J-Bay, or more appropriately Jeffreys Bay in South Africa, is the home of the great white shark so it's hardly surprising that there was an encounter.

Despite the fact that Fanning said the shark became caught in his leg rope, media hysteria about the shark coming after him persists. The only "frenzied" attacks that have occurred in the past few weeks have been by the media, on sharks.

Much of the media's treatment of sharks is little more than sensationalism and highly inaccurate, particularly concerning well-known surfer Mick Fanning's recent shark encounter which, to his credit, he has attempted to put into context.

However, given that over the past 10 years up to 440 tonnes of sharks has been caught in the east coast Ocean Trap and Line Fishery and about a small amount caught recreationally (and that doesn't include the rest of Australia), it would be difficult to imagine that shark populations had increased. Likewise, globally, about 100 million sharks are killed annually, mainly for the fin trade and, in general, landings of sharks in fisheries and as bycatch have decreased. You do the maths.

People travel to South Africa hoping for just that. Given the length of time Fanning has been surfing, the fact that he has had only one encounter with a great white (anywhere in the world) is testament to the fact that sharks do not hunt humans. From the footage of Fanning's encounter, the shark was just as keen to get away from Fanning, as Fanning was to get away from it. Like the racism inherent in our society that recent events have brought into focus, the shark incidents on the north coast of NSW highlight the deep sense of entitlement Australians feel when it comes to the ocean.

Where do people get off thinking they have more right to the ocean than sharks? If you want to know why these incidents are occurring take a look at human behaviour, not the sharks' behaviour. What we clearly need is some factual public education on shark ecology and behaviour. That way, humans will have more of an understanding on why there are certain times they should stay out of the water.

The juvenile whites we've been seeing along the coast are here at this time every year. Juvenile sharks tend to prefer coastal habitats because they're less inclined to end up as prey for larger sharks that use offshore areas. They follow the whale migration and the large schools of fish that are abundant in the cooler months. These resources are imperative for the health of many shark populations. Without sharks in the ocean, marine food chains would collapse, which means the loss of a resource that humans have relied on since we walked out of Africa.

And congratulations are due to Ballina mayor David Wright who, despite concerted pressure, has put in place not the cheapest but the most effective, commonsense, non-lethal means of preventing shark incidents: beach closures and aerial surveillance.

I don't believe we have the right to immediately destroy something just because it frightens us. The sensible thing to do when something frightens you is to find out more about it, and keep your distance.