The Byron Shire Echo – Issue 33.06 – July 18, 2018 by Echo Publications

THE BYRON SHIRE Volume 33 #06 Wednesday, July 18, 2018

www.echo.net.au

MASSIVE LIFT-OUT SPECIAL FEATURE

Phone 02 6684 1777 editor@echo.net.au adcopy@echo.net.au 23,200 copies every week

– CENTRE PAGES

M O S T S TA B L E A N D V E R Y G E N I U S S I N C E 1 9 8 6

Monsanto and you – p10

Cinema reviews with teeth – p44

Mungo – p12

Mandy What live music pontificates is playing around – p41 the Shire? – p45 Masterplan group reforms, positions available

Brunscape

Aslan Shand

The tenth anniversary of the Back to Brunswick Hot Rod Run was celebrated last weekend. Held in memory of Pete Chapouris, this year Pete’s son, Pete Chapouris IV, was a special guest. The event featured daily lunchtime cruises on Friday and Saturday, followed by Sunday’s annual show and shine, complete with a trophy presentation in the park opposite the Hotel Brunswick. More photos on echonetdaily.net.au. Photo Jeff ‘Bumpers’ Dawson

Ready for commercial expansion? Paul Bibby

Increasing the height and density of the Shire’s retail centres, and creating a new industrial estate next to the Bluesfest site are among the ideas being considered by Byron Council to increase employment opportunities in the Shire. The ideas contained in the Draft

Byron Shire Employment Land Strategy, commissioned by Council, focus on how to accommodate industrial, retail and commercial growth over the next 20 years. The plan, which goes on public exhibition on August 9, relates to land zoned for employment within the Byron local government area (LGA). It is based on research that

shows the current supply of zoned employment land in the Shire is insufficient for the future both in terms of industrial areas and business centres. ‘Delivering employment lands for a sustainable future will require some decisive actions by Council,’ the report states. This includes ‘improving the uti-

lisation of existing zoned employment land,’ and ‘securing a sustainable long-term supply of suitable employment land’. Jane Laverty, the head of the NSW Business Chamber’s northern rivers chapter, said Byron was ‘desperate for some more industrial land’. ‘There needs to be enough land continued on page 3

The Byron Masterplan Guidance Group (BMGG), who oversee improvements to the town on behalf of Council, will now employ an official executive and publish formal minutes, which will be published on the group’s Facebook page and uploaded onto Council’s website. It follows issues which arose late last year; Byron Shire Council staff were caught out when they tried to claim that the masterplan group had supported the removal of the Byron Environment Centre’s (BEC) rotunda from Railway Park. This was compounded by the removal of several trees in the park by staff without warning. The masterplan team insisted at the time that they had no knowledge of either plan, and in fact, are not an approving body for such works or decisions. It’s also been confirmed that developer Graham Dunn is now no longer a BMGG member. His membership to the group was brought into question after he lodged a massive $23.18m mixed residential/commercial DA for the town’s CBD. Meanwhile, BEC president and former councillor John Lazarus told The Echo he has been dissatisfied with Council’s transparency over the issues that plagued it late last year. He said, ‘I have continually asked Council to demonstrate the actual alleged community input that has resulted in the extension of the “three” storey area, the extension of the CBD to Butler Street, the potential redevelcontinued on page 2

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First mob celebrated Council budget approved

Feather was one of many around the nation last Thursday who celebrated the oldest continuous culture on the planet. National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee, through NAIDOC Day, plays an important part in raising awareness of the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Photo Jeff Dawson

Dead wallaby on Belongil Beach Paul Bibby

Mystery surrounds the death of a wallaby that was found on Belongil Beach on Thursday. The decapitated body of the animal was found by local man Steve Medcalf during his morning walk. Mr Medcalf checked the pouch which, thankfully, was empty.

‘Rigor mortis hadn’t set in so we think it was a fresh kill,’ Mr Medcalf said. He said there was some blood on the sand surrounding the body but believes the carcass may have been placed on the beach after it was killed. National Parks later inspected the animal’s body but told The Echo there was

‘no evidence indicating how the wallaby died’. ‘Attacks by dogs on wallabies have occurred previously in the Belongil area,’ a National Parks spokesperson said. ‘Residents and visitors at Belongil should make sure to keep their dogs under close control and make sure they observe the no dog areas’.

Major roadworks and construction are the focus of Council’s recently endorsed budget, with $41.3m being invested in infrastructure over 12 months, say staff. Newly appointed general manager Mark Arnold said there was ‘plenty of good news’ in the $120 million budget. ‘Our plan delivers on what the community told us its vision is and the Community Solutions Panel’s infrastructure priorities,’ Mr Arnold said. ‘This year’s budget puts these priorities into action – you’ll see an increased investment in road reconstruction, renewal and maintenance. ‘It’s also a great win for the environment, with funding for clean-energy projects and initiatives that will create a sustainable future for us all’. The budget is explained in

a Community Update being sent out with the next rates notice and it is also available on Council’s website. Staff have broken the budget down into 12 main areas of spending to show the breadth of works and services and what the costs are.

Breakdown The major spending commitment is clearly on infrastructure and the breakdown of every $100 spent by Council is: • $34 to major road works and construction • $10 to sewerage operations • $9 to parks, sportsfields, beaches and bush regeneration • $8 to maintain roads, bridges, footpaths and drains • $8 to recycling and waste services

Byron Masterplan group reforms continued from page 1

opment of the pool, First Sun caravan park, Lawson Street carpark, and housing development behind the library.’ Council staff told The Echo that they will be looking to fill

three positions on the BMGG in the coming months.

Members wanted Members who are interested in joining the group will be required to apply through

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2 July 18, 2018 The Byron Shire Echo

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• $7 to water operations • $7 to natural environment, planning and development • $7 to community buildings and pools • $5 to community services, libraries and childcare • $1 to emergency services • $2 enforcement and environmental health • $2 to administration and governance. ‘Importantly this is the second year of the special rate variation, which will provide an additional $2.276 million for asset renewal and maintenance,’ Mr Arnold said. ‘20.4 kilometres of roads are scheduled to be resealed and for the first time in current times Council will be investing $200,000 in a gravel re-sheet program and a further $200,000 in a heavypatch program,’ he added.

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Byron Shire Echo archives: www.echo.net.au/byron-echo

Local News

Suffolk Park gardens to be formalised Aslan Shand

Creating a community garden and increasing the native trees at 32 Red Bean Close in Suffolk Park is finally coming to fruition for Nicholas Hall, who has been unofficially managing the site for the last four years. Council is currently accepting submissions on the proposal until July 19 to license the lot for one year for general community use as ‘a natural area to the community regeneration of open space.’ The land was originally donated to the community by residents in the early stages of the Suffolk Park development, said Nicholas. ‘Fruit trees were planted by residents who donated the parcel of land to Council, and we since planted more fruit trees with Council’s go-ahead.’ Prior to the removal of 60 koala trees for the develop-

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Nicholas Hall with fellow gardener Lesharn Schuler. Photo Jeff ‘Garden Beds ‘n’ Pillows’ Dawson

ment of Sea Cliffs, Nicholas said there had been koala sightings in the area and at times 100 to 200 yellowtailed black cockatoos at the site. Now the cockatoos only appear in numbers of

about 10 to 20. Following the Sea Cliffs development, the developers ‘rehabilitated in the koalas’ best interest,’ said Nicholas. Currently there are six small vege patches approxi-

Employment precincts According to the report, the Shire’s employment precincts contain about 11.9ha of vacant land that remains available for employment purposes, which would accommodate a significant amount of the projected demand. However, a large part of this is the proposed industrial estate connected to the controversial West Byron development – a project that many locals hope will never come to fruition. Even with the addition of West Byron, there will still need to be an additional eight to 12 hectares of land for industrial purposes according to the report. The authors investigated five separate sites for this land, including sites at Billinudgel, Mullumbimby, Tyagarah and Bangalow. A number of the proposals are unlikely to be popular with local residents, particularly the idea of building a new industrial estate to the east of the Gulgan Road in-

Sites identified for industrial expansion in the Byron Shire According to Council’s Byron Shire Employment Land Strategy, lands that could be potentially developed or expanded include the Billinudgel industrial estate and the industrial area in Manns Road, Mullumbimby (to the west of the site). A new estate to the east of the Gulgan Road interchange at Tyagarah is suggested, as is a new estate on farmland to the west of the Gulgan Road interchange, Tyagarah. A new estate south of Bangalow Road east of the Pacific Highway is also proposed.

terchange at Tyagarah, right next to the Bluesfest site. The report notes that the site is ‘ecologically sensitive’ and includes ‘prime koala habitat’. It also raises the possibility of expanding into the Bluesfest site ‘in the long-term future’. The idea of expanding the Manns Road industrial estate in Mullumbimby could also stir local passions, given the flood-prone nature of the land and the fact that some of it is designated as ‘regionally specific farmland’. Ms Laverty questioned whether all of the new industrial land needed to be in the Byron Shire or whether ‘we can look at the northern rivers as a whole’. ‘Once you concrete over something you never get it back,’ she said. ‘If we take away the need to meet certain quotas in each LGA then… we can let go of the idea that we need to create the jobs in the place where someone lives. ‘We already know that

North Coast news daily: www.echonetdaily.net.au

many people are willing to travel 30 to 40 minutes to work in the northern rivers.’ The report also examined the potential to accommodate growth in the region’s existing business centres, stating that this would be needed to accommodate both the need for more jobs and greater retail demands from the Shire’s growing population. The authors recommended that this could be achieved through both the release of additional land around the business centres where possible and the ‘alteration of development controls’. The strategy suggests that Council consider increasing floor space ratio and height limits in Mullumbimby, Bangalow, Brunswick Heads, Billinudgel and Suffolk Park to the levels currently in place in Byron Bay. Such changes would have the potential to transform the look and feel of these centres, something recognised by the authors of the report.

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mately 1.5m by 2m, and Nicholas is keen to get other members of the community involved in the project. If you are interested in getting involved, contact Nicholas on 0448 934 423.

Commercial land expansion mooted continued from page 1 for some growth and enabling infrastructure to go with it,’ said Ms Laverty, formerly Byron Shire Council’s economic development and tourism coordinator. ‘But it needs to be done in a sustainable way that balances the interests of residents and the environment with the need for growth.’

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Ideas galore The report includes a number of other ideas to facilitate future jobs growth, including repurposing the railway line as an active transport corridor connecting Bangalow to Byron Bay town centre. Additional supermarkets for Mullumimby, Bangalow and Byron Bay are proposed as is increased residential density around Brunswick Heads town centre, and planning control incentives for live-work arrangements in Brunswick Heads.

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Byron Shire Echo archives: www.echo.net.au/byron-echo

Local News Byron escapes ‘fast-track’ townhouse code – for now Chris Dobney

Three north coast shires have avoided being required to implement a new state-based housing code that would require them to ‘fast-track’ two-storey apartment and townhouse proposals in urban residential areas within 20 days. Tweed, Byron and Ballina shires have been given a 12-month period of grace until July 1 next year. For all other local government areas, including Lismore, the Low Rise Medium Density Housing (MDH) Code commenced on July 6 this year. Under the new code, lowrise medium-density housing becomes a complying development if it is already permitted under a council’s local environmental plan (LEP). The delay in implementation will give councils time to re-examine their LEPs and make changes if necessary. For example, dual occupancy, manor house and multi-dwelling developments are currently permissible in the

R2 Low Density Residential Zone in the Tweed Shire. Tweed mayor Katie Milne said this would have been ‘a significant departure from the current levels of consultation and assessment for these more intense developments’.

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No chance for comment ‘I think anyone would be shocked to find a multidwelling apartment going up next to them without having a chance to comment or raise concerns about impacts on their amenity,’ Cr Milne said. ‘The deferral provides councils with 12 months to consider the application of the code in their residential areas and, if necessary, to pursue amendments to their LEPs to regulate or prohibit mediumdensity housing in locations where they do not want the Code to operate,’ she added. For further information visit www.planning.nsw.gov. au/Policy-and-Legislation/ Housing/Medium-DensityHousing.

Vitamins doco screens in Mullum, August 8 Vitamania: The Sense and Nonsense of Vitamins will be screened at the Mullumbimby Civic Hall on Wednesday August 8 from 7pm ahead of its broadcast on SBS TV. Following the screening, filmmaker Sonya Pemberton will be in conversation with ABC North Coast senior

Didn’t most arrive by boat?

features reporter Catherine Marciniak, along with audience questions. Pemberton asks, ‘How did a group of thirteen chemical compounds launch a global industry worth over one hundred billion dollars a year?’ Tickets are available from www.screenworks.com.au.

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Human rights campaigner/barrister Julian Burnside and filmmaker Judy Rymer screened their film Border Politics with a Q&A at the Brunswick Heads Picture House on Sunday. The doco explores the threat to human rights, the loss of democratic values and our increasingly heartless treatment of ‘the other’. Photo Jeff ‘Broader Than Politics’ Dawson

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Ballina anglers ‘re-snag’ Emigrant Creek A project that aims to restore Ballina’s Emigrant Creek after ongoing erosion and support healthy fish habitat is underway, says Zilla Gordon from OzFish Unlimited. OzFish Unlimited describe themselves as ‘a notfor-profit organisation dedicated to helping millions of Aussie recreational fishers take control of the health of their rivers, lakes and estuaries and shore up the future of the sport that we all love.’ Gordon says to combat decades of fish habitat loss, the creek will be re-snagged, which will produce more fish. ‘The re-snagging project involves introducing trees, branches and root mass back into Emigrant Creek that

over time grow algae, which helps support and attract crustaceans and, in turn, fish.’ Richmond Chapter president John Larsson said as snags are critically important for healthy fish communities the work is incredibly overdue. ‘For fish, this means the

area is not suitable to rest, breed or live,’ Mr Larsson said. With studies indicating that up to 70 per cent of the Richmond River’s fish habitat has been destroyed, OzFish Unlimited will be working hard to re-stabilise the riverbank, which is prone to slumping.

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HOTEL GREAT NORTHERN 6685 6454 | the northern.com.au The Byron Shire Echo July 18, 2018 5

Dear Residents, We wish to inform you that the SPLENDOUR IN THE GRASS music festival will be held at North Byron Parklands, Wooyung on THURSDAY 19, FRIDAY 20, SATURDAY 21 AND SUNDAY 22 OF JULY 2018 with camping patrons arriving from 10am Wednesday 18 July and departing by 5pm Monday 23 July. The approved hours of operation are 9am to midnight on Thursday 20 July and from 9am to 2am on Friday 20, Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 July 2018. Please note, music will commence from 11am. The main stages will cease operation at midnight. Audio testing will take place on Thursday 19 July during event hours.

COMMUNITY HOTLINE The Splendour in the Grass Community Hotline will be in operation from Wednesday 18 July to Monday 23 July inclusive. The hotline will be staffed during the event, and a recorded message service will operate outside of these hours. Please note, all calls to the Community Hotline are logged and recorded for quality purposes.

THE SPLENDOUR IN THE GRASS COMMUNITY HOTLINE NUMBER IS 02 6680 4049 Local residents with any parking, noise or litter concerns during the festival period should contact the Community Hotline and we will have our Community Response Team assist you. The Community Hotline is not to be used for general event enquiries. Residents can also email community@splendourinthegrass.com with any concerns. Any venue related enquiries can be directed to North Byron Parklands on community@northbyronparklands.com.

TRAFFIC A traffic management plan, prepared by an RMS accredited traffic engineer, has been developed in consultation with state and local regulatory authorities to help minimise the impact of this event on the local road network and the immediate areas surrounding North Byron Parklands. Changed traffic conditions include: • Temporary turning lanes along Tweed Valley Way into North Byron Parklands defined by delineation devices. This is to assist with the steady flow of through traffic. Please follow the directional signage. Please note traffic infrastructure will be in place from 9am Thursday 12 July and will be removed by 5pm Tuesday 24 July. • Reduced speed limits of 40km/h will be in place along Tweed Valley Way / Brunswick Valley Way commencing approx. 100m north of the Yelgun interchange continuing along Tweed Valley Way to 300m north of Jones Road, as well as on the Northbound and Southbound off ramps from the Pacific Motorway at the Yelgun interchange. • To manage potential illegal camping or parking in the immediate surrounds of North Byron Parklands, Local Resident Only access checkpoints will be in operation for Yelgun Road, Billinudgel Road and Jones Road at the Tweed Valley Way intersections. • Traffic control staff will be in place along Tweed Valley Way between the Yelgun Interchange and Jones Road. • All traffic control will be managed by RMS accredited traffic controllers. However, please be prepared for POSSIBLE SHORT DELAYS. • Camping patrons will begin to arrive from 10am on Wednesday 18 July and depart by 5pm Monday 23 July. • There is NO PEDESTRIAN access into North Byron Parklands.

PARKING • There is NO PARKING along Tweed Valley Way or in the streets surrounding North Byron Parklands. Special Event parking restrictions will be in place and Council parking enforcement officers will again be on patrol throughout the event. Council issued parking fines will apply. Please note that camping or sleeping in vehicles within the Byron and Tweed Shires is not permitted. The maximum penalty exceeds $1,000 in the Byron Shire. Council enforcement officers will be on patrol throughout the event period enforcing this regulation.

PEDESTRIAN ACCESS • There is NO PEDESTRIAN access into North Byron Parklands.

PATRON DROP OFF & PICK UP Please use the dedicated DROP OFF & PICK UP point located at North Byron Parklands. DO NOT Drop Off or Pick Up patrons along Tweed Valley Way or surrounding areas. This is dangerous for not only pedestrians and vehicles, but also causes trafﬁc delays. Fines apply.

FENCE JUMPING & TRESPASSING Any persons attempting to gain entry to the festival without a valid event ticket either on foot, by private vehicle, bus or other means is considered to be trespassing and therefore breaking the law. Under the Inclosed Lands Protections Act 1901 NSW Police will be issuing on the spot ﬁnes of $350 for trespassing, and trespassers will be evicted from the North Byron Parklands site. All persons travelling to the event via bus will be checked for a valid 2018 Event ticket or wristband prior to boarding and will not be allowed on the bus without this. We truly thank you for your patience and understanding, The Splendour in the Grass team 6 July 18, 2018 The Byron Shire Echo

Byron Shire Echo archives: www.echo.net.au/byron-echo

Local News Dozen koala deaths in three days Picture House looks to upgrade Chris Dobney

Friends of the Koala (FOK) reports that despite its campaign to prevent koala extinction on the north coast, 12 sick, injured and dead koalas were brought to its East Lismore care centre within the space of three days last week. Only two of the animals are still alive. Two of the dead animals were at peak breeding age, according to FOK president Ros Irwin. Marley, vet nurse at FOK, said of the remainder most

were infected with chlamydia and one adult male had suffered multiple dog attacks. Almost all were either dead on arrival or had to be euthanased. Just two animals, dubbed Glow and Eli, are in a condition to be re-released. One of the animals killed was collected by Bangalow Koalas president Linda Sparrow from Ewingsdale Road outside SAE, where it had been the victim of an ‘horrific car strike’. Ms Sparrow wrote an impassioned letter to Byron Shire

councillors demanding action on koala warning signage that she said has been long promised but not delivered.

Tweed land Koalas in the Tweed Shire may stand a slightly better chance, after the state government announced a further 40-hectare land purchase at Cudgera Creek Nature Reserve. This is in addition to a 100 hectare purchase announced six weeks ago at Cudgen Nature Reserve.

Another Byron growth forum planned Another forum to inform and discuss Byron Shire’s population and development growth will be held when the draft Residential Strategy goes on exhibition later in the year, according to Community Alliance for Byron Shire (CABS) president Matthew ‘Cleva’ O’Reilly. O’Reilly told The Echo the July 7 forum at the Byron Community Centre Cavanbah Room ‘was well attended with around 100 people from all different political and social groups represented.’ ‘The three hours allocated

were simply not enough to cover all the issues and there was strong support for a follow-up forum, which will be focused on solutions.’ Urban planner and policy analyst professor Nicole Gurran, realtor Chris Hanley and environmentalist Dailan Pugh all presented to the group at the July 7 forum. In Pugh’s presentation, he claimed that the dwelling targets of 104 per annum had been well exceeded since 2006/7. He said, ‘In just five years we have provided over half our 25-year target. Who in

their right mind would think we need more land releases? Byron Council, that’s who.’ Pugh says than in 2014, Council amended its Local Environment Plan (LEP) to allow secondary dwellings on all rural and urban lots (5,000 rural lots greater than one ha). ‘Then in 2016, the draft Rural Land Use Strategy proposed another six rural areas (2,732 ha) for large lot residential, multiple occupancy and community title developments. The result was 415 to 815 dwellings (370 – 740 around Main Arm and The Pocket).’

The Picture House’s Pete Castaldi, Chris Chen, MLC Ben Franklin and Brett Haylock met last week with supporters to discuss plans to seek a combination of government and private funding for renewal and improvements of the popular Brunswick Heads venue. An animated and passionate Franklin addressed the crowd, vowing to ‘give 100 per cent’ of his effort to support the venue’s funding applications. He told The Echo that the unique, creative venue was ‘exactly what this local area needs’. Photo Jeff ‘Picturesque’ Dawson

Ballina Airport expansion underway Construction of the Ballina Byron Gateway Airport Terminal expansion was launched Tuesday. Nationals parliamentary secretary for northern NSW Ben Franklin joined Ballina mayor David Wright for the

occasion. ‘The Ballina Byron Gateway Airport currently caters for up to 520,000 passengers each year, and this number is continuing to grow,’ Mr Franklin said. He said $4.5 million will

go towards expanding the terminal and increasing the size of the departure lounge. New toilet facilities, a new cafe, bar and retail outlet as well as energy-efficient design features will also be built. Completion is expected in 2019.

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Byron Shire Echo archives: www.echo.net.au/byron-echo

Local News

Making the switch away from plastic Aslan Shand

Byron Shire is leading the charge and is encouraging businesses to become plastic free. Plastic Free Byron is leading the campaign to reduce single-use plastics in the Shire with the Make the Switch campaign. Campaign co-ordinator Coral Latella says, ‘Currently, Plastic Free Byron are working within the food, markets and events sectors to reduce six key items that are commonly found in the litter stream.’ Plastic water bottles, straws, coffee cups and lids, takeaway containers, foodware (cutlery, cups, plates) and plastic bags are all being targeted for removal. Latella says, ‘All of these items have readily available reusable or compostable alternatives. Our job is to work with businesses to show them what the alternatives are and how they can get them’. In collaboration with Plastic Free Byron’s 31 Actions in 31 Days initiative for Plastic Free July, Make the Switch en-

APPOINTMENTS

‘[Plastic Free Byron] make it super easy to become aware of the plastic free alternatives that are available’ – Bayleaf Cafe manager Jesse Hamilton

Bayleaf Cafe’s Jane Baker and Jesse Hamilton. Photo supplied

courages individuals and businesses within the Byron community to take action against single-use plastics and sign up to the program today. Byron’s Bayleaf Cafe has already jumped on board and has been crowned a Plastic Free Champion for their actions. Manager Jesse Hamilton says, ‘These guys make it super easy to become aware of the plastic free alternatives that are available, and it’s

great to know the environment is better off from making these simple choices’. When a business becomes a champion they receive a unique sign that identifies them and a Champion listing on the website www.plasticfreebyron.com. ‘This system allows consumers to identify those businesses and choose to support them,’ said Latella. ‘People can make a real

difference by choosing to support these businesses and letting them know what a great job they’re doing.’ The ‘Make the Switch’ campaign was initiated by The Boomerang Alliance as the next step in achieving change away from plastic pollution, and is partnered with Byron Shire Council and many other local organisations, including Plastic Free Byron, Positive Change for Marine Life and North East Waste.

Get involved Any business is able to join. To find out more or to join, head to the website www.plasticfreebyron.com/ maketheswitch.

Fallout from failed disability service provider continues Aslan Shand

The collapse of the disability service provider FSG has led to clients being left without carers over the weekend and Monday. While the administrators, FTI Consulting, and CPL have been working out how to transition both staff and clients to CPL, frontline staff have been left confused about whether to show up for shifts and if they were going to be paid. According to one staff member, who didn’t want to be named, staff received a text on Thursday morn-

ing that informed them that if they weren’t going to accept the offer from CPL, they shouldn’t turn up to any future rostered shifts. In some cases this meant that staff had less than 48 hours to accept an employment offer. A CPL spokesperson stated, ‘Our understanding is that some staff did not show up – but that didn’t mean they were left without care’. The Echo understands that some clients were left without care, and in other instances staff, who were not accepting CPL’s offer, nonetheless showed up to ensure clients

weren’t left without care. This is despite not knowing if they were going to be paid. CPL and the administrators FTI Consulting have now confirmed with The Echo that FSG will continue to pay staff until midnight on Tuesday July 17, with CPL taking over the payroll on Wednesday July 18. ‘They have until midnight Tuesday July 17 to progress their employment with CPL,’ said a CPL spokesperson. ‘There has been quite a high number of people who have taken up employment with us. There will be further

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correspondence around pay and how they get paid.’

Payments A spokesperson for the administrators told The Echo, ‘Staff who have not had or have declined the offer from CPL will be paid out what they are owed in relation to wages’. However, requests for all other entitlements such as long-service leave (that can also be claimed by casual employees) need to be lodged with the administrators. ‘Outstanding entitlements will be paid in due course,’ the spokesperson said.

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Local/International News Pesticide use in Byron With the world’s first case against Monsanto’s weed killer Roundup underway, how does Byron Council manage pesticides in its open spaces? A draft management plan for pesticide use in the Byron Shire is now being finalised by Council staff, after public exhibition and workshops. On page three, the draft Integrated Pest Management (IPM) policy states it is ‘framed to guide pest management decision making with respect to pesticide cessation in some areas and minimisation in others; while also enabling a discretionary use by Council in either area if deemed necessary to meet its pest-management obligations.’ This includes the future development of a digital map that identifies the Pesticide Exclusion Zone and a Pesticide Minimisation Zone, ‘where pesticide use may remain a necessary and justifiable part of an integrated pest-management toolkit but is minimised on a continuous improvement basis.’ The policy will also provide pest-management training for employees, ‘including

pest identification, diagnostic skills and use of alternative pest-control methods.’ As for ceasing pesticide use, staff say Council is no longer spraying ‘all 34 children’s playgrounds, all 41 formal bus shelters, all 207 public garden beds and kerbs in town and village centres (excluding roundabouts), 70 per cent (or 15) of 23 sports fields that are permanently open to the public, roadsides where there is no safety or known biosecurity issue and the majority of public buildings (with respect to managing rodents).’ Council staff say public help is needed to identify areas Council can practically cease the use of pesticides and identify areas Council can practically minimise the use of pesticides. Additionally chemical-free volunteers are eradicating the invasive Bitou Bush along coastal dunes. Manager Open Spaces and Resource Recovery Michael Matthews told The Echo, ‘A significant amount of work has been done in the Tweed and Byron Shires since 2000 to contain and eradicate Bitou.’

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Monsanto faces mass lawsuit action over its weed killer Roundup Hans Lovejoy

A court case brought against agrochemical biotech corporation Monsanto by a dying man is underway in the US, and if won, it could possibly pave the way for others to sue the company for damages for the use of widely used weed killer Roundup. While Roundup is widely used and available in Australia to control weeds, countries such as Sri Lanka and Portugal have banned it, while European countries and North America are also moving to restrict its use. California’s Bay Area man and father of two, Dewayne Johnson, 46, alleges that exposure to the chemical led to his developing non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). His attorney told media Dewayne applied ‘Roundup 20 to 30 times per year while working as a pest manager for a county school system’. US investigative journalist and author Carey Gillam is blogging (bit.ly/2LbrfY5) the events as they unfold in the courtroom. Carey is also a guest speaker at this year’s Byron Writers Festival, held August 3 till 5. Remarkably her investigation into the company’s activities revealed so much information pertinent to the lawsuit that Monsanto asked the judge to keep her book Whitewash: The story of a weed killer, cancer and the corruption of science, out of supporting evidence cited by plaintiffs. Carey told The Echo her book ‘made the bestseller’s list by Publishers’ Weekly in Monsanto’s home town of St Louis, Missouri.’

Photo from March Against Monsanto

killer giant. The Society ‘We have lost a ‘Mons anto of Environmensought to have its tal Journalists much-needed internal records wrote of her sense of caution and communibook: ‘Even if Monsanto suc- surrounding these cations sealed from public view ceeds in dischemicals’ but the judge has crediting her – US investigative allowed many to work – which journalist/author be made part she maintains it Carey Gillam of the public has been trying record…’ to do to her and Monsanto became a subothers covering the glyphosate controversy – there’s sidiary of German corporate nothing wishy-washy about behemoth Bayer AG on June 8. This is a federal multidisthis book. She comes at one of the world’s most power- trict litigation, or MDL, which ful corporations hard and is similar to class action, but doesn’t hold back, something instead, individual cases are legions of other journalists heard and determined. And according to Carey’s have been reluctant to do.’ According to usrtk.org (US blog, establishing a jury has Right To Know), approximate- taken some time, owing to ly 4,000 plaintiffs have filed jurors either admitting they proceedings against the weed- believe glysophate to be a

poison or that they, or close family or friends have been personally affected by cancer. Yet according to Monsanto’s website, they say glyphosate has undergone ‘extensive testing and assessment to evaluate its safety for a wide range of herbicidal uses’ for more than four decades. The website reads, ‘widely circulated claims that glyphosate is the cause of a host of adverse effects are not supported by reliable science and in many cases are directly refuted by the large body of knowledge about this herbicide.’ Carey claims instead that ‘powerful and influential corporations have convinced policy makers that the risks to human and environmental health are well worth the rewards.’ She told sustainablepulse. com last month, ‘These corporations are consolidating and becoming ever more powerful, and are using their influence to push higher and higher levels of many dangerous pesticides into our lives, including into our food system. We’re allowing this corporate pursuit of profits [to take] priority over protection of the public.’

The roundup on Roundup International legal firm www.baumhedlundlaw. com claims that while the European Union (EU) hasn’t banned glyphosate, many EU countries are pushing for it or have restricted its use. Portugal prohibits the use of glyphosate in all public spaces and France is in the process of phasing it out.

Sri Lanka was the first country to issue a nationwide ban on glyphosate, while the Netherlands ‘banned all non-commercial use,’ and El Salvador and Bermuda have also banned its use. Many city councils throughout the US have banned or restrict its use, and Canada has restrictions

on its use also. In Australia, Roundup is freely available in supermarkets and hardware stores, yet NSW insurance body State Cover has ‘warned local councils to investigate other options to control weeds.’ Many councils in Australia are phasing out glyphosate or restricting its use.

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Byron Shire Echo archives: www.echo.net.au/byron-echo

Local News Sculptures needed for upcoming festival ducing art in public places,’ said Suvira McDonald from Creative Mullum, who are coordinating both the Spirit of Chincogan commission and the sculpture walk. ‘The course will equip aspiring public artists to prepare submissions for future projects in the Shire,’ said Suvira. The Spirit of Chincogan sculpture is being funded by Creative Mullum and the Mullumbimby Chamber of Commerce, and they are looking for a sculpture that explores the ‘histories and mythical interpretations of Mullumbimby’s landmark formation, Chincogan’. With rumours that Chincogan represents men’s genitalia, as well as it being the vantage spot that was used

Aslan Shand

Sculpture is taking root in Mullumbimby with the $30,000 Spirit of Chincogan commission currently seeking submissions to the inaugural Ingenuity Community Sculpture Festival, set to take place during the Mullum Music Festival later in the year. Both the Spirit of Chincogan and the Ingenuity Sculpture Festival are open for artists in the northern rivers to submit ideas to exhibit. Supporting the requests for submissions of public art, the Byron Community College is running a course on ‘Producing Public Art in Byron’ on July 21 and 28. This is an opportunity for artists who are ‘wishing to hone their skills for pro-

to sight approaching supply ships as they entered the Brunswick River, you can find out more information on the local landmark online a www.mullumsculpturewalk. com.au. Expressions of interest (EoI) for the sculptural piece can be submitted up until July 31 online. Three to five concepts will be shortlisted and have $500 to prepare a final concept design before being presented to a selection panel. The pieces for the inaugural Mullum sculpture festival will require an EoI to be submitted by August 31 with installation taking place on November 11 and 12. ‘A fundraiser for procurement of new work (for the sculpture walk) will kick off soon,’ said Suvira.

Truck plunges into Wilsons River police told The Echo the truck left the roadway and ploughed through a barbed-wire fence before hitting a tree and then plunging into the river. VRA and NSW Fire & Rescue attended the crash, which happened soon after 7pm. ‘There was a 3.5-tonne bobcat on the truck, which

Chris Dobney

A truck driver had a lucky escape after his vehicle left Bangalow Road and plunged cabin-first into the Wilsons River in a single-vehicle accident on Saturday evening (July 14). Chief Inspector Bobbie Cullen from Tweed-Byron

lurched forward and trapped the driver in the cabin,’ Ch Ins Cullen said, adding however that he was extracted safely from the crash ‘still conscious, soon after’. An Echo reader who passed the site of the accident said that man’s dog was not so lucky and died in the crash.

Paul about town

Local Paul Alidenes grew up milking cows and packing bananas out on Alidenes Road, Wilsons Creek. After the family sold the farm to the Clothiers, Paul moved into Mullum. Paul, a genuine locals’ ‘local’, lives next to the Punch and Daisy cafe in Stuart Street. You’ll often see him wandering the streets of Mullum among the latest model BMWs and SUVs, which are now the norm rather than beat-up old Fords or Toyotas in the Biggest Little Town in Australia. Caption and photo David Bradbury

Helping the homeless have warmer nights A campaign underway for Splendour campers to donate their unwanted camping gear at the end of the festival to those who can use it is being eagerly supported by Social Futures and On Track Community Programs (OTCP). Social Futures and OTCP will collect the donations, ensure they are cleaned, and distribute them to organisations who work with people experiencing homelessness in the northern rivers.

Festivalgoers can donate unwanted items including tents, sleeping bags, camping tables, blow-up mattresses, blankets and pillows at clearly marked drop-off points in the campground. Items that are in good condition, but are no longer needed, will be given a new lease on life, says Cathy Serventy from Social Futures. Every year the number of donations has been growing, said OTCP Homelessness Service manager Sarah Walker.

‘More and more socially conscious campers are leaving their gear packed up and ready to be re-homed,’ Walker said. If you, or someone you know, is experiencing or at risk of homelessness, contact Connecting Home on 6620 1800 or OTCP 1300 355 305. To donate to Connecting Home go to www.socialfutures.org.au/donate. It’s estimated 43,500 teenagers and young adults are homeless in Australia.

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Comment

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All that energy wasted on energy

Volume 33 #06

July 18, 2018

Disrupt this Advocates for disruptors on all sides of politics say the system is broken and needs a reboot. It’s an entirely reasonable assumption, given the weekly barrage of incompetence, greed and partisan behaviour on display from the elected elite. The US president is perhaps the most well-known disruptor, yet the outcomes of his leadership are catastrophic. So with disruptors being the new black, what better disruptive The nation’s chief scientist force could there be than Alan Finkel has a mind of political scientific consensus? epic proportions. If he had In the US, a new political a body like this, would he organisation aimed at bringing be a household name like ‘science, facts and reason back a Kardashian? to government’ is training scientists to become politicians. According to www.314action.org, they are the ‘largest resource for helping scientists run for office and win’, and have trained over 1,400 STEM professionals who are ready to campaign in upcoming elections. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. And it appears the perfect time for scientists to storm this country’s parliaments, too. Last week, like every other, there were numerous transgressions by political actors and their supporting buffoons. Long-term major party careerists and short-term populists are clearly the problem, mostly because they are either compromised by corporate donations and greed (major party careerists) or lack basic scientific and reasoning skills (shortterm populists). And even being an unpleasant political individual is becoming normalised – this must be stopped! For example, last week former One Nation media adviser Sean Black faced a jail sentence after being found guilty of rape and assault. Former One Nation senator Brian Burston told media Black was kept on as a party offical by Pauline Hanson despite being charged. Meanwhile, NSW Liberal MP Daryl Maguire is yet to resign from politics after he was caught discussing a cut he and a local councillor could pocket from the multimillion-dollar sale of a Sydney property to one of China’s biggest developers. These are not isolated cases; this is business as usual and it happens every week. Last week Liberal treasurer Scott Morrison decided to make his former chief of staff the new Treasury secretary, while another Liberal no-name hack was also given the plum job of Productivity Commission chair. Such positions should be of course non-political, like being chair of the NSW Joint Regional Planning Panel. Yet they aren’t. And this of course erodes public trust. So scientists, in all your self-doubt and awkwardness… step up! Democracy is falling in a heap because you aren’t in charge. Evidence-based reasoning as the foundation for legislation would surely be better than the current model. Hans Lovejoy, editor

ust when you might have thought you were getting a grip on the tin full of worms masquerading as the government’s energy policy, along comes yet another authoritative report. This one’s from Rod Sims of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, and, like almost all its predecessors, has a simple solution to most of the problems: up to 25 per cent off wholesale power prices almost immediately. There’s just one catch: like almost all its predecessors, the ACCC report requires endorsement from a lot of very fractious people, and the relatively few who have read it (still fewer of whom understand it) have already started squabbling, while the rest have never stopped: they are not going to let the facts spoil a good story. Most of what Sims recommends involves ending, or at least limiting, some of the more outrageous rip-offs from the energy companies, the generators, the wholesalers and the retailers, all of whom have done very nicely under the current system. Apart from asking why the hell that wasn’t done years ago, the public will no doubt applaud – if and when anything actually happens. But the ACCC idea that has caused the most angst is the suggestion that the government should underwrite a long-term floor price in return for new players – not the old, discredited providers – offering to fund and install new ‘dispatchable’ generators to ensure supply and price. Sims did not say it, but for the drowning miners of the far right that meant coal – and, like drowning cave dwellers, they grasped eagerly at the prospect, apparently aware that clean coal will float while dirty coal often sinks. And perhaps also aware that

no sane entrepreneur would fund new coal-powered stations even if generously bribed, the Nationals and the Liberals in the misnamed Monash Forum renewed their demands that Malcolm Turnbull get out there and fund a couple himself – not from his own money, although that would do, but from taxpayer funds. This is almost certainly not going to happen – but only almost, because Turnbull and his harassed minister, Josh Frydenberg, are desperate to get the energy issue settled one way or an-

and his rump, it is not supposed to be: for him the answer is not just coal, but the disruption it can engender, and energy has proved to be a very fertile field on which to wage his war. The states and territories are divided and unsatisfied, and although they may submit out of sheer exhaustion, they will continue to find loopholes to exploit their own agendas. Bill Shorten, assuming he reads the ACCC report – or even if he doesn’t – will continue to exploit the government’s divisions. And the Greens and their allies will,

For Tony Abbott and his rump… the answer is not just coal, but the disruption it can engender by Mungo MacCallum other before the summer break. And far from helping them find consensus, the ACCC report has actually complicated things further. The two Energiser bunnies had decided on their National Energy Guarantee, a fourth-rate compromise no-one really likes, but could just possibly be massaged through the conflicting interests of states, party rooms and parliaments. Some of the government’s spruikers are optimistic that the fix will hold, if only through attrition. After who knows how many iterations of energy policy announced in triumph and discarded in ignominy, at least this one sounds a little more likely: National Energy Guarantee, there’s a three-word slogan to cling to. Surely this can provide certainty to the market, the consumers and perhaps even the environment? Well, sorry: as we have seen so often, legislating for consensus may provide a temporary sugar hit, but is seldom a longterm solution. For Tony Abbott

as always, want more renewables and absolutely no new coal. In this context Turnbull and Frydenberg will have to decide whether to stick with the already heavily amended NEG – already vastly less efficient and economical than an emissions trading scheme, or even the compromise proposed by the chief scientist Alan Finkel – or tweak it in line with some of the recommendations from Sims’s report. This, of course, will be seen as yet more indecision, yet more dithering – but it needs to go to COAG next month, before finally emerging in the party room, and then presumably the parliament, in the last few weeks of the sitting year. And that’s where the real acrimony will begin. Turnbull is very keen on what he calls engineering and economics as the basis of his energy policy. But engineering is grounded in science, and economics at least pretends to be. The NEG is not – it is all

about politics. The Abbott mob simply reject the science of climate change – if they bother about it at all they find fringe dwellers to cherry pick the results that suit them. This is hardly a conservative position, but it is an immovable one: climate change is, in a very real sense, against their religion. Turnbull will not go that far; he insists the Paris agreements will stand and that emissions reduction has to be part of the NEG parcel. But while he accepts the theory of climate change, he refuses to face the consequences: serious action to ameliorate it. Instead, he temporises, procrastinates and in the end capitulates. And the only guarantee in the NEG is that it will solve very little. There may be a few less blackouts, some prices may eventually fall – marginally. But the climate wars, having been subsumed into the interminable culture wars that the right invented and now escalates at every opportunity will continue unless Turnbull either develops the gumption to stand up to his Neanderthals or surrenders entirely to them. The alternative, it appears, is yet another inquiry – the big one, a royal commission. As always, there is support for going nuclear, and given the precedents in industrial relations and child abuse, not to mention (and Turnbull would much prefer not to mention them) the banks, a royal commission action would certainly unearth a few convenient malefactors. But as Sims has pointed out, we already know what the problems are, now it’s time for the answers. Turnbull may finally acknowledge the need for real action. Or he may just declare victory and move on, the traditional solution to an insoluble dilemma.

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Letters Sour grapes

The Echo of 11 July, 2018 included an ad from Justine Elliot, Labor member for Richmond, opposing the West Byron development and a letter from local Greens party member Ian Cohen. The letter vented some sour grapes regarding Mrs Elliot’s opposition to the development. I am assuming that Ian is also opposed to the development, in which case I would have expected an expression of solidarity with the views of Mrs Elliot. If, on the other hand, he supported the development, his comments would be understandable. Either way, such remarks tend to the petulant and do not contribute to the antiWest Byron cause. Paddy Dawson Wilsons Creek

Go Adani! The sight of little children cheering on the Stop Adani Mine on the front page of The Echo two weeks ago was truly nauseating. In the process of brainwashing and manipulating their children I am sure those parents have not discussed the deaths of over a million

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Indian children each year through the ingestion of polluted air from cooking and heating fires. That the Adani coal is to be shipped to India to fuel new power plants to provide electrical power to those in need is of no interest to these parents. That children cannot attend school as they are needed to search for twigs and animal dung to fuel their home fires; who cares? They are going to die anyway. If Australia does not provide the coal it will be sourced elsewhere.

This is all about feeling good about ourselves and caring less for others. But wait, I forgot. The Green movement, who initiates these protests, believes the world is overpopulated so isn’t it good that a million little Indian children die each year to help keep the population increase down. Go outside and play with your new signs, kiddies, and leave Mummy and Daddy to feel good about their firstworld selves. Colin Clarke Ocean Shores

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If you are driving and you are concerned that you might hit Alfred as he walks on the public roads, then you are driving without enough awareness to stop yourself hitting other beings on the road too – pushbikes, pedestrians and wildlife. If you think you might hit Alfred then you will definitely be at risk of hitting an echidna, a wallaby, a snake, a possum and any number of native wildlife. Four koalas were killed in Ewingsdale just last week. My suggestion is to stop continued on next page

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Letters continued from page 13 looking for solutions to remove Alfred from the life he knows, causing him untold stress, and look to yourselves. Remember to live in a tolerant community, remember that your needs are not more important than the needs of other road users or any other creatures out there. If you remember to have care for ALL life outside your car, we might even see more cyclists braving the roads that are there for everyone to use. Slow down, chill out and have respect. You might get there a few minutes later and lower your stress levels at the same time. It’s a win-win situation. T Read Wilsons Creek

Sewerage issues On 21 June councillors approved a strategy from Water and Recycling (W&R) to address the Mullumbimby sewage inflow/infiltration issue with a trial of approx 20 properties at this stage to be connected to a Low Pressure Pump System (LPPS.) The scope of works has a budgetary allocation of $500,000 per year for the next five years ($2.5m). Between 2001 and 2009 $8 to $9 million dollars was spent on investigating this infiltration issue by W&R. The final conclusion by W&R was that the cause of the infiltration was faulty or illegal house connections. Letters were sent to over 700 property owners in Mullumbimby. Basically, those letters stated that Council had identified a problem with the sewer connection and the connection had to be brought into compliance or Council would carry out the repairs and charge them to the property owner. The only problem is after all of this expenditure the inflow/infiltration problem remains.

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North Coast news daily: W&R are now asking Council to allocate more of ratepayers’ money to carry out more trials. The proposed strategy is to perform tests on the 13 sewer pump stations to ‘improve data acquisition’. The capacity of sewer pumps in sewer pump stations is already known. Another part is to analyse where the worst inflow/infiltration is occurring. Existing wetand-dry weather pump run hours per catchment area should already be known to W&R. Trialling a LPPS will be a very expensive trial and it will tell us what W&R should already know! If this trial goes ahead, then in all probability W&R will leverage it to retrofit Mullumbimby with the LPPS. I hope councillors rescind this resolution at the August meeting and send the strategy back to the W&R Committee. Alan Dickens Brunswick Heads Q In

response to Paul Bibby’s article Opinion Divided over Sewer Trial (The Echo 10/7/18). There are three types of sewerage systems: Gravity, Vacuum, Pressure Discharge (or Low Pressure) Pump systems. Mullumbimby has a 55-year-old gravity system, consisting of old ceramic pipes that have been cracked for decades so that stormwater infiltrates the sewer system and overloads it, causing back-up into some residents’ toilets in heavy rain events. Byron Council investigated the relative merits of each system before phasing out septic toilets in New Brighton twenty years ago. Their findings were ‘A vacuum collection system is the preferred option’. Yet, for some strange reason, Council installed these pumps that their own study found to be inferior and unreliable!

And unreliable they have proven to be: Some pumps have had to be replaced multiple times within their life expectancy, most probably because of repeated failures in the grinders in the pumps. And New Brighton property owners have been unaware they have been footing the electricity charges for the pumps for years. Mullumbimby residents have not been consulted as to whether we want these pumps installed in our yards. Surely it is obvious given the cost of installing these pumps that it will not in fact be a trial, but a permanent ‘solution’. A comparative study such as was done for New Brighton needs to be done for Mullumbimby before anything is installed! Susan Skyvington Mullumbimby

To do nothing about climate change is an abrogation of their responsibility to ensure that our children have a safe and prosperous future. This means looking well beyond the short-term election cycle and taking the bold and often unpopular actions to deal with the biggest threat to mankind. How can the Turnbull government achieve this when its current emissions reduction target by 2030 is only 26 per cent? Even though Labor’s target is zero net emissions by 2050, how do they expect to achieve it if they continue to support new coal mines? The Greens are the only political party which is standing up against Adani with an energy policy that does not include coal. Lyn Dickinson Pottsville

The reef

Railway Park

According to the latest report from the Climate Council, the Great Barrier Reef could be hit with catastrophic bleaching every two years by 2034 under current greenhouse gas pollution levels. The frequency and intensity of these bleaching events does not allow enough time for the Reef to recover. Unless drastic and immediate action is taken, the world’s largest living wonder could be gone forever. Climate Council acting CEO Dr Martin Rice said that the future of coral reefs around the world depends on nations including Australia doing their part to effectively tackle climate change. He said we all have a part to play in cutting greenhouse gas pollution levels in order to protect these natural wonders. The only thing standing in the way is political will. It seems to me that most politicians are more concerned about protecting their voter base than the planet.

Seventeen years ago the Bluesfest folk and Paul McCarthy were told by Council that the deteriorating rotunda they had erected in Railway Park must be either enclosed and secured or removed. The Byron Environment Centre then took the opportunity to provide both a working shopfront for environmental issues and the creation of an art installation paying tribute to environmental and Indigenous respect, principles at the core of this region – and the BEC Rotunda was born. So now Council has come up with a new vision for Railway Park, and it’s clear that the upgrade design was envisaged without the Environment Centre’s presence. The rotunda messes with an urban imagery indistinguishable from other coastal towns. As one of his last acts of mayhem, our previous general manager unilaterally issued an eviction notice and

felled valuable trees that also interfered with their design plans. Clearly this was done without the mayor’s knowledge since, as soon as he was aware, Simon met with us and assured us of security of tenure. When asked if we would consider moving we explained that our preference was to stay put, but if necessary and a site of similar or better prominence could be found, then yes. But then came a mysterious process of bureaucracy, politics and political manoeuvring. The latest move is Council’s proposal to have the BEC’s rotunda put out to ‘Expressions of Interest’, that it needs to give equal access to other community groups. We find this proposal strange as the BEC Rotunda is already a community facility open to all, for whatever purpose that benefits the community. The BEC has yet to be offered as good or better a spot as we were promised by the mayor, but we’re certainly up for offers if we can help with their urban imagery. The choice is up to you, the community. Do you feel an art installation dedicated to environmental and Indigenous respect, in fact the only one in town, is an appropriate image for Byron? If so, where would you like it? Hidden in the shadows at the back of the bank near the dunnies or out in the sun and sparkling? Robin Harrison Binna Burra

Nude bathing More power to Ms Hawker for contesting her fine for bathing nude and to Magistrate Dunleavy for finding her actions were not calculated to cause offence etc. And yes, the police were just doing their job. But clearly the police should be going

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after those sad losers who like to shock people by masturbating in full public view, an act surely calculated to cause offence etc. Looking forward to seeing them named and shamed. Paul Rea Coorabell Q It was with something of a sense of relief that I read, in last week’s Echo, of Magistrate Dunlevy’s insightful and somewhat courageous decision to restate the definition of ‘offensive behaviour’. Importantly, in the process, he reminded our police that the onus of proof lies with them in these cases – merely issuing an Infringement Notice and expecting the accused to ‘roll over and pay up’ is not granting due process to the person being charged with what is, in fact, a serious offence. As someone, who, although not a ‘born and raised’ local has lived in this area since the early 1970s, and who, in those earlier years, was a sometimes naked beachgoer, I have been alarmed in recent times to see this resurgence of prurient patrolling of the beaches by carloads of police who, rather than protecting beachgoers from paedophiles and sexual predators seem to have been looking for opportunities to impose the sort of penalties Ms Hawker was ticketed with. Most concerning about this, and regularly overlooked, is that had Ms Hawker not defended herself against the charge and, instead, meekly pleaded guilty, she would now have, on her record, a conviction for offensive behaviour which, in the context of any future proceedings or application for employment in sensitive occupations (police officer or childcare worker for instance) conjures up visions continued on page 16

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Letters

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continued from page 14 of lewd or lascivious behaviour, far removed from the innocent skinny-dipping in the lake that was involved on the day in question. C ongratulations Ms Hawker – you have struck a blow for the individual’s rights in our society, have demonstrated the importance of the separation of powers between the executive branch of government and the independent judiciary and have somewhat restored my faith (and that of other readers) in that judicial process. Thanks! Graham Mathews Byron Bay

CHESS

by Ian Rogers The outlines of Magnus Carlsen’s world title defence against Fabiano Caruana are becoming clearer, with the unfortunate side-effect that the Norwegian Olympic team has been decapitated. With the Batumi Chess Olympiad little over a month before the World Championship match begins, Carlsen has withdrawn from the team and taken his main second, the new Norwegian Champion Jon-Ludwig Hammer, with him. Yet, unlike many earlier World Champions, Carlsen is not retreating to a training camp for months before his title defence. Next week he will compete in the Biel Chess Festival, an event he first won in 2007, when he was just an ambitious teenager. In September Carlsen will head to Saint Louis, having taken a wild card in the Sinquefield Cup. Saint Louis was the site of Caruana’s greatest tournament success – the 2014 Sinquefield Cup – and also the city to which Caruana was obliged to move after being

Telstra tower I’d like to know who has been tresspassing on properties in Wilsons Creek to drop off propaganda material. My CCTV has you on my deck and clearly with no-one home you proceed to check out the rest of the place. Considering the recent break-ins and the thieves’ modus operandi of making preliminary ‘I’m lost’ enquiries at homes, you’re running a very fine line. I also understand that another overnight expert handing out petitions became outraged and aggressive toward a local who had just rejected bought from Italy a year later. After Saint Louis all the competitors except Carlsen will head to Batumi to represent their country, whereas Carlsen has decided instead to prepare for the title match and then make a cameo appearance at the European Club Cup in Greece just weeks before the match begins. Caruana, who has won more tournaments than Carlsen this year, has contented himself with two serious events – Saint Louis and Batumi – spending the rest of his time making sure he is in peak condition. Grandmasters are evenly split over the likely winner, Carlsen’s variable form and struggles in his previous title defence weighing heavily. Carlsen may have had good recent head-to-head results against Caruana but Carlsen’s younger challenger has beaten him on multiple occasions and has enjoyed fine form in 2018. In addition, there will be a little extra local pressure on Carlsen: having skipped representing Norway at the Olympiad, for Carlsen to lose the World Championship title as well would be unforgivable.

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their diatribe about how the Telstra tower is going to kill us all. Listening to you talk is my choice and not your right so get over yourself and earn the right to be heard. The basis of the ‘no’ argument is fundamentally flawed. It’s so tiring to hear yet another typical, ‘find the right scientist and you’ll get the right answer’ strategy. Most are blind to logic and quickly play the ‘I’m offended’ card when pure logic and facts are offered toward your theories. If this tower does not go ahead there will be blood on the hands of the nimbys when a death occurs as a result of our third-world standard communications being a contributing factor. Brendon Luke Wilsons Creek

Koala habitat How hard can it be to restore the koala population in the Shire? The council provides the trees, stakes and bags, property owners put their hands up giving permission for corridor and food trees to be planted on their land, and every day ‘we’ go and have beautiful time together planting the trees! Let’s give the koalas a chance to live safely with humans again starting with caring enough to help them by rebuilding the habitat we have so selfishly destroyed. Iris Nunn Brunswick Heads

Beached whale The recent removal from Tallow Beach of a juvenile humpback whale within a

day of it being found reminds me of how much we (councils etc) play into the hands of those who can’t abide nature as it exists. Whales die. Fact. Whales get eaten. Fact. Whales get washed ashore. It’s all a part of how nature operates. I assume a lot of people come to Byron Bay for the experience of a lovely ‘Gold Coast free’ environment, including watching whales. It seems that many come for a confected and sanitised version. Council’s decision to remove the whale carcass reflected an obsession with removing all evidence of real nature. It claimed that the removal was necessary because of the potential for disease and attraction to sharks. No, Council, you removed it because you pandered to the squeamish who want their beaches swept and vacuumed before they step onto them. So please ask those who want ‘pristine’ to contribute to the expense of the cleanup. Neil Matterson Byron Bay

Refugees July 19 is indeed a dark day in Australia’s history. In 2014 Kevin Rudd announced that from that date boat people seeking asylum in Australia would be incarcerated in offshore detention on Nauru and Manus Island, denying them the right to come to Australia. July 19 2018 marks five years since its implementation and 16 young men aged from 23 to 34 have died as a result.

They were someone’s child, brother, husband, father, uncle, nephew, or friend. They did not deserve to die from Australia’s cruelty. They broke no law and sought our assistance, which we are obliged to give. We have an out-of-sight, outof-mind refugee policy and ignore our responsibilities. Julie Bishop when reaffirming Australia’s commitment to the Paris climate accord stated that ‘Australia plays by the rules. If we sign an agreement we stick to an agreement.’ The 16 deaths in offshore detention put the lie to this. Show you care. Support the #fiveyearstoolong action. Evacuate Manus and Nauru now. Meg Pickup Ballina

Rail line If the Casino to Murwillumbah railway line is ripped up to make way for a bike path it means this unique and wonderful corridor of land would be taken away from the majority of the public and given to a small number of cyclists who have the money, inclination and fitness. In the Parliamentary Inquiry, Mr Maloney, the former coordinator of Tweed Byron Ballina Community Transport, submitted that the rail line between Lismore and Murwillumbah is the ‘jewel in the crown’ of the north coast: ‘This rail journey travelled during the day meanders through some of the most scenic countryside in Australia,’ he said. If rail services were returned we could have one of

netdaily.net.au the best tourist trains in the world. Our current politicians seem unable to understand this simple truth so at the next election we need to vote for a representative who recognises the incredible beauty of the northern rivers. Beth Shelley Booerie Creek

Gaza

Falling off a ladder and breaking my hip at age 76 is no joke. I am yet another statistic as 70 per cent of falls involve men aged 45 and over. Having braved a cadetship in the Merchant Navy, faced off with the UN against the Young Boy militia in East Timor and being a keen ocean swimmer, I thought myself ‘invincible’. Wrong! Fortunately I was injured in Byron Bay and not Gaza where I would have been lumped together with the other 14,600 victims of Israel’s killer sharpshooters. I have the highest praise for the medical staff at Byron Bay and Tweed Heads hospitals and for the ambulance paramedics who attended me. Unlike in Gaza where Israel has blocked anaesthetics and opiate painkillers, I did not writhe in agony. If complications arose I knew I could be transferred to other hospitals, but in Gaza, Israel prevents the injured from seeking treatment elsewhere and consequently hundreds of young men have had their injured limbs amputated. For how much longer, Mr Turnbull and Mr Shorten, will you continue to claim Israel as Australia’s bosom

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Letters/Articles Linus Platt and the importance of wilderness Story and Photo David Lisle

On the window sill of a house in Haines, Alaska, is a faded picture of two children gazing up at a thickset man dressed in dark trousers and a white singlet. He has huge arms and is holding a 1911 Colt .45. The man looks a lot like my friend Linus Platt — it’s his father. Back in the day, old man Platt would take the kids out into the Nevada desert. They’d camp under a ragged tarp, ride motorbikes, shoot guns, and forage for old arrows. These were not typical childhood holidays, and they instilled in Linus a love of the outdoors, stoked his sense of adventure, and fostered a distain for the mundane. Linus also inherited his father’s impressive physique; which helped when he progressed from motorbike hooning to rock climbing and mountaineering. His youth was a highstakes game of daring ascents of difficult and obscure routes. Unlike many of his peers, Linus survived. These days Linus is an all-round adventurer. He recently turned fifty and is more determined than ever to keep pushing the frontier. He and Angela, his partner in adventure, recently bought packrafts, which promise access to the wildest places. Last month they accomplished an extremely rare descent of Alaska’s Takhin River. After a bush plane flight to a remote airstrip and much friend and count its values as synonymous with those of Australia? Gareth W R Smith Byron Bay

State budget At its most recent meeting, the Ballina Branch of Country Labor discussed at length the recently released NSW State Budget. The branch points out that the budget will do little to mitigate the continuing job losses in regional areas since the coalition state government came to power in 2011. Since the electricity industry was privatised, some 600 jobs in the industry have been lost in regional NSW with many more still to go, something the Nationals promised would never happen. More than 150 local public service jobs are to go as a result of a three per cent efficiency dividend, in child care, disability sector, teacher as-

Alaskan explorer Linus Platt. Photo supplied

bushwhacking, they plunged into the whitewater at the snout of the Takhin Glacier, and reached the tidewater near Haines three gruelling days later. In typical fashion, Linus was drawn north by a mixture of misanthropy, disdain for government, and the desire for unrefined wilderness. He’d lived 25 years in an old school bus near the climbing mecca of Moab, Utah. But in 2011, feeling civilisation encroaching on his idyll, pulled up stumps and set off for the fabled Northland on his bicycle. After riding the notable dirt roads of Alaska and the Yukon, he turned up in Haines mid-winter and found a job. Unable to find a place to rent, he bought a house. This was nearly the undoing of Linus Platt. The mortgage had him trapped. Too much time and energy were being spent satisfying financial obligations, and not

enough doing what he needed to do – communing with wild nature. Linus started to eye the vintage Colt revolver, which his dad had given him. So he wrangled a mate into an expedition to climb a series of remote peaks on the Alaskan range where he knew life would thrum to a higher pitch. He was in preparation, poring over maps in Fairbanks last June when we met. I immediately liked Linus and set about tapping his reservoir of knowledge about biking the gravel roads of the north. We parted ways with an invitation to visit Haines ‘I’d love to show you guys around,’ he said. A year later he did just that. In his house in the woods we talked late into the night. We chewed over life’s mysteries and other topics like how to escape the prison of your genes. Linus’s dad still lives in

sistants, national parks rangers and the Murwullumbah firearms registry. The branch members overwhelmingly agreed that the continuing loss of public sector jobs in regional NSW is completely unacceptable and resolved to ensure that a future Foley state Labor government would reverse the privatisation of our essential services, restore TAFE funding and create jobs by better investment in essential infrastructure. Alan Veacock Cumbalum

case histories of rapists, serial killers, and murderers, there is evidence of abuse and torture of animals. In his 2002 book Eternal Treblinka: Our Treatment of Animals and the Holocaust historian Charles Patterson argued that our treatment of animals is a source of inspiration for genocide, slavery and mass torture. Australia is one of the most cruel countries for animals – up there with China. Perhaps if we didn’t have a government so uncaring of the suffering of animals, we wouldn’t be having young people committing suicide at the rate they do – or the shameful domestic violence – among other things. Desmond Bellamy is right when he says that respect for animals would lead to a more empathetic, humane society. V Thompson Binna Burra

Animal cruelty Animal cruelty is a serious crime that is linked to other violent crimes. Studies have shown that those who abuse animals are five times more likely to commit a crime against humans, such as child or elder abuse or domestic violence. Any psychiatrist, lawyer or teacher will tell you that in

North Coast news daily: www.echonetdaily.net.au

Sacramento, California, in a dark, falling-down house; drinking his only solace. Linus understands how easy it would be to follow his father’s descent. He’s been waiting to start a new job – one that will allow him to live without killing him. It was meant to kick off weeks ago but hasn’t. Now he’s about out of money and getting edgy. In the evenings he pours large mugs of red wine from the box on the fridge. I try to divert his thoughts from the job that’s yet to materialise, and move the conversation back to more productive and familiar terrain. The afternoon before Vix and I are set to leave Haines, Linus makes a phone call. Bad news. More bullshit paperwork is needed. He’s being screwed around. After pacing for a short while, he announces: ‘I’ve gotta go camp,’ apologising for abandoning us on our last night in his house. An hour later I get an email. ‘Camped at my spot at 25 mile. Nothing but wild up here. Always need it. Thanks for sharing my existence here this last week. Love to you both, Linus’.

Bruns Eco Village

Top quality secondhand goods Large selection of clothes, shoes, books & small electrical items Op Shop Cnr Tweed St & Booyun St Brunswick Heads

(next to IGA supermarket) Mon-Fri 10am-5pm Sat 9am-1pm

www.cawi.org.au • Ph 6685 1444

First time in Australia Khentrul Lodro T’haye Rinpoche Free Public Talks THE SEARCH FOR ULTIMATE TRUTH July 24th, 6:30-8:30 PM CWA Hall, cnr of Tincogan & Gordon Sts., Mullumbimby FINDING JOY IN TROUBLED TIMES July 25th, 6:30-8:30 PM Bangalow A&I Hall, 3 Station St, Bangalow FREE DAY OF MEDITATION TRAINING The Key to Opening the Secret of Mind July 28th, 10:00 AM-Noon and 2:00 -5:00 PM Newrybar Hall, 13/15 Old Paciﬁc Hwy, Newrybar Pre-register for the free day of meditation training online at katogcholing.com/thekey because space is limited. Chairs are provided, but if you prefer to meditate in a traditional sitting posture on the ﬂoor, please bring your own cushion. Questions email juliabevins@hotmail.com

To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man. – William Shakespeare

FREE INFORMATION DAY

The Bruns Eco Village Project & The Village Development Program

Interested in community living? Join the Facilitators to answer your questions.

Saturday July 21, 2-5 pm. Brunswick Heads Memorial Hall 22 Fingal St. Brunswick Heads RSVP to: askbev@brunsecovillage.com.au The Byron Shire Echo July 18, 2018 17

w w w. b y ro n w r i t e r s fe s t i v a l . c o m

The Coal Truth: The fight to stop Adani The Coal Truth has a simple message – stop the proposed Adani Carmichael Mine in Queensland from going ahead. Since 2012, the fight to stop the opening of the vast Galilee coal basin has emerged as an iconic crusade of the Australian climate and environment movement. In his latest book The Coal Truth: the fight to stop Adani, defeat the big polluters and reclaim our democracy David Ritter, chief executive officer for Greenpeace Australia Pacific, provides a timely and colourful contribution to one of the most important issues in our national history – the struggle over the future of the coal industry. Written by an environmental insider with an eye on the world his daughters will inherit, The Coal Truth is told with wit and verve, drawing on other specialist voices to bring to life the contours of a con-

test that the people of Australia can’t afford to lose. Before taking up his present position with Greenpeace Australia Pacific, David Ritter worked for Greenpeace in London in a series of senior campaign positions. Prior to joining Greenpeace, he was one of Australia’s leading Indigenous rights lawyers. David is a widely published commentator on current affairs and is the author of two books on Indigenous land justice: Contesting Native Title and The Native Title Market. David Ritter will be presenting a workshop on ‘Activism, Community and Advocacy’ on Wednesday 1 August, then discussing all things Adani and The Coal Truth in an offsite Feature Event at the Beach Hotel on Thursday 2 August presented in association with Dumbo Feather and The Beach Hotel. Ritter will also feature at Byron

David Ritter, chief executive officer for Greenpeace Australia Pacific, will be discussing the future of coal in Australia at this year’s festival.

Writers Festival in several sessions including The Anthropocene: Human Survival in the New Epoch with climate scientist Joelle Gergis and public intellectual and author

Clive Hamilton. In Keeping the Blue Planet Green he will be in conversation with former Greens leader and activist Christine Milne, Chris Hammer au-

thor of The River: A Journey through the Murray-Darling Basin and Joelle Gergis. • Tickets: byronwritersfestival.com

The good, the bad, the ugly

Trent Dalton

Sarah Krasnostein

Jessie Cole

Sarah Wilson

Byron Writers Festival shines light on mental health By Katinka Smit

Mental health is one of the key themes running through 2018 Byron Writers Festival, with this year’s lineup designed to draw awareness to the wide spectrum of causes, effects and conditions in this complex area of our lives. Katinka Smit casts an eye over the program and details what to expect. It seems someone is always talking about mental health these days, and for good reason: mental health issues dictate life for those affected by them. The 2018 Byron Writers Festival will talk it up some more, featuring authors whose books traverse this difficult social terrain in an array of genres and perspectives that reflect the diversity of experiences. Trent Dalton has built his award-

winning journalistic career by respectfully bringing the darker sides of humanity to light, and confesses to processing his own past vicariously while doing so. After years of

writing from the outside, he decided to dive into the almost unbelievable circumstances that shaped him. His debut novel Boy Swallows Universe works through themes of brotherhood and the effects of dysfunctional family relationships during his youth. He describes his autobiographical novel as an attempt to turn ‘all my own secrets… as respectfully as possible, into a novel’. The story follows its young protagonist in a coming of age without any moral guidance kind of a tale, of a life singing with a strange beauty shaped by an older brother who one day just stopped talking. Sarah Krasnostein’s multi-awardwinning debut biography The Trauma Cleaner builds a picture of Sandra Pankhurst, a transgender woman with a personal childhood history of deep trauma who, having survived and triumphed over some of life’s worst, built a business cleaning up at the terrible end of ruined lives.

18 July 18, 2018 The Byron Shire Echo

Sarah originally wrote a longform essay on Sandra Pankhurst for The Guardian newspaper, but Sandra’s way of treating her clients with dignity and compassion fascinated the author and demanded more. Krasnostein’s portrait draws Sandra Pankhurst as a living embodiment of grace, whose generosity of care behind closed doors comes from a place of deep empathy. Hers is the wisdom of survival. Jessie Cole’s own story in her mem-

oir Staying has been a long swim towards that wisdom. Jessie’s idyllic youth as a barefoot child of the bush was smashed to pieces by her older sister’s suicide, compounded six years later by her father’s, who never recovered from his daughter’s death. It took her two courageous novels to circle close enough to her own story to tell such deep family trauma from a personal perspective. But not all mental health issues have a clearly discernible cause, and this can be a source of considerable

stress for those who struggle with issues like anxiety and cannot pinpoint a traumatic event to blame it on or to heal from. Sarah Wilson has spent most of her adult life in ‘damage control’ against chronic and at times debilitating anxiety. Her break-away, diary-style book First, We Make the Beast Beautiful drills down into her quest to get to the bottom of it, and all the ‘fixes’ she has attempted over the years. Sarah re-writes the traditional concept of anxiety: rather than it being something awful that controls our lives, she comes to realise that it could be an experience that empowers us, that becomes a spiritual journey. For her, the real success in dealing with anxiety is accepting it for what it is, rather than trying to banish it or fix it.

In a similar vein, Matt Haig’s upcoming Notes on a Nervous Planet digs around in the causes of broadscale anxiety, a quasi-companion

book to his earlier, self-exploratory Reasons to Stay Alive. Matt struggled for years with depression and concedes that he’s actually a writer because of it. He sees depression as an essential part of life without which life would be rather bland. It’s an important conversation for people to have, to admit to depression, to air it and get it out, but it’s not something that needs to be scoured out from humanity. It is a source of pain, but it’s also the source of all the good that comes from it. What emerges through each of these stories is an essential thread: what shapes us, makes us. There’s strength to be found in it, and maybe even beauty. • Trent Dalton, Sarah Krasnostein, Jessie Cole, Sarah Wilson and Matt Haig will all be appearing in multiple sessions throughout the 2018 Byron Writers Festival, 3–5 August. For tickets head to www. byronwritersfestival.com.

Byron Shire Echo archives: www.echo.net.au/byron-echo

BACK To SCHooL Dance Dynamics – Enrolments Would you like to perform in our end-of-year concert? Dance Dynamics is opening enrolments for the second half of 2018. An established school of dance in the Byron area, Dance Dynamics has been leading the field for more than 18 years, and welcomes new students. We have excellent programs for all dance styles from three years to our adult program. Drop in and say hi to our friendly team, located in the Arts and Industry Estate 7/84–86 Centennial Circuit. Term 3 enrolments are being held Saturday 21 July 2018 from 10am till 12pm You can also visit our website at www. byrondancedynamics.com.au or phone 6680 7250 with any enquiries. Follow us: Instagram @byrondancedynamics Facebook: Dance Dynamics Byron Bay

Byron Bay Dance Wear Have you got a ballet exam soon? Or are you starting a dance class and need a uniform? Come see us at Byron Bay Dance Wear for all your dance wear needs! We cater for all ages in ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip-hop, tap, national character and more! Stocking dancewear for three years to adults in Capezio, Studio 7, MDM Dance and Bunheads, all of your dance requirements are provided for in one location (7/84–86 Centennial Circuit Byron Bay). You can also visit Byron Bay Dance Wear online (www.byronbaydancewear.com.au). Follow us: Instagram @byronbaydancewear Facebook: Byron Bay Dance Wear

Shearwater Preschool and Kindergarten enrolment open day

Shearwater invites families interested in enrolling their under-7s, in 2019 or beyond, to its Enrolment Open Day on Saturday 11 August from 9am till 12 midday. Come and see our beautiful new Early Childhood Centre, opened in 2017. Classrooms will be open with children’s work on display and teachers will be available to talk about the learning program. 349 Left Bank Rd, Mullumbimby (entry is via the second carpark past the main entrance to the School). 6684 3223 or www.shearwater.nsw.edu.au.

Flying trapeze and circus Term 3 at Circus Arts! Circus Arts’ massive indoor venue is the place to do high flying trapeze and more than 20 various circus classes this term! Choose from casual classes and 10-week term classes, as well as special 6-week courses for adults. You can also use your Active Kids vouchers towards any term class! Have you heard about the new addition – the Tramp Wall? Try it for yourself when you sign up for the kids or teen JUMP class or Trampoline and Tumbling class for adults. SAVE 10 per cent – book before Sunday 22 July. Term 3 stars on Monday 23 July. 6685 6566 | www.circusarts.com.au | 17 Centennial Cct, Arts & Industry Estate, Byron Bay

Circus classes discount on Term 3 at Spaghetti

School term opening hours M o n d a y - T h u r s d a y 11a m - 6 p m F r i d a y 11- 4 p m S a t u r d a y 9 a m -12 n o o n

7/ 8 4 – 8 6 C e n t e n n i a l C i r c u i t B y r o n B a y | P h o n e 6 6 8 0 72 5 0 Follow us on I nstagram @byronbaydancewear

ENROL NOW ONLINE byrondancedynamics.com.au or in person

Saturday July 21 10am-12noon

Enrol for Term 3 online by the end of the holidays to grab your $30 earlybird discount! Still in the afterglow of our very successful annual show, Term 3 is all about challenging new skills and trying out new ideas. It’s the perfect time of year for beginners to join in on the fun. Spaghetti Circus classes are fun, social and supportive for participants who are just starting or returning from a break. We offer long-term circus training for two-year-olds up to adults. Term 3 begins Monday 30 July. Earlybird discount ends Sunday 29 July.

Find out more and enrol online at spaghetticircus.com. Shearwater, the Mullumbimby Steiner School, is an independent, co-educational K–12 school with a preschool, playgroups, trade skills centre and a biodynamic farm. Established in 1993, Shearwater has grown into one of the largest Steiner schools in Australia, delivering a contemporary learning program that balances academic pursuits with the development of the whole child.

BY RO N B AY

A : 7/ 8 4 - 8 6 C e n t e n n i a l C i r c u i t B y r o n B a y N S W 2 4 81 P: 0 2 6 6 8 0 725 0 E: i n fo @ b y ro n d a n c e d y n a m i c s .c o m .a u Follow us on Instagram @byrondancedynamics

Circus Classes Enrol Now for

Á0«x ‫ ژב‬ STARTS 23 JULY

Term 3 at

10% Early Bird discount book before term starts

FLYING TRAPEZE KINDER & PRE-CIRCUS KIDS PROGRAMS JUMP! & PARKOUR TEENS PROGRAMS INDOOR CLIMBING KIDS PLAY SPACE Use your Active Kids vouchers towards any term class

BOOK ONLINE CIRCUS ARTS BYRON BAY 17 Centennial Cct 02 6685 6566 | circusarts.com.au

North Coast news daily: www.echonetdaily.net.au

Classes for all levels & ages spaghetticircus.com | 6684 3038 $30 Early Bird Discount when you book and pay online before July 29

Based in the Mullumbimby Showgrounds

The Byron Shire Echo July 18, 2018 19

The Good Life

Advertising enquiries: adcopy@echo.net.au | 6684 1777 Editorial enquiries: goodlife@echo.net.au www.echo.net.au/good-life

Sustainable thinking in the family business

‘We truly want the world our two kids to grow up in to be one where not only our people, but our industry has a positive impact on the planet rather than simply taking its resources’ Will Brook of Brookfarm, pictured with wife Jess and their two children. Photo Demetre Minchev.

Will Brook has grown up in the family firm, Brookfarm, founded by his parents Pam and Martin Brook. He is now the operations manager of a business that exports around the world, as well as raising a young family, and The Echo caught up with him to ask him how it’s going. Your wife Jessica runs a business, Ark and Eve, concentrating on organic, vegetabledyed clothing. Do her values complement your own? We certainly share the same values especially

Golden memories By Julie Ray

As I walk through the doors of Naomi Paled’s Golden Doughnut shop in Byron Bay the waft of cinnamon jolts a fond childhood memory of shopping with my mum. After being dragged through the local shopping centre mum would treat me to a warm sugary cinnamon doughnut. I was mesmerised by the automated doughnut-making gizmo that plopped out perfectly shaped round-holey doughnuts. I fell in love with the smell of cinnamon sugar and fresh-fried dough. There is no gizmo doughnut machine at Nao-

in terms of ethics and environmental sustainability. Jess and I own Ark and Eve, but Jess really is the brains and creative genius behind it all. Ark and Eve is a children’s clothing label; everything is designed by Jess and built on a core value of sustainability. All the clothing is made from natural fabrics that are plant dyed. It’s beautiful clothing that is made to last and meant to be cherished. We truly want the world our two kids grow up in to be one where not only our people but our industry has a positive impact on the planet rather than simply taking its resources.

I seem to recall that Brookfarm send almost all of their organic waste like shells to be used as mulch? Brookfarm tries to implement a circular approach to all aspects of our business; this is evident in how we treat all of our waste streams. On our farm, all of our macadamia husk is reused underneath our trees; it makes a fantastic mulch. The same concept continues at our Bakehouse: any food waste goes to the local Brooklet Springs farm to feed their pigs and chickens; by doing this we reduce our organic food waste to almost zero. We are continuing to research and implement waste reduction and elimination to reach our goal of zero waste. Do you bale and package other recyclables to make it cheaper to recycle these? As part of our sustainability program we bale recyclable plastics, and all of our cardboard. By baling our recyclables we are able to significantly reduce food miles by reducing our recycled waste pickups from five per week to only one. You use solar power for which you won the ‘best of the best’ in the 2015 Premier’s Awards for environmental excellence. You’d feel a sense of achievement from that, but what is the enduring feeling? We were incredibly proud and humbled to receive the Premier’s Award for sustainability, it really reflected the hard work and great ideas that have been maintained in our business. My goal is that others look at and use Brookfarm as an example for how to

conduct their own businesses. The same goes for the farm. We may not be the largest company around but we hope to be the working example and proof that you can be successful while being high quality and environmentally sustainable. Do you have any ‘business tips’ that you would like to see adopted more widely in the local food-producing industry? It’s a burgeoning industry – where would you like the industry try to develop? I would like all businesses (particularly food businesses) to look at their entire system through the lens of sustainability. This would encourage lean processes that would reduce waste, create efficiency, improve quality, and generally improve the running of the business. The best way to find out how to do this is through collaboration. I’m a firm believer in collaboration and sharing ideas among peers, and between businesses. We do this currently through the Northern Rivers Food group and we find it incredibly beneficial. Do you think that you can expand your business within the Byron Shire? We are currently operating over five different sites within the Byron Shire, and it makes sense for us to consolidate our operations. We use a lot of local suppliers wherever possible, and employ local people and we would like to keep our business within the Shire. At the moment we are looking at all our options and nothing is set in stone.

age to get through all the flavours and still want more, there are specials each week like the cappuccino or mango vanilla cream. Golden Doughnut is situated nextdoor to The Nail Bar that Naomi also runs. So what do pedicures or manicures and doughnuts have in common? ‘When the shop became vacant nextdoor I thought doughnuts would be something different to serve up in Byron,’ Naomi said. ‘We must be the only Nail Bar in the world where you can order a doughnut and a chai latte and enjoy it while being pampered. Customers love it; it adds to the luxury.’ This is not Naomi’s first dabble with tantalizing sweets; she has been serving up pastries at festivals for the past 12 years with Uprising Bakery. ‘I love doughnuts and they have become so popular recently, and it’s great to see people’s faces light up when they walk through the door,’ said Naomi. The Golden Doughnut: 3a/1 Byron St, Byron Bay The aptly Personal.The The way way travel should Personal. shouldbe be named ‘Oompa Loompa’ and below, Naomi Hi, I’m I’m Kathryn, Kathryn and your Hi, yourI’m local Paled. local personal manager personal traveltravel manager in in Bangalow & the the Byron Byron Shire. Bangalow and Shire.

mi’s shop because her doughnuts are made by hand, inspired by her Israeli grandmother. ‘In Israel doughnuts are very popular. Every grandmother would make them with cinnamon and jam in the middle; there was never any icing on top, the flavour was always on the inside,’ explained Naomi. Naomi’s doughnuts are rounded (no holes) puffed, golden, light and fluffy just as she remembers. They are made with organic flour and as much local produce as she can obtain. Be prepared to have difficulty deciding which one to eat, if you can stop at one. There are so many flavours to choose from like cinnamon, Ferrero Rocher, salted caramel, dark chocolate, berry jam and the mouth-watering hot-chocolate-filled doughnut topped with vanilla ice-cream, as well as a vegan doughnut. If you have trouble choosing, like this Libran, grab the mini Oompa Loompa; it’s four different fillings pumped into mini doughnuts. If you man-

I’m mobile which means I can come I’m mobile so I will come to you to you. Let’s meet at time and place wherever most convenient. that suits is you, maybe a local café. With 10 years’ travel consultancy With 10 years’ travel consultancy experience, II provide provide friendly, experience, friendly, professional, personal service. professional, personal service. I can For all your travel needs - airfares, help you with all your travel needs. tours & cruising. Bespoke itineraries Bespoke itineraries are my speciality. are my specialty. $100 discount all bookings Receive a $100for discount for all over $2,500, before bookings overmade $2,500, made before 31 30July June2018. 2018.

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20 July 18, 2018 The Byron Shire Echo

Chocolate Lounge

SER y N VIN OW GG ELA TO y Chai y y Coffee y Hot Chocolate y Milkshakes y Chocolates y Fudge y Light meals

1/53 Stuart Street, Mullumbimby 0406 422 465 y www.puremeltchocolate.com

Byron Shire Echo archives: www.echo.net.au/byron-echo

The Good Life

Advertising enquiries: adcopy@echo.net.au | 6684 1777 Editorial enquiries: goodlife@echo.net.au www.echo.net.au/good-life

Sustrainability

I’ve been to Bali too...

At Melbourne’s Crown Casino last Thursday night a small not-for-profit heritage-rail operator from Byron Bay took the Rail Sustainability Award at the Australasian Rail Association Awards.

Michele Levine, CEO, Roy Morgan, says a recent Roy Morgan poll has shown Australians are increasingly considering overseas destinations when planning holidays but not all countries are benefiting from the increased propensity of Australians to travel overseas.

‘It is fantastic to see the Byron Bay Railroad Company receive this award for converting a 1949 heritage diesel rail car into the world’s first solar-powered conventional train,’ said Danny Broad, CEO of the Australasian Railway Association. ‘This is leading the way in the use of sustainable energy resources in the rail industry.’ The solar-train project was a collaborative effort delivered in conjunction with Lithgow Railway Workshop, Nickel Energy and ELMOFO. ‘A lot of different people have been involved and it was a hard-fought battle,’ said Jeremy Holmes. ‘So it’s nice to be recognised by the rail industry for what we have achieved in firstly delivering a heritage railway service and secondly showcasing where sustainability can have an impact in the rail industry.’ The Byron Bay Train was launched on 16 December 2017 and operates daily services on the 3km coastal track between the North Beach Station at the end of Bayshore Drive in the Byron Arts & Industry Estate and the Byron Beach Platform at the Shirley Street level crossing in Byron town centre. The two-carriage train seats 92 passengers with room for bicycles, luggage and surfboards. Since commencement not one service has been missed. ‘We truly are sustainable in that we are

Indonesia (Bali) and Japan the winners while China is well down on 2008

Bad spellers make more new English words than William Shakespeare; The Echo strives to keep Byron at the forefront of language innovation, just as our solar train is at the cutting edge of sustrainability. generating more energy than we are using,’ said rail safety manager Geoff Clark, who has guided the project for the past five years. ‘We have focused on reuse of old rail assets as opposed to new build. People said it couldn’t happen and it wouldn’t work. Yet it does. It’s quiet, environmentally friendly and sustainable.’ This award follows two recent wins at the Good Design Awards held at the Sydney Opera House in May, where Byron Bay Railroad Company was both a Good Design Award Gold winner in the Product Design category and a Good Design Award winner in the Engineering category, in recognition for outstanding design and innovation. For more info visit byronbaytrain.com.au.

The most popular Asian destination is now Indonesia; 10.9 per cent of Australians planning an overseas trip in the next 12 months plan to travel to Indonesia, up 3.4ppts on 2008. The bulk of these Aussie holidaymakers (10.3 per cent) plan on travelling to the tourist island of Bali and only 0.9 per cent plan to travel to other parts of Indonesia. There is a small crossover for Australians intending to travel to both Bali and other parts of Indonesia. The other big winner over the last decade is Japan. Now 10.5 per cent of Australians planning an overseas trip in the next 12 months plan to go to Japan, more than double the 4.8 per cent of a decade ago. Since 2008 the popularity of Japan as

Good Taste

Eating Out Guide echo.net.au/good-taste

BALLINA

BYRON BAY

continued

Ballina RSL Club

Blakes Table

The Hideout Cafe

1 Grant St, Ballina 6681 9500 www.ballinarsl.com.au Open 7 Days Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner and Snacks

Friday 27 July from 6.30pm Spinnakers Function Room Shared style menu - Tickets $69 Complimentary Welcome Beverage Meet and greet local local brewers from Seven Mile Brewery.

Breakfast and Lunch 7 days a week from 7.30am

Wharf Bar & Restaurant

Open 7.30am Daily. Open till late Thurs–Sun Coffee, breakfast, lunch & dinner, functions & weddings. Fully Licensed. 12-24 Fawcett St, Ballina 6686 5259 / 6685 6011

NEW WINTER MENU OUT NOW Stay warm this winter with one of our new mouth-watering creations

WharfBarBallina@gmail.com.au www.WharfBarBallina.com.au

Shop 6/13 Lawson Street 6680 9300 FB thehideoutbyronbay insta @thehideoutbyronbay

Success Thai Mon-Fri 12-3pm Dinner 7 days from 5pm. 3/109 Jonson St, Byron Bay 6680 7798 www.facebook.com/ pages/Success-ThaiFood/237359826303469

Luscious Foods

BYRON BAY

Barrio Byron Bay

A 5-minute drive from Byron Bay, Barrio eatery at Habitat brings together the local community Mon–Tue 7am–3pm; in a relaxed environment for all-day dining. WoodWed–Sat 7am–9pm fired oven, charcoal grill, veges, meat, fish, salads, 1 Porter Street, natural wines, local beers, cocktails and St Ali coffee. North Byron Eat in or take-away No reservations. Bookings www.barriobyronbay.com.au over 8 email: gather@ @barriobyronbay barriobyronbay.com.au

The Rocks @ Aquarius Breakfast/Lunch 7 days from 7am 16 Lawson St, Byron Bay 6685 7663 – Menus at therocksbyronbay.com.au

a travel destination for Australians has overtaken China, Singapore and Thailand. China has seen the most significant decline in popularity over the past decade as an Asian travel destination for Australians although it is worth remembering that the Beijing Olympics were held in China in August 2008. Over 2.3 million (11.4 per cent) Australians aged 14-plus are intending to travel overseas in the next 12 months. Because of strong Australian population growth over the past decade the absolute number of 2.3 million intending to travel overseas in the year to March 2018 has nearly doubled from 1.2 million (7.2 per cent) in the year to March 2008. Australia is due to pass 25 million total population during the next month. A strong driver of the increase is the increasing proportion of Australians now planning to travel to Asia in the next 12 months. Now over one million (5.1 per cent) Australians aged 14-plus plan to travel to Asia in the next 12 months, more than double the number in real terms compared to a decade ago.

NEW WINTER MENU AT THE ROCKS! Join us at The Rocks on Lawson for some winter warmers! We have a range of fresh, locally sourced breakfast and lunch at affordable prices. Enliven the senses with a Byron Bay Coffee or super healthy smoothie! Enjoy an Ice-cold beer, wine, or hand-crafted cocktail with your meal! Cosy indoor seating and heated outdoor patio space available. $5 SCHOONERS AND $12 COCKTAIL OF THE WEEK

North Coast news daily: www.echonetdaily.net.au

Mon-Fri 7.30am–3pm Open Friday nights 6–9pm Live music and BYO 1/6 Tasman Way, Byron Arts & Industry Estate BYO & RSVP 6680 8228

Slo-mo Joes Open every day From 11am till late Corner of Fletcher St and Bay Lane, Byron Bay

6685 7502 IG - @slomojoes

Hidden away in Byron’s iconic ‘Eat street’ Bay Lane, The Hideout Cafe and Bar offers indoor, outdoor and deck dining With a fresh, funky, relaxed vibe, generous serves, cruisey staff and 10am licence, come and find us for ‘Byron’s BEST breakfast’ all day… Takeaway available Vegetarian,Vegan and gluten free options available Kids menu

SPECIAL $12 LUNCH AND DINNER MENU All your favourites every lunch and dinner Experienced Thai chefs cooking fresh delicious Thai food for you. Fully Licensed and B.Y.O. for wine. Welcome for lunch, dinner and take-away. Contemporary and Middle Eastern flavours • Breakfast and lunch • Wood-fired pizzas • Fresh juices • Great coffee www.lusciousfoods.com.au

DAILY HAPPY HOUR FROM 3 TILL 5 PM Slow down & chill out! Immerse yourself in Slo-mo Joes relaxing vibes while you enjoy live music & delicious flavours inspired from around the world. There’s something for everyone; from slow-cooked meats to mouth-watering burgers and nutritious salads. Guaranteed to leave you wanting more!

ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES adcopy@echo.net.au | 6684 1777 | echo.net.au/good-taste

The Byron Shire Echo July 18, 2018 21

Good Taste Eating Out Guide BYRON BAY

BYRON BAY

continued

Main Street Open 7 days 11.30am until late Call to make a reservation or for takeaway orders 18 Jonson Street 6680 8832

continued

Fishheads

Gourmet burgers created by chefs

7:30am till late Coffee, breakfast, lunch, dinner, functions and weddings. HAPPY HOUR 4–6PM MON–FRI 1 Jonson St, Byron Bay 6680 7632

Cocktails, wine and beers served all damn day. Group bookings available, please email mainstreetburgerbar@gmail.com for reservations.

No Bones

The Italian Byron Bay Open 7 days from 6pm The Italian Byron Bay provides a bustling atmospheric Sunday Lunch from midday. restaurant, dishing up contemporary inspired Italian cuisine and some of Byron’s finest Next to the Beach Hotel cocktails and wines. Bay Street 6680 7055 italianatthepacific.com.au

Food & Cocktails Open Tuesday to Sunday from 5pm 11 Fletcher Street, Byron Bay 6680 7418 @nobonesbyronbay

Treehouse on Belongil

Byron at Byron

Full Cocktail & Wine Bar. Extensive Menu Includes Tapas, Mains, Desserts and Famous Woodfired Pizzas. 25 Childe St, Byron Bay 6680 9452

St Elmo Dining Room & Bar Mon-Sat: 5pm till late. Sun: 5pm till 10pm. Cnr Fletcher St and Lawson Lane, Byron Bay 6680 7426

Share plates, mains, desserts and famous Treehouse wood-fired pizza. Our kitchen is open all day and night. Presenting incredible original music in Byron’s most intimate atmosphere. Check our website or Facebook for the gig guide. facebook.com/treehouse.belongil treehouseonbelongil.com

77–97 Broken Head Road, Byron Bay 6639 2111 thebyronatbyron.com.au

Legend Pizza

St Elmo is a place where you can enjoy great company, first-class food, sophisticated cocktails and an extensive wine list. St Elmo is plating up modern Spanish cuisine to be enjoyed amongst friends and family. Our menus change regularly and feature daily specials.

Open 7 days 9am till after midnight Shop 1 Woolworths Plaza 90-96 Jonson Street 6685 5700 www.legendpizza.com.au

www.stelmodining.com

Finn Poke Restaurant Open 7 days 11am till 8pm Fri & Sat 11am till 8.30pm Shop 5, 8 Fletcher Street, Byron Bay 02 6685 8156 Take away available

Happy Chilli Garden Open 6 days - closed Sundays Byron St (opp Aldi) Byron Bay P 6680 9191 F 6676 4869 M 0403 516 793 happychilligarden@hotmail.com

Fresh Healthy Delicious

Open 7 days for Dinner starting 5.30pm See menu, book a table, or order takeaway at www.basilo.co 30 Lawson St, Byron Bay 6680 8818

• High-quality diced raw fish, vegetables, sauces & spices • Vegetarian - Vegan options Any Poke Bowls $15.95 | Tuna Poke Bowl $17.95 www.finnpoke.com.au FB Finnpokebyron IG @finnpoke_

Williams St 50 Pacific Parade, cnr of William St, Lennox Head 0476 892 194

Kitchen closed for Reno Reopening Monday 23 July

insta @williamst.lennox Cafe • Restaurant • Bar 11 Marvell Street

Byron Bay 6680 9960 targabyronbay.com targabyronbay@gmail.com

Elixiba Open 12pm–Late Every day Shop 10, Feros Arcade 23 Jonson St 6685 6845

Live Music 10am Sat 21st & Sun 22nd OPEN - Tuesday to Saturday evenings 7 days breakfast & Lunch All day menus, licensed bar APERITIVO happy hour AFTERNOONS 4–6pm daily $12 Cocktails, $7 beers, $8 wines, $12 Moet

Elixiba Plant Based Restaurant and Bar A delicious vegan dining experience. Tapas, mains and heavenly desserts all house made and gluten free. Exclusive craft beers, herbal elixirs, exquisite cocktails and a unique atmosphere. Nachos & Beer or Kombucha $20 every Monday Promotions every Wednesday Dine in/Takeaway/Catering/Functions

MONDAY TO FRIDAY 4pm to 6pm

New Vegetarian Restaurant We serve Tapas, share plates and daily chef’s specials. A plant based feast that is sure to leave an impression. Word on the street is we’ve got the best cocktails in town too. Thoughtful menu reflecting the region, the seasons and the climate. Elegant dining in a relaxed atmosphere. Open for breakfast lunch and dinner, or cocktails on the verandah overlooking the rainforest. Open seven days: breakfast, lunch & dinner Thursday Farmers Market Dinner 2 courses $52 per person

FRESH PIZZA BYRON STYLE Check us out on

facebook.com/byron.legendpizza Scan code for our menu! BYO Home delivery 7 days Established 1992

Wood-fired pizzas & real Italian cuisine with a Sardinian twist Famous for seafood, meats and pasta dishes. We do special events functions.

LENNOX HEAD

Fully licensed Dine In / Takeaway / Home Delivery Available

Targa Modern European

$12 Cocktails + $7 Tapas $6 Beers + Wines + Spirits

Trattoria Basiloco

Hawaiian and Japanese flavours Signature Poke Bowls

Hong Kong chef specialising in Chinese and Malay foods

BEACH FRONT HAPPY HOUR

Relaxed dining by the beach. Food that celebrates local produce served with a healthy dose of good tunes and good vibes. All welcome. Our opening hours are 6.30am–2.30pm, 7 days for Breakfast + Lunch Thursday, Friday, Saturday for dinner. Sunday Tapas & Happy Hour Specials till sundown

MULLUMBIMBY

The Empire Open 7 days M–F 9am–5pm, S,S 9am–3pm Dine in and takeaway Licensed FB/Insta: EmpireMullum 20 Burringbar St, Mullum 6684 2306

Mullum’s iconic Empire Cafe serves up an exciting menu with something for everyone. Indulge yourself with a delicious brekky, the best burgers in town, or if it’s more your style enjoy healthy superfoods like acai bowls and buddha bowls plus loads more. If you need a treat there’s a selection of cakes and also healthier dairy-free, refined sugar-free treats. The house-made organic coconut ice-cream is a must try. Plus of course, great coffee, delightful teas, shakes, smoothies and all the rest. Enjoy the good vibes and satisfy your cravings!

NEWRYBAR A short ride from Byron Bay, Harvest Restaurant, Bakery and Deli offers country charm and fresh, seasonal, organic food sourced from local artisan producers and Harvest’s own gardens. 18-22 Old Pacific Highway Lunch 12pm–3pm daily / Dinner 6pm–10pm (Wed–Sun) Weekend breakfast 8am–11am Newrybar NSW 2479 Harvest Deli is open daily with take-away pastries, sandwiches 02 6687 2644 and salads. Harvest Deli: Mon–Sat 8am–5pm Sun 8am–4pm www.harvestnewrybar.com.au Coffee cart: 6.30am–2pm daily @harvestnewrybar Harvest is available for events, weddings and catering.

Harvest

CATERING

Get to know the Chef and you will start to enjoy dining out even more. ~ John Walters

CELEBRATIONS Celebrations Catering By Liz Jackson

BY LIZ JACKSON

Celebration cakes Personal catering services Event co-ordination and management

E: lizzijjackson@gmail.com P: 0414 895 441

ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES adcopy@echo.net.au | 6684 1777 | echo.net.au/good-taste 22 July 18, 2018 The Byron Shire Echo

Byron Shire Echo archives: www.echo.net.au/byron-echo

PAGE

LIFTOUT!

GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR FESTIVAL WITH THE ECHO’S SPECIAL LIFTOUT GUIDE SPLENDOUR GENDER This year one thing is abundantly clear from the Splendour lineup: there is a strong representation of women artists. This year’s Splendour definitely has more women on the bill then ever before. This year’s Falls Festival copped some flack about its lack of solid female acts, so it’s clear promoters have been more mindful in including more women and gender diverse acts. Young women are certainly dominating the stage at Splendour, with Lorde performing her only Australian show. Acts such as Haiku Hands bring a lineup of four girls who create an energising experience fusing dance party vibes with performance art. Melbourne singer/ producer and multi-instrumentalist G Flip shows why she’s been heralded such an addictive, bittersweet shard of shimmering pop. Jack River aka Holly Rankin is a girl who is growing her own – heading up Electric Lady, a platform that aims to amplify the strength of women in music and beyond, and All Our Exes Live in Texas bring sass, songs, freaking fabulous frocks to the forefront. These are exciting times for women in music, claiming the stage and delivering in their own right. The blokey festival lineup is a thing of the past. This Splendour, it’s all about gender.

This guide compiled and edited by Mandy Nolan with thanks to the Splendour organisers. Cover photo by Aimee Catt.

@unplugged_byronbay 2 LAWSON STREET, BYRON BAY 2481 (02) 6685 7441

North Coast news daily: www.echonetdaily.net.au

The Byron Shire Echo July 18, 2018 23

2 Who’s Who in the

Splendour

zoo?

5 2

SO SO MANY

STANDOUT ARTISTS

I CERTAINLY CAN’T COVER EVERY act on the bill at Splendour because there are just too many, but here are my top 30 picks for the weekend. It doesn’t mean the other stuff on isn’t equally great but these were the acts that piqued my interest…

1. Kendrick Lamar Headlining this Splendour is Kendrick Lamar, one of the most critically acclaimed and successful rappers of our time. Every new release jolts culture in a new direction, ever so slightly, and has so since his second studio album Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, released in 2012. His reach has been monumental, with more than 13 billion Spotify streams, 12 Grammy awards, and more than six million albums sold worldwide. His fourth album DAMN is another triumph, with a debut at #1 on the Billboard 200 – marking his third time at the top spot – and earning him five Grammys from seven nominations. Lead single Humble took out the coveted #1 spot in Triple J’s Hottest 100 of 2017. In a short but illustrious career, Lamar has made an incredible mark on the music world. Don’t miss him when he plays Sunday.

2. Lorde Lorde offers up her only Australia show for Splendour this year. Don’t miss this quiet yet confident girl from New Zealand who found her way to fame in 2013 when she was just 16, asserting herself as the voice of a generation with her full-length debut Pure Heroine. The album went multi-platinum around the world, won her two GRAMMY Awards, and spawned the recordbreaking international juggernaut single Royals, followed by Team and Tennis Court. Last year, the chart-dominating artist shared her second full-length album Melodrama. Featuring the lead single Green Light, followed by Liability and Sober, the album is a masterful study of being a young woman, heartbreak and the incandescence of youth. Melodrama debuted at #1 in the US, Australia and New Zealand and confirmed Lorde as a global force to be reckoned with. Lorde’s appearance at Splendour in the Grass, which concludes her year-long Melodrama world tour, will be magic. She headlines the Amphitheatre Friday.

24 July 18, 2018 The Byron Shire Echo

3. Vampire Weekend Vampire Weekend has defined their music ‘Upper West Side Soweto’, songs such as A-Punk, Oxford Comma, Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa and Cousins showcased the band’s unerring ability to make clever, catchy-as-hell indie rock blended with joyful, Afro-pop-inspired melodies. It saw them rise from the music bloggers’ favourites into a Grammy award-winning act. This fourth studio album will mark their first without founding member Rostam Batmanglij. He left with the band on a high. Their first two full-lengths sold nearly 1.2 million combined copies, yet always a sound delightfully out of sync with everything else. Live, as on record, they create their own world – nimbly moving between different genres, moods and timesignatures, and making them their own. Each show is a celebration of all of that, and we can’t wait to see them at North Byron Parklands when they play their only Australian show headlining the Amphitheatre on Saturday.

4. Khalid

5. The Wombats

Khalid has been surrounded by music his entire life. He grew up in a military family. His mother is a singer with the US Army and he was introduced to music at an early age. Khalid spent most of his childhood in Germany before moving to New York for high school. The summer going into his senior year of high school, Khalid’s family was ordered to relocate to El Paso, Texas.

The Wombats have an uncanny knack for writing incredibly catchy songs. A Guide To Love, Loss and Desperation, featuring indie-rock cult classic Let’s Dance to Joy Division is a witty collection of dancefloor-filling indie pop gems that are loaded with savvy pop culture references, angsty coming-of-age observations and utterly infectious hooks. Selling more than a million copies worldwide, the album went platinum in the UK and Gold in Australia, soared up the heart-seeker charts in the US, and was the Triple J feature album of December 2007. They come to our shores armed with their latest album Beautiful People Will Ruin Your Life. The LP is a giant leap into maturity, a record that’s still instantly singalong but demands to be taken seriously.

By 18 years of age, Khalid, who is classically vocally trained, had drawn on his experiences with moving often and the unique experience of growing up having lived on two continents and parlayed them into the creation of his viral smash Location, which helped him to land a major label deal with Right Hand Music Group/RCA Records. Khalid released the music video for Location, then released Let’s Go, Hopeless, Coaster, and most recently in what would be his biggest hit to date, Young Dumb & Broke. Punters will have the joy of singing it word for word at Splendour 2018 when he plays at the Amphitheatre on Friday.

Australia has always had a love affair with The Wombats; selling out and upgrading multiple shows across the country and delivering massively energetic festival sets at The Falls Festival, Groovin’ the Moo, and Splendour. Don’t miss your chance to celebrate the album that debuted indie-rock royalty at the Amphitheatre on Sunday.

Byron Shire Echo archives: www.echo.net.au/byron-echo

3 THURSDAY 19 JULY 3:00

4:00

5:00

7:00

CHESHIRE

DINOBITCH

4.00-5.00

5.00-6.00 SAFETY FIRST CIRCUS

WELCOME SUNSET DRUM & DANCE CIRCLE TO COUNTRY WITH HAPPY AFRICA 3.30-4.00 4.00-5.00

PLEASURE COMA DJs 4.00-5.00

6. Hilltop Hoods They are the undeniable kings of Aussie hip-hop. The Hilltop Hoods know how to deliver a cranking live festival show. Drinking From The Sun, Walking Under Stars Restrung album became their fifth #1 album on the ARIA chart and features platinumselling Higher featurin James Chatburn and fivetimes platinum single 1955 featuring Montaigne and Tom Thum. The release was celebrated with The Restrung Tour in 2016 where Hilltop Hoods headlined sold-out arenas with Australiaâ€™s best orchestras and choirs conducted by Hamish McKeich â€“ playing to more than 50,000 fans. Off the back of the album the hip-hop crew initiated the Through The Dark project with Google Play, resulting in an astonishing six awards at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity including the FWA Peopleâ€™s Choice Award.

Splendour will be Hilltop Hoodsâ€™ first show back with a brand new single for 2018! They play at the Mix Up Stage Saturday.

7. CHVRCHES CHVRCHES is Lauren Mayberry, Iain Cook and Martin Doherty. The band released their critically acclaimed debut The Bones Of What You Believe in 2013, earning the synth-pop trio a Brit Award nomination. Their follow-up LP Every Open Eye charted at #3 on the ARIA chart, #4 on the UK chart, #8 on the Billboard 200, and top-20 in ten other countries worldwide. This year, CHVRCHES will release their anticipated third album Love Is Dead. With the soaring success of their first two albums propelling CHVRCHES into new worlds of fame and acclaim, Love Is Dead is at times euphoric and others bittersweet. It is an album about growing up and â€˜coming to

7.10-7.40

7.40 -7.50

7.50-8.20 8.20-8.50 8.50-9.10 9.10-9.40

APRIL KERRY MORGAZMK 6.00-7.00

WONQI ROSE MADY MOODA

10:00

11:00

HOOPS

THE FORMULA

9.40-10.40

10.40 -11.00

11.00-11.55

U-PHORIC

8.00-9.00 9.00-10.00 10.00-11.00 SPLENDID POETRY THATâ€™S THE KILLER FRIDAYS SESSIONS ACRO MY JAM ANISA NANDAULA SOUNDTALES QUEER CABARET NESSI GOMES LOVE ARTERIUM DANCE FLEASSY MALAY 6.00-6.30 6.45-7.45 8.00-8.15 8.30-9.15 9.30-10.00 10.00-10.30 5.15-5.45 LOJACK VS MUTUAL STRUDWICK WAVEY DJs VS DENIM THE TBC BEATS FRIENDS DJs DAMEEEELA VS DAWS FOSSA CLUB DJs VS ANH 6.00-7.00 7.00-8.00 8.00-9.00 9.00-10.00 10.00-11.00 5.00-6.00

7.00-8.00

12:00

JPS 11.00-12.00

ALFALFA 11.00-12.00

BARNEY COOLS DJs 11.00-12.00

COMEDY CLUB FEAT. MICHAEL HING, DANIELLE WALKER, MATT OKINE & LOADS MORE!

FORUM/COMEDY

SPLENDOUR IN THE CRAFT

7.00 -7.10

UV BOI

DJ KLASIK CHANGEOVER

MUTUAL FRIENDS

9:00 DJ KLASIK CHANGEOVER

BOHEMIAN LOUNGE

DJ KLASIK/CHANGEOVER

6.00-6.30 6.30-7.00

6 8 7

8:00

DJ SK DALLAS BAKER KLASIK JESSWAR SIMEON WOODS BOY

PRESENTED BY

TIPI FOREST

DJ KLASIK/CHANGEOVER

MIX UP STAGE

6:00

6.00-9.00

NIGHT LIGHTS â€” LED LANTERN MAKING WITH AMAC FROM CITYLIGHTS PROJECTS

4.00-6.00

terms with the fact that there are great things in the world and there are awful things in the world and that you canâ€™t get one without the otherâ€™, says frontwoman Lauren Mayberry. Over the course of their career, CHVRCHES have played countless shows worldwide, with each tourâ€™s production reaching new heights and leaping towards the top of festival bills including Glastonbury, Coachella, Lollapalooza, Reading and Leeds. Playing at the Amphitheatre on Saturday.

8. Girl Talk Master of mashups, producer Girl Talk (aka Gregg Gillis) is back in Australia for the first time since 2012. Following the success of his 2006 album Night Ripper, Girl Talk steadily toured over the following six years, bringing his renowned confetti-covered and sweat-soaked performances to venues ranging from house party basements

to major festivals. He followed it up with Feed the Animals, which was ranked number four on Timeâ€™s Top 10 Albums of 2008. Next came All Day/ in 2010, which was brought to life as an album-length music video called Girl Walk // All Day. In 2013, Gillis decided to take his first significant hiatus from the road since his initial national exposure. The break from live material preparation allowed Gillis time to explore some ideas slightly removed from his trademark hyper-mashup style. In turn, he began working on beats with a wider range of samples, some more obscure than what he would normally use in his Top 40-focused work. He teamed up with legendary Philadelphia rapper Freeway on the collaborative EP Broken Ankles. The 2014 release combined both artistsâ€™ distinct, highenergy styles into a continuously flowing collection of bangers. GirlÂ Talkâ€™s only Aussie show is at the Mix Up Stage on Sunday.

Less than 5 minutes drive from Splendour Drop into Byronâ€™s local independent brewery...

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Non vegan pies, rolls & pasties also available

DROP IN FOR A TASTING PADDLE OR BOOK A TOUR MONDAY â€“ FRIDAY 10am â€“ 5pm WEEKEND 12 â€“ 6pm TOURS RUN EVERY DAY EXCEPT TUESDAYS To book a tour or enquire about the Tasting Room, visit the website www.stoneandwood.com.au, or call us on 02 6685 9220

FREE WIFI AVAILABLE Indoor / outdoor undercover seating areas 0RJR 3ODFH 3DFLÂ¿ F +LJKZD\ %LOOLQXGJHO Mon-Fri 8-4.30 Sat-Sun 8-5pm North Coast news daily: www.echonetdaily.net.au

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Stone and Wood Brewing

The Byron Shire Echo July 18, 2018 25

Who’s Who

in the

Splendour

zoo?

9. Angus & Julia Stone Angus & Julia Stone have effortlessly captured the public’s imagination with acclaimed new album Snow, featuring singles Snow, Cellar Door and the hypnotic standout Chateau. Their double-platinum single Chateau reached the lofty heights of No. 3 on Triple J’s 2017 Hottest 100, with more than 42 million Spotify streams globally, and hit No. 26 on the ARIA Singles Chart. Snow, which debuted at No. 2 on the ARIA Albums Chart (behind Foo Fighters), is now Gold and features 12 glorious tracks penned by Angus and Julia together. The Sydney-born siblings produced and largely engineered it themselves, in Angus’s cottage studio, Belafonté, in the Byron hinterland. Angus and Julia have played sold-out shows across the globe since Snow was released in September 2017, including a triumphant Australian headline tour and stellar performances at Falls Festival over Christmas and new year. Their forthcoming 2018 Australian tour is a sell-out, eclipsing more than 50,000 tickets nationally, which is the biggest Angus & Julia Stone tour to date. And of course at Splendour too – Amphitheatre, Friday.

10. Franz Ferdinand Forget everything you think you know about Franz Ferdinand. Always Ascending is the new album from Franz Ferdinand and it’s nothing short of a rebirth. The album’s 10 songs are a triumphant recasting of the group, bursting with fresh ideas and vigorous sonic experimentation. With reclusive producer Philippe Zdar (Cassius, Phoenix, Beastie Boys), FF have taken a knife to their old canvas, creating an album that is so foreign in its familiarity it could only be current. Always Ascending shows Franz Ferdinand broadening their palette, as exuberant as it is euphoric, creating a sound that singer Alex Kapranos refers to as ‘simultaneously futuristic and naturalistic’. They wanted this record to sound like no other you’ve heard, never mind any other Franz Ferdinand record. Here it is. Stick it on and get ready to hear it live and in all its glory at the Amphitheatre on Saturday.

26 July 18, 2018 The Byron Shire Echo

11. Ben Harper & 12. The Avalanches DJ Set Charlie Musselwhite After 16 years adrift, The Avalanches returned GRAMMY award-winning, multiplatinum-selling artists Ben Harper and Charlie Musselwhite have collaborated once again for their album No Mercy In This Land. It’s the first of new music from the pair since the 2013 release of their collaborative album Get Up!, which debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Blues Albums Chart and won a GRAMMY award in 2014 for Best Blues Album. A musical expression of the kinship between the two, the album recounts both Ben’s and Charlie’s personal stories and adds to the sonic history of American struggle and survival. ‘Charlie Musselwhite is that very rare and hallowed place where blues past, present and future collide,’ says Ben. ‘He transforms notes into emotions that feel both hauntingly familiar and brand new, as if hearing them for the first time every time. He is a living legend whose harmonica playing should be beamed into outer space to search for other life forms.’ And Charlie is as enthusiastic about working with Mr Harper. ‘Onstage or in the studio, working with Ben Harper holds the same excitement I experienced working with Chicago blues legends back in the day,’ says Charlie. ‘I think it is safe to say that Ben has reinvented the blues in a great way: playing modern while preserving the feel. I am honoured and privileged to be a participant in this project.’ See these two legends come together at the GW McLennan Tent on Saturday.

triumphant in 2016 with their stunning second album, Wildflower. Picking up where their iconic debut Since I Left You left off, its thrilling mix of wild party jams and gorgeous psychedelia had us falling in love all over again, a journey into a kaleidoscopic world of sound. The album scored glowing reviews around the world, nailed number one on the ARIA album charts and hit the Top 10 in the UK. Live onstage, the group blend iconic classics (Frontier Psychiatrist and Flight Tonight) with new favourites (Frankie Sinatra and Subways) in a joyous block party that’s guaranteed to be crazy in the coconut. They made their triumphant post-hiatus return to the stage at Splendour 2017, and now those musical mavericks who never gave a damn what anyone else thought are heading back to Byron Bay. Dance yourself stupid at Mix Up on Sunday.

13. The Jungle Giants Renowned for their energetic live sets, filled with charging dance hooks and contagious scream-your-lungs-out choruses, The Jungle Giants thrilled crowds with their electric mainstage shows earlier this year at Falls Festival. Marking the band’s final headline run of the critically acclaimed third album Quiet Ferocity, their Used To Be In Love April tour sold out multiple dates in record time, including four Metro theatres in Sydney. Alongside Kendrick Lamar, Gang of Youths and Lorde, The Jungle Giants dominated this year’s Triple J Hottest 100, with numerous entries from their 2017 release. The only independent act to achieve four placements, the stellar result saw tracks Used To Be Love land #59, Bad Dream #57, On Your Way Down #50 and a Top 20 inclusion with Feel The Way I Do nabbing #16. The Brisbane 4-piece defied expectations with career high third album Quiet Ferocity. Recorded and produced entirely themselves, the album featured hit singles Feel the Way I Do, Bad Dream, Used To Be In Love and On Your Way Down. Racking up well over 50 million Spotify streams, the record topped numerous 2017 Best Of lists and landed #7 on Triple J Listeners Top 10 Albums of 2017. The Jungle Giants play GW McLennan Tent on Saturday.

Byron Shire Echo archives: www.echo.net.au/byron-echo

FRIDAY 20 JULY 11:00

12:00

1:00

KWAME

AMPHITHEATRE

12.00 -12.30

MIX UP STAGE

2:00

WEST THEBARTON

MARMOZETS

12.50-1.30

1.50-2.30

ALICE IVY

EMMA STEVENSON

3:00

4:00

5:00

WELCOME DZ TO COUNTRY DEATHRAYS

EMMA

LOVE DELUXE (DJ SET)

WAFIA STEVENSON 12.15 -1.00 1.00-1.30 1.30-2.15 2.15-2.45 2.45-3.30 3.30-4.00 4.00-4.45

GW McLENNAN TENT

SHARK! HAMMER (HEAD) TIME

SCIENCE TENT

10.00-10.30

SAVE THE BOX! 10.30-11.00

SAVING NEMO

COLOUR AND CRYSTALS

11.00-11.30

11.30-12.15

5.30-6.15

6.15-7.00

10.45-12.00

SAFIA

THE PRESETS

MIKE GURRIERI

MIGUEL

7.00-8.00

8.00-8.45

8.45-9.45

9.45-10.30

10.30-11.30

HENRY ROLLINS

DUNE RATS & FRIENDS

12.30 -1.15

1.45-2.30

3.00-3.45

4.15-5.00

5.30-6.30

7.00-8.00

8.30-9.30

10.00-11.00

ALTA

WOODES

3.00-3.50

4.00-4.50

TAY OSKEE

LIVEWIRE

FROG FUN

NINA LAS VEGAS

6.00-7.30

7.30-9.00

9.00-10.00

10.00-11.00

5.00-5.50

TRANCEDUCER

STEVE STARZ

BEATRICE

4.30-5.30

5.30-7.00

7.00-8.30

8.30-9.30

CHEAP FAKES

BUNYARRA DANCERS

2.30-3.30

4.00-4.30

YT DINGO & AWE MILL DANCERS

BANANA JOLIE SUNSET DRUM & BRUISE ACRO BROTHERS CABARET WKSP DANCE WITH SLACKLINE LOVE MENINAS DA LUA 3.30-4.30 4.30-5.30 5.30-6.00 6.00-6.30

M.I.T (ALL MY FRIENDS TOKYO)

2.30-3.30

3.30-5.00

2.30-4.00

NARDEAN 7.00-8.00

5.45-6.30

PANEL: CYBER HACKING & STOLEN ELECTIONS: IS TRUST DEAD?

12.30-2.00

MADAM X

CHESHIRE

THAT’S MY JAM DANCE WKSP

1.30-2.30

LO’99

SCOUT

2.15-3.15

PANEL: CONSENT IN THE POST #METOO WORLD WITH HENRY ROLLINS, TRACEY SPICER, STELLA DONNELLY & MORE

HUMAN MOVEMENT

3.00-4.30

JOSH KELLY BROK NEILSEN

12.30-1.30

MANU CROOK$

SAFETY THE FIRST SOUNDTALES CIRCUS

6.45-7.15 7.15-7.45

ELEMENTAL KOSMIC

FORUM/COMEDY

4.45-5.30

9.15-10.15

MIKE GURRIERI

LORD HURON

URBY (PROPAGANDA) 11.00-12.30 DEADLOCK TV SERIES LAUNCH & PANEL 10.00-12.00

7.45-8.45

LORDE

CUB SPORT

SIGRID TASIES-YOGA FLOW - 9.00-10.00 • MASON TAYLOR - 10.00-10.30 SIGRID TASIES & TEDDI EMERALD THE SELF LOVE JOURNEY - 10.30-11.15 JULIA GEORGE-PSYCHIC DEVELOPMENT - 11.15-11.45 INVISIBLE NUMBERS - 12.00-12.45 • GAMBIRRA MOB - 1.00-2.00

ALL MY FRIENDS

6.15-7.15

TOUCH LOVE DELUXE SENSITIVE (DJ SET)

12:00

KHALID

JACK RIVER

1.00-2.00 12.15-12.45 11.00-12.00 VILLAGE GREEN CIRCUS PROGRAM — 11.00-3.00

BOHEMIAN LOUNGE

4.45-5.45

11:00

STELLA DONNELLY

UNCLE MAGPIE WELCOME TO COUNTRY

W/ DUNCAN PEAK & MURRAY KYLE

ANGUS & JULIA STONE