16.5 C
Byron Shire
June 11, 2026

Latest News

School is the beating heart of Bruns

From floods to festivals, Brunswick Heads Public School has long the been the anchor of village life.

Other News

Byron stormwater strategy

Has anyone read the Engeny report supplied to Byron Council on the stormwater strategy for Byron Bay? There are several...

Missing man

Police are appealing for public assistance to locate a 35-year-old man missing from Tugun on the southern Gold Coast since 9 June.

Emergency departments buckling under pressure

Nurses working at emergency departments (ED) across the state are continuing to feel the effects of increased presentations and very unwell people coming through their doors, with the latest health snapshot painting a worrying picture of NSW public hospitals.

Nazi ideology crack down sees fines of up to $11,000

Reforms that crack down on conduct which indicates support for Nazi ideology has passed NSW parliament.

Two arrested after man dies

A man and woman have been arrested after a man died in Tweed Heads on Saturday morning.

Compassion missing

Predictably, Marianne McCormack (Letters, 3 June) chooses to ignore my personal claims that I am not a racist, to support...

January 29, 2025

Byron Shire Echo issue 39.34 – January 29, 2025

Download PDF (14MB)
Jump to:
Local News | Comment | Letters | Articles | Sing On Sign Up Enrolments | Good Taste | The Good Life | Soapbox | Crossword | Stars | Seven Entertainment | Gig Guide | Cinema | Classifieds | Community at Work | Service Directory | Echo Property | Property Business Directory | Backlash

In this Issue:

Road works to begin for Byron’s emergency services precinct

Road works to begin for Byron’s emergency services precinct

Keep an eye out for vulnerable shorebirds

State and local authorities are pleading with locals and visitors alike to take care not to disrupt the nesting activities of threatened shorebirds when they go to the beach and fragile estuarine environments this summer.

What did 800 locals say in Byron Shire Council’s CSP survey?

A ten-year plan ‘that reflects the visions, aspirations and needs of the community to guide Byron Shire Council’s work and priorities’ is on public exhibition until February 9. 

Flashmob returns for February 14

Every February 14, for the past 13 years, the annual V Day flashmob has taken place on Main Beach.

Neighbourhood Centre launch community conversations

The Mullumbimby and District Neighbourhood Centre (MDNC) are kicking off their community conversations for the year, called Mullum Together, which explores what matters to you most and what kind of community you want to live and participate in. 

Israel, antisemitism and distinguishing between the two

I can understand why the author of the back page of last week’s Echo seeks to remain anonymous. The sentiments expressed are racist, ignorant and puerile. Describing the rabid, hateful, increase of antisemitism in Australia as ‘reductionist name-calling of anyone...

Why war?

In reference to David Heilpern’s editorial, (Comment, January 15) Is land sharing the future? I would say that if we don’t learn how to share land as a species, we don’t have a future. In my unsophisticated brain the three...

Electoral inquiry

In discussions on TV, Senator Don Farrell, preparing the final report on the 2022 federal election, stated that he is a great supporter of the Westminster system. Surely that doesn’t mean that Australia should continue with an electoral system...

Editorial – Aspirational vs legal

Further to the page 4 report on Byron Shire Council’s Draft Community Strategic Plan (CSP) 2025, let’s look a little closer at how such documents are incorporated into improving our wonderful life in the much envied Byron Shire.

Calls for AUKUS to be scrapped

The Australian Greens are calling for the $73 billion AUKUS nuclear submarine deal with the UK and the US to be scrapped in favour of ‘building constructive relationships with our regional neighbours’, while spending the money on Australians’ needs instead.

New pharmacy vape regulations ineffective in NSW

A recent survey of pharmacies across New South Wales highlights the failure of the new regulations intended to make low-nicotine vapes (≤20mg/mL nicotine) available without a prescription as Schedule 3 medicines.

Family shocked by Wategos tree poisoning

For more than 45 years, an old Tuckeroo tree has stood resolutely beside the Roberts family home at Wategos.

Auld Lang Syne

I shrugged at the January 8 letter regarding the ‘boring’ New Year’s Eve in Byron because I thought the writer was so far off the mark it wasn’t worth responding to. But after ‘Joy to Byron Bay,’ in this...

Locals look at why they support the Labor party in Richmond...

At Justine Elliot’s campaign launch for Richmond on Saturday, January 18, Federal Treasurer, Dr Jim Chalmers, reiterated that Labor changes people’s lives now and into the future. He glowingly described Justine as an outcomes-focused, valuable member of the parliament...

cropped Trump 2.0

All men are now women in MAGA-land

Are you also reeling and feeling bewildered and shocked by the chaos of the times we are living through?

Seven-lot residential subdivision proposed for Federal Drive

In a move that may become more common in the town as demand for rural housing grows, the owner of the undulating greenfield site at 403 Federal Drive has sought to create a cluster of 2000m2 lots on the site.

Major storm havoc hits Byron Shire

A severe thunderstorm moved across the Northern Rivers from the south west last Thursday (January 23) morning. Extremely high winds caused extensive damage, with falling trees blocking roads, and homes and motor vehicles being damaged. Multiple lightning strikes cut electricity to...

A tail of Hannah’s mermaid journey

Swimmers at Christmas Beach got a rare treat last week.

Thank you

After 12 years as caretakers of Mullumbimby Showground, Margaret and Keith White and their beautiful dog Ollie, retire and leave Mullumbimby, at the end of January. Living on site saw them on duty 365 days every year. Their dedication...

Traffic lights – what’s the fuss?

The recent council decision to install traffic lights in Suffolk Park isn’t just about safety, it’s also about locality design. Why a speed reduction wasn’t proposed as an obvious, immediate option to improve safety isn’t clear. But it goes...

Rodeo ban

It seems that Simon has let his emotions get the better of some logic. There is little, if any, correlation between farming and the so-called sport of rodeo. In my many years of farm veterinary practice, I have yet...

Cartoon of the week – January 29

The letters deadline for The Echo is noon Friday. Letters longer than 200 words may be cut. The publication of letters is at the discretion of the letters editor.

Mandy Nolan’s Soapbox: A Bit Sharkey

The other day my friend said, ‘I don’t think I am going surfing today, the beach is a bit sharkey’. It’s something only people who live here, who know the water, say. I don’t think ‘sharkey’ is an official adjective that one can use to describe a body of water which contains said sharks. I don’t even know if it’s spelt with an ‘e’. But when someone who surfs everyday says the water is a bit sharkey – I don’t go in.

A novel cult classic

Set in beautiful and idyllic Byron Bay, the story centres around two young women whose fates are entwined through drug smuggling. Lucy Lush Box, a member of a cult known as The Movement, witnesses a drug deal on Tyagarah airstrip late one night.

Bangalow Koalas is having a laugh …

ngalow Koalas is having a laugh … and the Byron Shire-based environmental group wants everyone to join in the hilarity by grabbing a ticket to Seriously Funny, one-night-only comedy fundraiser on Thursday, February 6, at Bangalow’s A&I Hall.

Israel’s assault on Global Sumud Flotilla – a first-hand account

It hit me like a lightning strike. It was the latex gloves that did it. Those pale blue five fingered clinical sheaths made me want to vomit. Last Tuesday, having just been repatriated from my time on the Global Sumud Flotilla, I was at Tweed Valley Hospital getting a forensic medical examination for my sexual assault at the hands of the Israeli occupation forces.

Voters are not ‘always right’

The mantra ‘voters always get it right’ is repeated after every election by winners and losers. The decision of voters must be respected, blah, blah.

Lismore councillor pay rise divides chamber at June meeting

The sharpest debate from Lismore City Council's 9 June ordinary meeting saw a majority vote to increase councillor and mayoral fees, following a 3.7 per cent rise determined by the Local Government Remuneration Tribunal (LGRT) – a figure tied to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the 12 months to February 2026.

Here’s to the Flotilla

The Global Sumud Flotilla is about brave people doing exceptional things with skill, compassion, colour, spirit and gruff chutzpah. Would I leave my comfy chair...