Fishing-related injuries causing growing harm to WA waterbirds

Hon. Amanda Dorn MLC used a Member’s Statement in Parliament to highlight the growing number of Western Australian waterbirds suffering serious and preventable injuries from fishing hooks, line and discarded tackle.

Drawing on frontline data from volunteer-run Western Australian Seabird Rescue (WASR), Amanda highlighted an alarming 80 per cent increase in reported fishing-related injuries and entanglements in just 12 months, rising from 249 incidents to 451 between July 2025 and July 2026.

Swans, ducks and coots are increasingly among the birds being rescued, alongside pelicans, cormorants and gulls. Injuries can include deeply embedded hooks, fishing line wrapped around wings and legs, damaged tendons, severe infection and starvation. Many birds require weeks of veterinary treatment and some are so badly injured they must be euthanised.

Amanda also raised concerns about discarded fishing gear, disturbance to breeding wildlife and the way recreational activity is managed within environmentally sensitive urban wetlands. She called for greater consideration of WASR’s proposals, including clearer powers for local governments to restrict fishing in conservation wetlands, stronger enforcement and penalties, improved education and better protection of wildlife habitat.

She also paid tribute to WASR’s dedicated volunteers, whose frontline experience provides an important insight into the scale of preventable harm occurring in WA’s wetlands.