Twice as effective as nets: shark-spotting drones to become ‘permanent fixture’ on Queensland beaches

State government says expanded use of shark nets and drum lines will continue despite evidence of deadly impact on other marine life

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Queensland will roll out shark-spotting drones to more beaches, after a major study found drones detected more than double the number of sharks caught in adjacent nets.

But while drones would become a permanent fixture" of the state's shark-control operations, the Department of Primary Industries said Queensland would continue to rely on traditional measures like nets and drum lines", despite evidence of their deadly impact on dolphins, whales, turtles and dugongs.