$5 million for our rivers and catchment areas

By Samantha Elley

Thanks to a grant from the NSW Government the rivers in the Northern Rivers will be getting a ‘make over’.

Called the Northern Rivers Watershed Initiative, it involves initiating shovel-ready projects to improve water quality in the Tweed, Brunswick, Richmond and Evans river catchments.

“I am delighted to be announcing the funding of $5 million for the Northern Rivers Watershed Initiative,” said Lismore state member, Janelle Saffin.

“It’s a whole series of projects, it operates across six local government areas from Lismore, Kyogle, Richmond Valley, Ballina, Tweed, Byron.

“We’ve talked about doing repair and we’ve talked about the Watershed Initiative for a long time and Rous County Council did a lot of work on it.”

The funding became an election commitment which has now come to fruition, according to Ms Saffin.

Works will start in  October, 2024 and is based on the application of a range of natural flood management techniques across the Northern Rivers.

Key projects include:

• Working with macadamia farmers on orchard floor management, water sensitive drainage and soil stabilisation.
• Improvements in waterway condition to establish self-sustaining vegetated buffer zones including weed removal, cattle exclusion and planting 10,000 trees.

Jeremy Stewart, Whian Whian Landcare, Garry Lambert, landholder with wife Margaret, State MP Janelle Saffin, Anthony Acret, Rous County Council and Joseph Leven, Casino Food Co-operative.

This is a major partnership between Rous County Council, Lismore City Council, Richmond Valley Council, Kyogle, Tweed, Byron and Ballina Shire Councils, North coast Local Land Services and the Northern Co-operative Meat Company.

“We are backed by a whole catchment community that is really motivated,” said Anthony Acret, Catchment Assets Manager at Rous County Council.

“We’ve got landcare groups, first nations groups, community organisations that are doing a lot of this work themselves and its great to be able to work with them in partnerships to generate these sorts of outcomes.

“And of course we can’t do this work without partnerships with landholders.”

Garry Lambert is one of those landholders who owns acreage at Boatharbour.

“My interest of course is the land around us but I am a member of the community,” said Mr Lamber, former mayor of Darwin.

“You don’t have to be a scientist to look down at that creek and see the degradation that has happened over many years. That’s the history of farming.

“There’s now a movement to bring some vitality back to these waterways and make them much more productive.”

Mr Lamber said he and his wife were working at regenerative farming practices.

“This is just a perfect way of making sure we can be sustainable, that maximise capacity of the land,” he said.

“But still keeping production happening, because we still need to feed people, still need employment for people but we need to manage the environment.”

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$300,000 funding agreement to help deliver flood resilient land in the Byron Shire

The NSW Government is providing Byron Shire Council $300,000 through the Resilient Lands Program to provide safe, flood resilient land for new housing at the Saddle Road Precinct in Brunswick Heads.

The funding from the NSW Reconstruction Authority (RA) will allow Council to complete a Structure Plan, Infrastructure Priority Plan, technical studies, and community engagement to investigate suitability for new housing and public infrastructure in the precinct.

Located on the western side of the Pacific Motorway, the site is just five minutes by car to Brunswick Heads and eight to Mullumbimby. It is well above projected flood heights which will provide opportunities for new homes off the flood plain.

Saddle Road is the third site to be identified under the RA’s Resilient Lands Program (RLP). The site is also the first to be identified outside of the Lismore LGA under the program, and has also been flagged in Byron Shire Council’s Residential Strategy as a key site for future residential development.

It follows the recent announcement of 400 new lots in East Lismore and up to 50 new households in the Mount Pleasant Estate at Goonellabah.

While the final number of homes at Saddle Road will be determined following detailed planning and community engagement, based on site-specifications, it is estimated between 500-800 homes could be delivered.

The RLP is accelerating the delivery of new land and housing options, linking with the $700 million Resilient Homes Program (RHP), giving flood impacted homeowners a pathway to move to a safer location.

The RA will work with RHP buyback participants to secure suitable and affordable land and will provide further support to those eligible who wish to relocate their existing homes.

For more information, visit NSW Reconstruction Authority.

Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully said:

“This funding is a win-win for the community and Byron Shire Council.

“Not only will it help to unlock flood-resilient lots for people to build on, it also helps Council and the NSW Government deliver on its promise of more homes for our growing population.

“The land is positioned near existing services and an established community and will provide a beautiful, safe place to live for those affected by the nearby flood plain.”

Parliamentary Secretary for Disaster Recovery Janelle Saffin said:

“The announcement of this third site under the Resilient Lands Program is the first one outside of Lismore.

“Locals communities and Councils can be assured that the wheels of the RLP are starting to turn right across the Northern Rivers.

“This announcement will be followed by others in our local government areas and will see more land become available, giving people accepting buybacks in the Resilient Homes Program a variety of places to choose from.”

Byron Shire Council Mayor Michael Lyon said:

“We are thrilled to receive this initial funding support which will not only benefit members of our community displaced by the natural disasters in 2022, but also address the housing crisis that has existed since before the floods.

“Council can now get on with the important job of structure planning for this site on The Saddle Road and get the land ready for building flood-resilient houses more quickly which is a huge win.

“The work ahead includes an Aboriginal Heritage and Environmental Sensitivity Assessment, a Structure Plan that includes a vision and concept plan for the site, a Planning Proposal to amend Council’s LEP and an Infrastructure Priority Plan that addresses the infrastructure required to support a new community such as roads, sewer and water.

“As these works are progressed, we look forward to working with our community to achieve the best outcomes.”

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Marine Rescue Brunswick granted region’s first remote controlled on-water life-saving device

Marine Rescue Brunswick will bolster its rescue capability with a new state-of-the-art life-saving device after being awarded an Australian Government Stronger Communities Grant.

Marine Rescue NSW Northern Rivers Zone Duty Operations Manager John Murray said the Federal Government grant has aided the unit to purchase the Marine Rescue Northern Rivers region’s first ever USafe, a motorised remote controlled lifebuoy for rescue missions on local waterways including the Brunswick River, Simpsons Creek, Marshalls Creek and offshore.

“The USafe is a versatile and reliable piece of equipment that will assist our volunteers greatly in their mission of saving lives on the water.

“It is also reassuring for boaters, paddlers and swimmers who use our local waterways that this valuable tool is at the ready should they require assistance,” he said.

The USafe cost $14,000 with the Stronger Communities Grant contributing $10,000 and community donations funding the remainder.

“The financial support provided by the Australian Government and the local community to allow the unit to add a USafe to its rescue capability is greatly appreciated,” Mr Murray said.

Marine Rescue Brunswick Unit Commander Jonathan Wilcock said the USafe is operated by remote control and is a valuable life-saving tool for the Brunswick unit’s 76 volunteer members.

“The USafe will assist rescue crews in locations where we may not be able to get a vessel, like close to rocks or in shallow waters.

“This incredible piece of equipment can assist with recovering people in the water or getting a tow line to a disabled vessel in a challenging location.

“The device is easily transferable between the Brunswick unit’s rescue vessels and will be deployed when required to assist with a tasked mission.

“The USafe has a 300 metre working range and can transport up to 160kgs of buoyancy.

“It also features a variable speed motor so our rescue crews can approach a person gently or steer around hazards in the water,” Mr Wilcock said.

Volunteers at Marine Rescue Brunswick are currently undergoing training and familiarisation with a Marine Rescue NSW State Headquarters USafe device. Marine Rescue Brunswick is expected to take delivery of its own USafe in the coming weeks.

Marine Rescue NSW is a volunteer based not-for-profit professional organisation dedicated to keeping boaters safe on the water and supporting local communities.

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Council supports improving environmental and housing outcomes on Wallum development

Last week Byron Shire Council passed a resolution in support of a negotiated outcome on the Wallum development at Brunswick Heads that aims to maximise environmental benefits, minimise the development footprint, and improve housing diversity and affordability.

Byron Shire Mayor Michael Lyon brought forward a Mayoral Minute to update the community, and Council, about recent negotiations with Clarence Property. He previewed a proposed site map of the Wallum development that was drafted following discussions between Clarence Property representatives, and Councillors Michael Lyon, Asren Pugh and Cate Coorey.

“These discussions explored ways to protect more of the environmental values of the site whilst improving the affordability of housing lots by shrinking the footprint of the development and reducing some of the lot sizes. The total development footprint would reduce from 12 to 11 hectares and increase the eastern buffer by 1.8 hectares,” Byron Shire Mayor, Michael Lyon said.

“This would allow for the different types of housing that are needed in Byron Shire, including smaller dwellings for singles, couples and empty nesters.”

The revised footprint also creates a larger buffer between the development and the most significant population of Wallum froglets, west of Simpsons Creek. This re-arrangement can save more than half of the scribbly gums, including all the oldest specimens in this eastern section.

Wallum Development Alternative Layout Proposal

“With an approval from the Northern Rivers Planning Panel, Clarence is not compelled to make any changes, nor is it in their interest financially. All that Cate, Asren and I could do was try to persuade them of the proposal’s overall merits,” Mayor Lyon said.

“Whilst some people are set against the developer of this site, to not talk to Clarence Property was not an option because there is no other way to get a better outcome and we have looked into all options. Most of us would rather see no development on this site, but sadly that’s not possible. I am happy that Clarence is taking us seriously and considering our proposed changes,” Cr Cate Coorey said.

“Unfortunately, our environmental laws are very weak when it comes to protecting precious endangered species. This site approval, for a much larger development footprint, was given over a decade ago and we look forward to the passing of the proposed Federal National Environment Laws currently under community consultation. We have seen examples, like at West Byron, where a negotiated outcome has meant a much better result for the environment than taking an all-ornothing approach. Let’s hope that the same can be achieved here,” Cr Asren Pugh said.

“I want to thank all of those involved in the discussions to date. The ecologists that have given their time, the staff from Clarence Property who came to our discussions in good faith and are, I believe, open to different ideas to resolve this issue and Cr Coorey and Cr Pugh who brought different perspectives to the discussion that were very important”, Mayor Lyon said.

“It needs to be recognised that Clarence have already reduced the development footprint significantly compared to the original approval in 2013 as part of the DA process. Clarence have undertaken to also consider this revised footprint in the context of the site constraints, and there are still many things to work through, however discussions have been positive so far and they have expressed openness to the concept,” Mayor Lyon said.

“I believe that with goodwill and a willingness to compromise from all stakeholders and the community, including those passionately campaigning, we can negotiate a better result for the environment and for housing diversity,” he said.

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Restoring Brunswick River Banks: Council Plants 5000 Native Species to Boost Biodiversity

A rejuvenation effort is underway along the banks of the Brunswick River in Mullumbimby, as Council embarks on a significant planting initiative. Over 5000 native plants are being carefully placed along a 2km stretch of Riverside Drive, spanning from Pine Ave to the Mullumbimby Showgrounds.

This ambitious project has been made possible through a $220,000 allocation from North Coast Local Land Services, specifically earmarked for addressing priority river erosion sites stemming from the Flood 2022 NSW Government funding. The planting endeavor aims not only to fortify the riverbanks against erosion but also to foster biodiversity and enhance the local ecosystem.

Dave Filipczyk, Council’s Team Leader in Bush Regeneration, expressed enthusiasm for the project’s potential impact. He highlighted the extensive efforts undertaken last year, which resulted in significant natural regeneration of native species following the removal of invasive weeds. Despite being situated in the heart of Mullumbimby, this stretch of the Brunswick River boasts an impressive diversity of 139 native species alongside 79 weed species.

The previous year’s activities included the removal of Camphor laurel and comprehensive bush regeneration, along with habitat enhancement measures. The current endeavour to plant 5000 new native specimens aims to further strengthen the riparian zone, providing crucial food and habitat resources for local flora and fauna. Additionally, it is anticipated that the initiative will contribute to improving water quality, benefiting aquatic life within the river ecosystem.

This initiative is part of Council’s broader “Bringing Back the Bruns” project, a comprehensive bush regeneration program encompassing the Brunswick River and its tributaries. Spearheaded by Council’s Bush Regeneration Team, this project underscores a commitment to environmental stewardship and the preservation of local ecosystems.

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