THE BYRON SHIRE ECHO Advertising & news enquiries: Mullumbimby 02 6684 1777 Byron Bay 02 6685 5222 Fax 02 6684 1719 editor@echo.net.au adcopy@echo.net.au http://www.echo.net.au VOLUME 20 #42 TUESDAY, MARCH 14, 2006 22,300 copies every week $1 at newsagents only
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Landholder defies ‘unfair tax’ Lesley Patterson Each year over half a million dollars is paid to the Rural Lands Protection Board (RLPB) by the rural landowners of Tweed, Lismore and Byron Shires. Around 8,000 people quietly fork out around $70-$100 when they receive their annual bill, but there are a few who refuse to pay for a service which they say they don’t use. Cattle and sheep farmers seem to benefit most from the Board, which monitors stock movements, keeps an eye out for disease and has a veterinarian on staff to help with animal health issues. Middle Pocket landowner, Russell Preston, has no cattle or sheep and hasn’t had any for the 23 years he has owned his 12 hectare property. In September 2003 the Board tried
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Bring out your toads for prize muster
to auction Mr Preston’s property to recover $4,700 in unpaid rates and legal costs incurred in pursuing the debt. The auction was called off when Mr Preston agreed to pay $1,600 of arrears, but he refused to pay $3,000 of legal costs. Three quarters of the Tweed Lismore Board’s ratepayers, around 6,000 landowners, have more than five head of stock according to the Board’s manager Brian McInnes and are charged an annual animal health levy of just under $28. All 8,000 ratepayers, including the remaining 2,000 who have less than five or no animals at all pay a general rate of $37, which Mr McInnes says pays for ‘pest animal work and the function of the Board’. By pests, the Board mean rabbits, feral pigs continued on page 2
They came with stars in their eyes
Dan Grace from Bexhill was one of 200 hopefuls at the Byron Bay heat of the Australian Idol auditions on Saturday. Reflected in Dan’s sunglasses are the presenter of Australian Idol, James Mathison, and Lismore’s Tory Dixon who was hoping for discovery. Organisers have picked the most promising 21 performers, including a few from Byron Bay, Lennox Head and Suffolk Park to go before Idol judges in Brisbane in late May. Photo Jeff ‘Hopeless’ Dawson. More photos at photocompli.echo.net.au/echoextra
Alex McAuley Byron Shire Council and Brunswick Valley Landcare have come up with a unique concept to raise community awareness of the growing cane toad population in the shire: a cane toad muster. Anyone who can bring themselves to pick up one of these slimy, warty little pests and bring them to the muster could be in the running for a prize. The concept is simple: don your gloves and eye protection before you start your hunt, then go out and pick up as many of the little buggers as you can. Pop them into a container with air holes, and bring them along to the West Byron Sewage Treatment Plant, Bayshore Drive, Byron Bay, on Friday March 17 any time from 6pm onwards. Prizes will be awarded to the person with most toads collected and the person with the heaviest toad. Biodiversity Extension Officer at Byron Shire Council Wendy Neilan explained that the recent warm
Wendy Neilan, Byron Shire Council’s Biodiversity Extension Officer, with one of the shire’s most serious threats. Council is encouraging residents to round up these beauties in a toad muster this Friday. Photo Jeff ‘Hit the Toad’ Dawson
weather and wet conditions have provided an ideal breeding environment for this species, the female of which can produce up to 35,000 eggs. ‘The cane toad is an invasive species that poses a serious threat to our local biodiversity,’ said Ms Neilan. ‘Cane toads possess highly toxic defences at all life stages and have no natural enemies in Australia. Most native animals that normally eat frogs die when they attempt to eat cane toads. ‘If enough people collect toads from around their local area, we may put a dent in the population. We want people to bring us live toads to avoid mistaken identity. Byron Shire is home to at least 29 species of native frogs, some of which can look toad like.’
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So what will be the fate of the mustered toads? Unfortunately, they won’t turn into handsome princes after a kiss, so Ms Neilan will be organising their humane euthanasia by putting them into the fridge overnight to send them to sleep and then freezing them for 48 hours. Their carcasses will most likely be disposed of at the landfill site at the sewage treatment plant. On the night Brunswick Valley Landcare will be displaying its new cane toad traps which are based on a design developed in the Northern Territory. The traps will be available to the community and Landcare is looking for volunteers who would be interested in maintaining them. Find our how to toad proof yards and dams and tell the difference between toads and frogs.
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