Winter 2011

North Coast Energy Forum

3 June 2011

The 2011 North Coast Energy Forum will be held at Mullumbimby Civic Hall from 9am - 5pm on Friday 3 June.

The event will provide a platform for key experts, industry representatives, policy makers and the wider community to explore how the NSW North Coast can meet more of its energy needs through a mix of reducing and managing demand, improving energy efficiency and increasing local generation of renewable energy.

Byron Shire Council is a major sponsor of the 2011 North Coast Energy Forum.

Featuring: Professor Stuart White, Institute for Sustainable Futures, UTS; John Kaye, NSW Greens MLC; and Matthew Wright, Executive Director of Beyond Zero Emissions

Cost: $80 corporate & government / $40 community groups & general public (includes GST, booking fee, lunch and carbon offset)

For more information or to book a ticket, visit: www.ncenergyforum.org or call Mark Byrne on 6621 1113

New 10kW Solar System at Myocum Landfill

Byron Shire Council has installed one of the largest solar systems in the Shire, with a new 10 kW solar PV system erected at the Myocum Waste and Recycling Centre. The large free-standing system consists of 52 panels that will produce approximately 15,000 kWh of green energy and avoid 16,000 kg of CO² emissions each year.

Each year, the system will produce renewable energy equivalent to:

removing 20 cars off the road, or
planting 829 trees for carbon absorption.

The suitability of installing a large solar pv system at the Myocum Waste and Recycling Centre site was identified in the local Renewable Energy Resources Study that Council commissioned in 2010.

Swap Market - World Environment Day

5 June 2011

Do you have something you don’t want or have out grown? Then why not swap it at Byron Shire Council’s World Environment Day Swap Market?

The free Swap Market will be held outside Council Chambers in Mullumbimby from 9am on Sunday 5 June.

The event aims to improve community awareness about recycling by providing a fun and interactive way to pass on your unwanted goods to others in the community. No money changes hands!

The day will also feature live reptile displays, eco stalls, craft activities, composting workshops and delicious food and drinks!

Swap Market Rules

Bring up to 3 easy to carry, quality items that you want to swap (e.g. clothes, books, toys, music, ornaments - no electrical goods)
Register your swap items at our registration desk and receive one token for each item (registration opens at 9am).
Choose the item(s) you would like to take and hand your token back to a swap party helper.

Any items not swapped during the day will be donated to local charities.

For more information about the 2009 Swap Market visit www.byron.nsw.gov.au/swap-market or call 6626 7305.

New Ocean Shores Community Garden

Ocean Shores / South Golden Beach is the latest town in the Shire to secure land for a community garden. 1,600m2 of land adjoining Shara Boulevarde in North Ocean Shores has been allocated by Council for the establishment of a communal garden, including veggie beds, fruit and nut tree orchards, shade structures, compost bays and water tanks.

For more information or to get involved, contact Acting Garden Coordinator, Greg Dutton on 0411 125 939 or visit: www.sharagardens.org

Free Seminar - 'Transitioning to a Sustainable Community' with Sonya Wallace

2 August 2011

A free community presentation titled Transitioning to a Sustainable Community will be delivered by well-known Transition Town Facilitator and Permaculturalist from the Sunshine Coast, Sonya Wallace.

Sonya will focus her presentation on ways local communities around Australia and overseas have self-organised at the grass-roots level to create more sustainable solutions for their communities amid a future of peak oil and climate change. Sonya will share inspiring ideas and empowering solutions that bring communities together through Transition Networks, community co-operation, government support and social change for a better future.

To register your attendance at the seminar, email: sustainability@byron.nsw.gov.au

The free seminar will be held at Mullum Council Chambers from 6:30 - 8:00pm on 2 August and is part of Council's 2011 Biodiversity and Sustainability Seminar Series. To download the full Seminar program, click here.

Mullumbimby Community Garden Nursery Open

Mullumbimby Community Garden is celebrating the opening of their new organic nursery that will provide veggie seedlings to Garden members and the general public for a set donation. The new nursery is being is run by gifted local grower Andy Samson, who has been raising seedlings in the Northern Rivers region for many years as a commercial operator.

Andy says that the new Community Garden Nursery will be operating during standard Garden opening hours and currently an abundance of winter veggies, such as broccoli, spinach, turnips and kale are ready for planting!

Visit the Mullumbimby Community Garden at the end of Stuart St, Mullumbimby between the hours of 9am - 5pm, 7-days/week.

Byron Shire Energy Saving Challenge

Did you know that the average Byron Shire resident uses around 7-10 kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity every day? Your challenge is a target of... less than 5kWh per person, per day!

Download Council's Energy Saving Challenge Fact Sheet to discover tips to save power and money on your energy bills!

*SOLAR HOT WATER ALERT*
Have you been thinking about installing a solar hot water system? The $300 cash back rebate from the State Government is due to end on 30 June 2011 so don't delay and start saving on your power bills today!

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