Middleton Beach shark barrier beyond repair

The Ellen Cove shark barrier will be removed in a matter of weeks with the City of Albany calling on the State Government to “chip in” for its replacement. City of Albany mayor Dennis Wellington said the City had been working to extend the life of the enclosure for as long as possible but it had deteriorated beyond repair. “We’ve spoken to our insurers about it and think the best action now is to take it out as we suspect it won’t stand up to winter storm swells any way,” he said. “So we’ll get it out over the next few weeks and start looking for a replacement.” Mr Wellington said the replacement would be an “expensive exercise”. The barrier was installed in early 2016 for a three-year trial, eight years after schoolteacher Jason Cull was attacked by a 4m white pointer in Ellen Cove. The existing barrier cost $340,000 when it was installed, of which the State Government provided $200,000. “We’re hopeful they’ll be able to chip in again and help us fund a new one,” Mr Wellington said. “We’ve had some positive conversation with them about that and we’ll continue to talk with the minister about funding.” Mr Wellington said the council’s aim was to have an enclosure back in the water “as soon as possible”. Fisheries Minister Peter Tinley said shark mitigation was a shared responsibility across the community with individuals, local and State governments “all having a role to play”. “I am currently awaiting correspondence from the mayor of the City of Albany in relation to the issues with its Middleton Beach shark barrier and will give due consideration to the council’s proposal once I have received that formal communication,” Mr Tinley said. The decision to remove the barrier was revealed at Tuesday’s council meeting where all but one councillor voted in support of an officer recommendation to lobby the State Government for funding for a replacement. Councillors also voted to start the tendering process. In a report put to council ahead of the meeting, City senior civil engineering officer Robert Westerberg said the existing enclosure had “exceeded the minimum life expectancy”. “Due to the unpredictable rate of deterioration of the enclosure, a complete replacement is now recommended to significantly reduce the risk of a major failure of the enclosure,” the report said.