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June 5, 2026

Latest News

Push to slow traffic outside Coorabell Hall

The campaign to slow traffic on the short stretch of Coolamon Scenic Drive outside Coorabell Hall is gradually gathering momentum, with Byron Council supporting a lower speed limit despite advice the road may not meet state criteria.

Other News

Push to slow traffic outside Coorabell Hall

The campaign to slow traffic on the short stretch of Coolamon Scenic Drive outside Coorabell Hall is gradually gathering momentum, with Byron Council supporting a lower speed limit despite advice the road may not meet state criteria.

Crofton Rd to be fixed more than 4 years after damage

Another infrastructure repair project in response to damage caused by the Northern Rivers floods and landslides disasters more than four years ago has been announced.

Naturism

For decades, naturism has struggled with a strange communication barrier. Most naturist educational material contains nudity, which means it is...

Before The Shed falls silent…

Join the Nudge crew this Saturday for the season ten finale of Nudge Nudge Wink Wink (NNWW) in The Shed at the Billinudgel Hotel – bringing another unforgettable night of music, connection and community spirit to the Northern Rivers.

Rail trail funding 1

The Echo reports ‘fury’ over the federal government’s failure to fund the rail trail. I recall fury when government...

Latest chuckle of stand ups stake to the stage

After stepping away from the role for 12 months, Mandy Nolan returned to Byron Adult Education to teach what Mandy believes is the best, and possibly most successful stand up comedy course in the country. 

October 11, 2023

Byron Shire Echo issue 38.18 – October 11, 2023

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Local News | Comment | Letters | Byron Bay Film Festival | Articles | Fresh Eyes on Byron Bay | Good Taste | The Good Life | The Scoop | Soapbox | Crossword | Seven Entertainment | Gig Guide | Cinema | Echo Property | Property Business Directory | Service Directory | Classifieds | Sport | Backlash

In this Issue:

Byron Bay basketballers dominate conference after winning streak

The Byron Bay Beez senior men’s team has stamped its authority on the local Sunshine Conference by winning six of its last seven games, including a 91–64 win over the Lismore Storm last Saturday at the Cavanbah Centre.

Et tu, Mandy?

Russell Brand has yet to be charged with anything. Four anonymous women have apparently told their stories. Over the past few weeks there have been numerous stories, speculations and historical incidents smeared all over social media. Perhaps you should...

BayFM shortlisted for industry awards

BayFM has been nominated for three prestigious awards by the Community Broadcast Association Australia (CBAA), says station president, Ange Kent.

Deputy Mayor Ndiaye recognised 

Local government elections are still a year away, but Byron Shire Deputy Mayor, Sarah Ndiaye (Greens), is already asking passionate community members to consider running.

Scrivener reply

For questioning his opinions, John Scrivener has accused me of an ad hominem attack, implying I composed the heading ‘Scrivener’s Ukraine’. This is surely an ad hominem attack. I raised Wagner because it is almost certain that a Russian...

Soils ain’t soils

Now, if you were to build a 150-home residential site on a wetlands site (like the one proposed for West Ballina), you would obviously need to construct a very firm foundation for your project. Especially if it has recently...

MPs for Assange

We appreciate the initiative of the six cross-party parliamentarians who recently travelled to the United States to make direct representation to members of the American Congress on behalf of Australian citizen, journalist and publisher Julian Assange. A major objection...

When will it be fixed?

On August 8, 2018, while walking along Stuart Street, I tripped on the concrete footpath. Why did I trip and fall? Because part of the concrete was broken and protruding. An X-ray revealed I’d sustained a glenoid fracture. I...

Bunyip tops Ingenuity art prize

Prize winners were announced for the Ingenuity Sculpture Festival, held on Saturday at the Mullum Museum, located at 17 Myokum Street. 

Future housing plan ignores 2022 floods 

With 2022 flooding in Byron Shire and the North Coast at levels never seen before, the public will be asked by Council next week to comment on future housing plans without vital information included.

Can we walk together on this one?

I am part of the 96 per cent of Australians who probably won’t feel a thing after the referendum on Saturday. But four per cent will. They will know that their +50,000-year presence here is being recognised. What happens...

It is long past time to recognise and properly acknowledge the past and present experiences of First Nations peoples in Australia. For most of the time since 1788 right up to our lifetime, many Aboriginal people have had their...

Fellowship of the Voice

Noel Pearson says he is approaching the referendum results with a mixture of hope and terror. Terror obviously, because of the possibility that a ‘No’ result will intensify the division and racism stirred up by the ‘No’ campaign. As a...

Yes

‘Yes’ represents hope for the future and recognition of the potential to improve First Nations people’s lives by listening, respecting, and supporting self-determination. The Uluru Statement from the Heart and the Voice are a reasonable request from the peoples...

Bella and Elyse recognised for beach rescue

A mother screaming ‘save my baby!’ was all 18-year-old Elyse Partridge needed to propel her into Angels Beach’s wild, dark surf with her younger friend, Belana Broadley, ploughing ahead.

Reconstruction Authority yet to answer questions

The new CEO of the Reconstruction Authority, Simon Draper, is yet to answer questions put to him by The Echo, despite many weeks of promises from his latest communications manager that they would be.

If not now then when?

In 1901, when Australia’s Constitution was originally determined, there was no direct mention of First Nations people. In fact, it was designed to deliberately exclude us.

Feros hose down Brad’s claims at Bangalow facility 

A resident of Feros Care Residential Village Bangalow says that his time at the facility has become worse than it already was, since residents of Feros in Byron have been relocated there.

The ultimate ‘me’ movement

Apart from tragedy, what do the following three police siege deaths in the last 12 months have in common? 

Advance Australia where

Regarding Storylines: Advance Australia where? (3 December, 2020). Thank you Eli Cook for your well-written and positive article in The Echo. ♦ See Eli Cook’s If not now then when? My difficulty is, as a white person and being someone active...

Byron mayor seeks to retain secondary dwellings as permanent 

Byron Shire Mayor Michael Lyon is seeking councillor support at this Thursday’s meeting for a staff report that could identify how to ‘constrain the future use of a secondary dwelling for the purposes of providing affordable and/or permanent accommodation’.

Operation Save Wallum gains momentum

The campaign to preserve rare environmentally sensitive land in Brunswick Heads from becoming urban development is stepping up, after a big community event was held on Sunday at Paddock Project in Mullum. 

Mandy Nolans Soapbox: In the shadow of a coming referendum –...

On 15 October I hope this country wakes up with a ‘Yes’ for the Voice referendum. In putting forward my view, I have been savagely trolled. I’ve had some opportunistic ‘No’ people use my platform to prosecute their agenda. I have not gone on the page of ‘No’ supporters. I have not abused them. I have seen the proliferation of misinformation and the use of fear and conspiracy to inflame uncertainty and to keep Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people voiceless in our colonial system. So this week I have asked my nephew, Levi Murray, a Wakka Wakka/ Kubi Kubi man to share his insights.

The Voice – ‘Not sure, learn more’

Spending more than ten years living and working on several Aboriginal communities my heart says ‘Yes’. But… my head says ‘No’. Most governments and the Australian people want to help and stop the most awful situations happening on the...

Researching the Voice

Those voting ‘No’ in the referendum often claim they have done their own research. But can they explain why their research has led them to the complete opposite conclusion to that of people who have devoted much of their...

Temporary home for Queer Family after heated debate

Byron Shire Council has voted to provide struggling local LGBTQIA+ support service Queer Family Inc with temporary access to a Council-owned property at peppercorn rent, following an impassioned plea from the organisation and a lengthy debate over governance and fairness.

Naturism

For decades, naturism has struggled with a strange communication barrier. Most naturist educational material contains nudity, which means it is often automatically classified as NSFW...

Invisible elderly women

The 2026 Federal Budget has sent a clear, heartbreaking message to the senior women of the Tweed: you are invisible. While the treasurer boasted about...

$42m for ‘a few cyclists’

Fortunately, someone in the federal bureaucracy understands that spending $42m, or $2.8m per kilometre, of public money destroying a multi-billion-dollar rail line between Crabbes...