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Byron Shire
November 7, 2026

Latest News

Third person dies after Suffolk Park crash

A 70-year-old woman has died in hospital after a three-vehicle crash at Suffolk Park last weekend, bringing the death toll to three.

Other News

New Tweed Heads Hub backed by $3.8 million commitment

The newly opened Veteran and Family Hub at Tweed Heads will be backed by a renewed $3.8 million commitment from RSL NSW to sponsor veteran and family services, delivered by partner charity RSL LifeCare.

Byron proposes limits on putting residents’ personal information into AI

Byron Shire Council is proposing restrictions on entering residents’ personal and health information into artificial intelligence tools, with exceptions requiring an approved privacy assessment or the individual’s consent.

Lismore icon made homeless by NSW government

Well known Northern Rivers artist, musician and puppeteer Jimmy Willing is now living in a tent, having been evicted at short notice from the Joy Love Studio in North Lismore late last week.

Man charged over firearm and pursuit in a stolen car

NSW Police say a man – wanted by virtue of two outstanding warrants – has been charged after a firearm and stolen car were allegedly seized following a pursuit near Coraki.

Overland flood studies open for community feedback

Ballina Shire Council says it now has three new overland flood studies on public exhibition for community feedback. The studies cover Alstonville, Wardell and Lennox Head.

Walking the talk

Under the leadership of Labor’s Minister for the Environment, Hon. Penny Sharpe MLC, the NSW Parliament recently legislated several...
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September 10, 2025

Byron Shire Echo issue 40.14 – September 10, 2025

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

In this Issue:

Saltwood@Kinvara

Folks who argue that Saltwood’s 300 homes should not be built because it’s on flood land are playing right into the developer’s hands. This is exactly what the rich shareholders and developers – none of whom live here, but...

A new guide to help maintain water security in the future

Water: in the Northern Rivers there is often too much of the stuff – and at other times, there is just not enough…

New research: Aussie kids prefer real-life family time over screens

Ahead of social media age restrictions being enforced in Australia, surprising new research has found that more children aged 10 to 16 prefer to spend time with their families in-person compared to being online.

Rainbows and unicorns! Bruns clubhouse set for upgrades

The old clubhouse at the Brunswick Heads sporting fields is finally set to get a much-needed amenities upgrade.

Applications open for community grants

Grassroots community groups and not-for-profits across the Northern Rivers are invited to apply for the Northern Rivers Community Foundation’s (NRCF) 2025-2026 Annual Community Grants round.

Kerren recognised for service to Lennox public

Lennox Head identity, Kerren Kernaghan, recently returned from Sydney, where she received a prestigious award at Sydney Town Hall from the NSW Public Education Foundation.

Bruns photo comp entries open

The Brunswick Heads photo competition has been extended, with a closing date of Friday, September 19, at 4pm.

Giving Circle funds vital women’s work

The Women’s Giving Circle’s Grant Giving Night, held on September 4 at the Brunswick Picture House, saw the 2025 recipients being recognised for their valuable service, and the impact of collective giving across the Northern Rivers being celebrated.

1,000 Voices push to solve homelessness in Byron Shire

Community momentum is growing behind a homelessness project that aims to directly inform strategic decision-making and services in Byron Shire.

Decades of surveys show whale migration shift

As we near the end of the 2025 humpback whale migration, both north and south, a University of Queensland survey has revealed the peak of the southern migration of humpback whales down the east Australian coast is now weeks earlier than it was 21 years ago

Editorial – Dial before you dig

So discovering a sewer main underneath a major ‘affordable housing’ development in Mullumbimby – after five years of planning – is was what it took for Council staff to conclude it was an inappropriate site.

Introducing Daniel’s latest brushwork

The man behind all the murals in the lanes running off the main street of Mullumbimby, Daniel Hend, is nearing completion on his latest masterpiece

Reply to Len’s letter

In relation to Len Hend’s letter to the editor (Echo, 3.9.25), entitled ‘Kind words for China’ please allow me to submit some ‘unkind’ but factual words. Mr Hend stated, within his third paragraph, that we have been misinformed about human...

Gobsmacked

As a 22-year resident living on Coolamon Scenic Drive north (CSD Nth), I am gobsmacked that I have not received even one iota of information from Byron Council about this evergrowing plan to force every vehicle leaving Mullum...

AI fears overhyped

I read with interest the recent pieces about artificial intelligence (AI) in The Echo, particularly the concerns raised about ‘hunter-killer robots’ and AI apocalypse scenarios. I do not understand these fears, and feel that they are overhyped. Right here in...

Shire-wide playground overhaul planned

Some of the Shire’s most popular playgrounds, such as Apex Park in Mullumbimby and Piccabeen Park in Bangalow, would get significant upgrades under a new plan being developed by Byron Shire Council staff.

Large Mullum CBD DA all but ruled out

The discovery of sewer mains underneath a large ‘affordable housing’ proposal by government-run development corporation Landcom appears to have put a kibosh on the project.

Community consultation

Let’s talk community consultation. Are Council staff doing as much of this as they should? Seems there’s a backlash from folk who think they are not, especially in two key areas; the trial SEP in downtown Byron and the...

Promises, promises

Further to my letter of August 27, I wish to extend my observations on Labor lies. Anthony Albanese promised Australians that ‘all you need is your Medicare card, not a credit card’ and that it would be ‘fee free...

Wilful destruction

I just watched the most horrific 4 Corners program I’ve ever seen. It was about the wilful destruction of all Gaza’s hospitals and the systematic torture and murder of 1,500 medical staff, including more than 50 ‘specialist surgeons’. The...

Making excuses

So Danny Wakil is still making excuses for Israel. The current hostilities are not, repeat NOT, as he says an ‘Israel Hamas war’. The war didn’t start on October 7, 2023. It began 58 years ago with Israel’s illegal occupation...

War of words

There is certainty, that the law system has been created and made to be almost unquestionable, with the use of definitions upon definitions recurring. Entwined with existing laws upon laws recurring, that delve into the recorded history of previous laws,...

Mullum’s water to be sourced from Rous

Mullumbimby’s drinking water will be sourced from the Rous County Council mains supply, rather than the Lavertys Gap weir for at least the next year, possibly much longer, owing to concerns about Mullum’s ageing water treatment plant.

Crime spree hits Bruns – community piano destroyed

The much-loved community piano, located in the Bruns Soundshell, was burnt to the ground last Thursday night.

Mandy Nolan’s Soapbox: Why We Need Women Like You

‘We need to change how we think about food. About what we purchase and how we consume food. We need to look at what we are eating. There are so many benefits of seasonal eating – for our bodies and for the planet. By doing this we can reduce food waste. We can increase economic and environmental benefits, and we can improve food security for all Australians.’

NSW commits $3 million for Saddle Road sewer link

The NSW Government will spend $3 million on a sewer link for the Saddle Road housing precinct near Brunswick Heads, a connection it says could service up to 600 residential lots.

Blacks Drain crossing fully reopens after $2.56 million rebuild

The Blacks Drain crossing on Tweed Valley Way at South Murwillumbah has fully reopened after a $2.56 million rebuild designed to reduce the risk of another washout.

From Spinifex Country to Lismore for a $23,000 art prize

In Michelle Anderson’s Kanpala, circles of red, orange and yellow bring a place in Western Australia’s Spinifex Country into view. It’s a place she returns to often in paint: Kanpa, the Country where her grandmother was born.

Work starts on eight-lane athletics track in Lismore

Construction has begun on an eight-lane athletics track at Southern Cross University’s Lismore campus, giving Northern Rivers schools and clubs a competition-standard venue closer to home when it opens in mid-2027.