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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

Echo Love Awards

Last Saturday night, Yuti and I had the privilege of attending the 40th anniversary celebration of The Echo. The trip...

Byron Council’s Sandhills Wetlands project takes first place at LG awards

The Sandhills Wetland restoration project in Byron Bay has won another major award, with Byron Shire Council taking first place at the Local Government Professionals 2026 NSW Excellence Awards.

Tweed Shire Council recognised at Local Government Excellence Awards

Tweed Shire Council has been recognised for its innovative approach to tackling incivility, winning the People, Workplace and Wellbeing Award at the 2026 Local Government Excellence Awards last night.

Threatened species protection in NSW overhauled

A "new, holistic approach to threatened species conservation" has been introduced by the NSW Labor government, reforming the Saving our Species program.

Struggling Byron businesses

I appreciate the difficulties facing Byron businesses regarding the drainage works, but with all due respect to those affected,...

Lismore City Council recognised for environmental leadership at LG awards

Lismore City Council has been recognised for outstanding achievement in environmental leadership, resilience and community infrastructure at the 2026 LG Professionals NSW Local Government Excellence Awards.

March 12, 2025

Byron Shire Echo issue 39.40 – March 12, 2025

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Local News | North Coast News | Comment | Letters | Articles | The Scoop | Good Taste | The Good Life | Seven Entertainment | Gig Guide | Cinema | Soapbox | Crossword | Stars | Classifieds | Community at Work | Service Directory | Echo Property | Property Business Directory | Backlash

In this Issue:

Waiting for the Great Leap Forward

As I anticipate my first encounter with a tropical cyclone, I find it hard to sit still and thoughts swirl through my mind like the winds in the storm.

Local midwife to improve maternal outcomes in PNG 

Local Murwillumbah midwife, Carolyn Hastie, is one of seven Australians volunteering their expertise in Papua New Guinea .

Former mayor battled to ‘Save the Tweed’

The former long-serving mayor of Tweed Shire, Max Boyd AM, has laid bare the decades-long struggle he, other councillors, and the community fought to stop corruption and over-development of their shire.

Beyond cruelty in public policy – how kindness and compassion can...

Upheaval, chaos, disruption. These are just a few of the words being applied to the Trump administration's barrage of policy changes.

Ousama is ready for work

After their home and livelihood were destroyed by civil war, Ousama Bloudani’s family have settled in Brunswick Heads.

Up in the air!

Letters in The Echo (March 5) criticising the conduct of councillors at the February 24 meeting concerning the proposed development at 57 Station Street were on the money. I witnessed the disgraceful behaviour of three particular councillors and suggest...

Councillors not listening

Two weeks ago I attended the residents’ meeting regarding the proposed Mullumbimby affordable housing development (on public land) bordering several local businesses. I was saddened to witness some of the councillors berating the residents for expressing their views on...

Station Street DA

I attended last week’s meeting about the proposed 57 Station Street development, which Council says will (might?) include 32 units for social and affordable housing, plus some shops but no parking or public toilets. Council says it is working...

Cyclones, elections and climate change

With Cyclone Alfred bearing down on South East Queensland and Northern NSW it’s opportune as we enter the leadup to the 2025 federal election, to raise yet again the issue of climate change. Sadly, the world is far off track...

A cautionary tale

I used a local electrician to install a new stove recently and he provided me with a handwritten invoice for $310 which I paid by bank transfer. However, I misread the 6 for an 8 on his account so...

Urgent changes needed to Early Drug Diversion program

It has been a year since the Early Drug Diversion Initiative (EDDI) came into effect in NSW and advocates have highlighted a number of ways the program can be improved.

Answers

I have asked numerous questions of the Byron Shire Council’s (BSC’s) executive staff and engineering without getting any real answers, let’s try again. What is the annual cost of exporting BSC’s landfill to elsewhere and the total cost of this...

Another Wategos mega-mansion?

Why? Why seek to clear protected littoral rainforest, excavate up to eight metres into the hillside to build two dwellings with multiple rooms and swimming pools which will probably only be used for a few weeks a year? Why pools...

Senate report highlights underfunded councils

A new federal government Senate report has highlighted the worsening skills and funding crisis facing local governments right across Australia.

A short history on successive governments’ lacklustre attempts at coastal protection

A government-funded study by coastal engineers into beach erosion from Byron Bay to Hastings Point warned of ongoing erosion 47 years ago, and urged governments to act to prevent further loss of property.

The public good in times of private bad

Cyclone Alfred would have been called Anthony until the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) wisely changed the name.

Vote for our kids’ future

Our children are looking to us. They see the fires, floods, and rising heat and ask: will our adults act in time? Right now, the answer isn’t good enough. Since coming to power, Labor has approved 32 new coal and...

Mullum hospital site

My wife and I have lived in Mullumbimby for 20 years. Many like us have come from somewhere else but in the process have left our families and old friends behind. Some of us have reached an age when...

Federal heritage protections rejected

Byron Council’s attempt to protect the character of Federal Village by introducing formally zoned heritage protections have received a negative response from landowners in the town and may now be abandoned.

Revisiting Alfred’s jaunt south

With the threat of further flooding now dissipated, an enormous cleanup job remains in the aftermath of Tropical Cyclone Alfred.

Greens outline disaster insurance plans

The cost of insurance and the behaviour of insurance companies looks set to become a major political issue in the wake of Tropical Cyclone Alfred.   

Can Bruns hold the weight of new gym’s expansion?

Should the new gym in Brunswick Heads be allowed to increase its capacity, despite not having completed parking arrangements at its busy Tweed Street location?

Attacks lack nuance

I really value The Echo. A big thank you to all the drudges. I’ve even chipped in lousy $5 a month through PressPatron for years. Part of your role is to hold power to account. It appears that you generally...

Remembering Cyclone Zoe, 1974

I was living at the end of Middle Pocket when Zoe hovered off Gladstone, with a big wet tail blowing easterly gales off the ocean for over a week. More than 1,500mm of rain fell in Byron Shire in...

Photo of the week – March 12, 2025

Letters to the editor 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...

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...