UPDATE: The Palm Beach Town council plans on taking the next few months to study whether to impose restrictions on chumming or shark fishing.
EARLIER:
The Town of Palm Beach is talking about the possibility of changing fishing regulations when it comes to how people catch shark. Town officials say shark fishing is affecting swimmers' safety.
Town officials fear there is so much bait being thrown into water close to shore that it's drawing in unwanted shark and could affect swimmers' safety.
When trying to catch shark, fishermen often paddle out in a kayak or on a surfboard to dump chum in the water. Chum is ground up fish or other animal pieces that attract shark.
"We're luring these animals near shore and we're inviting them to get closer to the individuals that are using the water," says Deputy Town Manager Jay Boodheshwar.
Boodheshwar adds that the town is receiving a lot of complaints from residents who worry about sharks infesting the water where their children swim. Town councilors will meet Thursday to discuss possibly banning or regulating chumming.
Marine Biologist and professor at Palm Beach Atlantic University Dr. Ray Waldner says new regulations probably wouldn't change much though.
"They're not going to go away if you stop fishing for them," Waldner says.
Waldner says chumming pull larger, more threatening types of shark closer to shore, like bull or tiger sharks. He says those aren't the kind usually involved in biting humans, however. Waldner says the smaller types of sharks that are involved in most of Florida's human-involved attacks will keep swimming close to shore, even if there isn't much bait in the water.
"Black tips and spinner sharks that are migrating through, they're probably going to be there no matter what," Waldner says.
