OPINION: Only WE can decide on sharks

MY colleague Mark Furler can't believe the "stupidity” of anyone opposing traditional shark nets.

Picture: ScreenWest

MY colleague Mark Furler can't believe the "stupidity" of anyone opposing traditional shark nets.

He also asserts that Queensland is "decades ahead" of NSW when it comes to shark control.

Now I know Mark is a smart guy, as he is our group digital editor. He loves the latest new fangled thing and is Mr Technology.

Maybe he's not aware of the NSW Government's $16 million shark mitigation strategy that has included the roll out of such things as: aerial and coastal surveillance (including drones), 4G listening devices, shark tagging and alerts via a SharkSmart app, smart drum lines, clever buoys and the ill-fated roll-out of eco-friendly shark nets or barriers.

Some of this stuff has been a success, some of it has been a total failure and some of it we haven't really had a chance to fully assess yet.

Surely it is not stupid to try something new and Mark and many other tech-heads should appreciate NSW's lead on this matter.

The trouble seems to be ocean goers continue to get attacked on the Northern Rivers despite all the science, trials and best intentions.

People to the north and south of us are entitled to have an opinion, but only really the people who LIVE here can ultimately decide what measures should be introduced to protect us from sharks.

That's why over the coming days, weeks and months we want to tap into the community and present as many opinions as we can.

We need to test the temperature of our community on this unprecedented cluster of sharks.