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Byron Shire
June 24, 2026

Mark ‘Mono’ Stewart becomes a legend of NSW sport

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NSW budget and the Northern Rivers

The Minns government says it's handed down a budget which locks in major funding for North Coast health infrastructure, alongside targeted cost-of-living relief designed for regional households and disaster recovery, as locals continue to face higher costs.

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Tweed Water Alliance and the future of the region’s water

Community concern about large-scale water extraction in a quiet rural area, the use of heavy vehicle trucking on narrow, winding, country roads and unsustainable one-use bottling led to the formation of Tweed Water Alliance.

NSW budget and the Northern Rivers

The Minns government says it's handed down a budget which locks in major funding for North Coast health infrastructure, alongside targeted cost-of-living relief designed for regional households and disaster recovery, as locals continue to face higher costs.

Lismore shops enchanted for Lantern Parade

Winners of Lismore’s Enchanted Windows comp have been announced, with The Two Ravens taking top spot. The comp is part of the city's Lantern Parade, to be held this Saturday, 20 June.

NT Intervention

I refer to the NT Intervention article, Echo page 4, 17 June. Recent events in the Northern Territory (NT) would...

Cartoons of the week – 24 June, 2026

The Echo loves your letters and is proud to provide a community forum on the issues that matter most to our readers and the people of the NSW north coast. So don’t be a passive reader, send us your epistles.

Eclectic Selection for the week beginning 24 June 2026

Eclectic Selection: What’s on this week is a taste of some of the events that can be found in the Byron Shire and beyond this coming week.

Mark ‘Mono’ Stewart will be joining NSW sports greats when he is inducted into the NSW Hall of Champions in late November. Photo supplied

‘Mono’ (aka Mark Stewart), adaptive surfer from Byron Bay, will join other sporting legends from NSW on Monday, 24 November when he is accorded the NSW Hall of Champions Legend Status.

As a teenager, Mark ‘Mono’ Stewart played football and was a star striker, representing Northern NSW in the Tasman Cup. After a severe injury and an osteosarcoma (bone cancer) diagnosis, Mark lost his right leg at 15 years old.

Getting back in the surf at Byron

With the help of friends and family he got back in the surf when he was home from Sydney between treatments.

Mono has won gold eight times in the Australian Adaptive Surfing Championships, from 2016-2025.

Mono has an impressive medal tally of 33 gold, seven silver, and five bronze across a range of national and international competitions. He also has six World Titles across ISA and AASP professional platforms.

In 2021, Mono became the world’s oldest Para Surfing champion, winning the ISA World Adaptive Surfing Championships at Pismo Beach, California, at age 59. In 2023, he was the first adaptive surfer to get a perfect score with two 10-point rides in the final of an international event. This is only the fourth time any surfer has achieved the feat.

Mono will be one of five NSW sports greats to be inducted into the NSW Hall of Champions later this month.



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Appeal to locate missing woman

Police are appealing for public assistance to locate a woman missing from the Kempsey area.

Citizen science last line of defence for threatened species

Native forest logging is again in the spotlight in NSW, following Monday night’s Four Corners investigation into Forestry Corporation NSW’s failure to protect nationally endangered species.

Site confirmed for future high school at Pottsville

The NSW government says it has secured a site for a future high school in Pottsville, delivering on its commitment to future-proof public education for the growing Tweed community in the Northern Rivers.

Eleven winners at Byron Bay Herb Nursery

The Byron Bay Herb Nursery continues to create constructive pathways to achievement with twelve students from Byron Bay Herb Nursery’s disability support program recently graduating with a Certificate II in Horticulture.