales can be caught in discarded nets and fishing tackle.

“And the result is almost inevitable. If they are lucky, they will have a significant injury, but more often it is a slow and painful death.

“In our rivers, platypus are also vulnerable to being caught up in discarded fishing lines and hooks – with terrible consequences.”

In the last two years the organisation has received 362 calls to assist birds that have been entangled in fishing line and hooks.

The capacity of fishhooks and line to cause severe injury to wildlife both on land and in the ocean is extreme; hooks can become embedded in skin, throats, eyes and beaks/mouths, ripping horrific wounds, causing internal injuries, slow starvation, infection, and poisoning.

The campaign includes posters and specialised fishing tackle waste bins in popular fishing locations.

For more information on the project or to volunteer contact Emma Kark at Ozfish on EmmaKark@ozfish.org.au.

By Rachael THORPE