Scientists from the Mandurah Dolphin Research Project have pulled up what they’ve described as their “biggest piece of rubbish to date” from the Peel-Harvey Estuary.
The giant piece of net was found floating in the Mandurah Channel on Wednesday afternoon while the Murdoch university biologists undertook field work on the estuary’s dolphin population.
In a Facebook post the group said it looked like the net had been drifting for a while, as it was covered with barnacles and weed.
According to Clean Up Australia, ‘ghost fishing’, where abandoned fishing equipment is left to drift through waterways, can affect marine life for many years, and cause death to a number of marine life including fish, mammals, seabirds and turtles.
The Mandurah Dolphin Research Project team reminded people to take better care with their gear, stating: "Please remember to dispose of all your rubbish responsibly.”