Opinion: What will it take for greenies to take shark danger seriously?

Almost a year to the day since Melbourne doctor Daniel Christidis was fatally mauled in the Whitsundays, the crown jewel in our tourism hub is more dangerous than ever, writes Peter Gleeson.

IT WAS Melbourne Cup Eve last year when young doctor Daniel Christidis was attacked by a shark in the Whitsundays, later dying from his horrific injuries.

Almost 12 months to the day, we’ve had two people badly hurt in separate shark attacks at Airlie Beach, the crown jewel in the Whitsundays tourism hub.

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What will it take for government, tourism and council leaders to stand up to greenies who are turning the turquoise waters of the Great Barrier Reef blood red?

This is complete madness. Forget the novel and movie Jaws. We have a new bestseller about to hit the bookstores.

On what was shaping as a bumper tourism season for the Whitsundays — finally back on its feet after being battered three years ago by Cyclone Debbie — the new book will be titled “how to kill a holiday hotspot’’.

And while businesses and resorts will suffer financially, the real victims here are the unsuspecting swimmers who are taking their lives into their own hands, in many instances oblivious to the danger that lurks beneath.

When people go into the beautiful sandy beaches on the Gold Coast for a swim over summer, they will be protected by 42km of shark nets and drumlines.

There hasn’t been a fatal shark attack along that strip in 65 years.

Just south of the Gold Coast is the greenie capital of Australia, Byron Bay.

It does not have shark nets or drumlines, and there have been four shark fatalities and dozens of attacks there in the past eight years.

Daniel Christidis died of his injuries after a shark attack a year ago.

In the Whitsundays, there have now been five shark attacks – one deadly – in the past 12 months.

Only a month ago, the Federal Court ruled that the Queensland Government did not have the right to use nets and drumlines to catch and kill sharks.

The Humane Society had successfully argued that the “lethal component’’ of the shark protection program – the nets and drumlines – did not reduce the risk of an unprovoked attack.

The courts have got this horribly wrong.

If the Humane Society was indeed humane, it would understand the grief and distress that is afforded to humans and their families when a shark attack occurs.

As the inevitable international coverage of this latest shark frenzy is circulated across CNN, the BBC and Al Jazeera, Brand Queensland takes a mauling.

The simple fact is travellers – whether international or domestic – are scared to enter the waters in the Whitsundays because they fear they may be attacked.

How many people have to die before the proper action is taken? Once again greenies and PC dilettantes are ruining our way of life.

If humans are the smartest species on the planet, we’re in big trouble.