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Issu e #3 Sum mer 202 2 Locals who can make your even t; and tantalise your taste buds Street food culture is thriving
‘IF I GOT RID OF MY DEMONS, I’D LOSE MY ANGELS’ – TENNESSEE WILLIAMS (1911–1983) The Byron Shire Echo • Volume 37 #25 • November 30, 2022 • www.echo.net.au
Frances passes on her apron to Nikki Director of the Lilly Pilly Community Preschool in Bayside, Bruns, Frances Dyett, pictured left, is retiring at the end of the year, after nearly 30 years in the job. Longtime local, Nikki Farrell, pictured right, will take on the new role. Frances told The Echo, ‘I would like to thank the community for all the support I have received’. She added school photos taken before the digital age have also been printed, and parents are welcome to come and collect them. ‘All the Lilly Pilly Aunties will be at the Bruns Pub on Friday December 9, from 7pm, to celebrate, and it would be an honour for us if any old parents/students would like to pop in and say “hi”’. Photo Jeff Dawson
®ŕƆĕëōĕĎ ſşëĎƆ ōĕĪƐ şǔ īşưƐ ſşëĎ ëƖĎĶƐ Hans Lovejoy The Northern Rivers Reconstruction Corporation (NRRC), who are ‘leading the [flood] reconstruction effort’ say one of the biggest road surveys in regional NSW is now underway to ‘better inform the long-term rebuild of road and transport infrastructure in the region and ensure it can better withstand future floods’. Yet unsealed roads have not been included in the audit. The corporation said, in a press release, it will include, ‘All sealed roads in the Ballina, Byron Bay [Sic], Clarence Valley, Kyogle, Lismore, Richmond Valley and Tweed LGAs’. NRRC Chief Executive, David
Witherdin, said more than 5,500 kilometres of road surface will be assessed by the Australian Road Research Board (ARRB) ‘to measure roughness, texture and rutting, and to gather digital imagery for visual rating and automated crack detection’. The Echo asked the NRRC: ‘Given that most of the roads that were hardest hit by the floods and landslides were unsealed, why weren’t they included in this assessment?’
No reply by NRRC While the question was acknowledged by the NRRC, no reply was received by deadline. The NRRC press release goes on to say, ‘This assessment informs how
we’re going to prioritise more than $4.9 billion in infrastructure work, including a pipeline of more than $1.7 billion to address road and transport infrastructure rebuilding across the region. Specialised road scanning vehicles, including an Intelligent Pavement Assessment Vehicle and a Network Survey Vehicle, are being used to provide a comprehensive analysis of the scope of what needs to be done and key priority areas. ‘Northern Rivers councils and Transport for NSW are working with the NRRC’s Infrastructure Coordination Office, which is prioritising the region’s infrastructure needs and examining ways to manage supply constraints and capacity issues’.
Local farm ers are re esse sent nti al ntial to heallthy communities
BONUS MAGAZINE
Enterprising eats
Natural burial site found unsuitable Paul Bibby The long-standing plan to create a natural burial ground for locals who want to be buried sustainably has hit a major hurdle, with the site favoured for this use found to be completely unsuitable. For decades locals have been talking about having a place where people can be laid to rest without the serious ecological impacts that come with conventional burial and cremation. A picturesque site on Vallances Road in Mullumbimby had been earmarked for this purpose, with locals, councillors and staff pouring hours into planning and preparation. But a detailed investigation of the site by Council staff has found that it has multiple serious issues that have ultimately proved fatal. Two other sites, at the Clunes and Mullumbimby cemeteries, are now being considered to host the burial ground.
Disappointed mayor ‘I’m very disappointed that it’s not going to go ahead, but the reality is that it’s just not suitable,’ Mayor Michael Lyon told last week’s Council meeting. ‘While it had the visual appeal, on pretty much every other level that we investigated, it wasn’t great.’ In their report on the Vallances Road site, Council staff found it to be ‘vastly flood prone’. They also discovered that the soil there contained heavy clays that would not have allowed bodies to decompose quickly, and would have required significant time and carbon-burning energy to dig up.
Staff found that digging graves and revegetating the Vallances Road site would have required four-to-five times the amount of energy needed. There were also issues around the small size of the available land at Vallances Road for natural burial that meant it would have provided only a finite benefit for the community. Finally, the site was constrained by access issues, with the entrance currently located at a road safety black spot. ‘In light of this information, Clunes is recommended as the more suitable site for the purpose, but it is acknowledged that it’s at the boundary/limits of the Byron Shire,’ Council staff said. ‘Therefore, staff should investigate the viability of the Clunes and Mullumbimby cemeteries to allocate a section for natural burials, potentially at both locations.’ The community effort to create a natural burial ground in the Shire goes back more than two decades, driven, in large part, by the desire to avoid the environmental impacts of conventional burial and cremation. These impacts include the use of carcinogenic chemicals during the embalming process, and the toxic glues and lacquers used in coffins. Cremation releases about 160kg of carbon into the atmosphere, the majority from burning the coffin, according to a report from the South Australian Centennial Park Authority. While plans for a natural burial ground go back decades, Cr Lyon put a motion before Council in 2019, which proposed looking for a suitable parcel of Council or privately owned land.
Byron’s historic North Coast Insights and opinions Mullum is a great Is that the jingle jangle of the jetty engine news galore in the letters place to shop local Tamborine Man? No! It’s the start unveiled ▶ p3 ▶ p10 to the editor ▶ p13 this Christmas ▶ p22 of the Festive Season!! ▶ p25
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