Following three years of planning, installation and approval by the Byron Shire Council, the coffee plantation in Federal is now fully utilising the $135,000 facility.

“We’re pretty over the moon about it,” said Richard Kelly, pictured, General Manager of Green Cauldron Coffee.

“With this recycling facility we’ve basically achieved a closed loop for water usage and waste and we are able to capture and use every part of the coffee cherry, not just the bean.”

Leading Environmental Health scientist Tim Fitzroy worked with Green Cauldron Coffee to plan and build the facility.

“The design is both contemporary and best practice,” Mr Fitzroy said.

“So it’s fitting that the Byron Shire should be home to such groundbreaking work. It’s been a joy to work with such an innovative company willing to invest in green technology.”

Most Australian coffee producers use a wet process to wash and separate coffee.

However, the natural sugars found in coffee, together with debris from leaves and branches, deplete oxygen levels in the waste water and increase biochemical oxygen demand (BOD).

Water in this state is unsafe to release into waterways and is too strong to be used for irrigation.

Green Cauldron’s bespoke water recycling facility uses a sand filtration process combined with anaerobic bugs to significantly reduce BOD and increase oxygen levels – making the water safe to use.

Any solid waste is composted and used to fertilise the coffee trees. The net effect is a reduction in water consumption and protection of waterways and catchment areas. The process takes four to five weeks.

“Optimal health and vitality for our coffee trees is what we’re after” said Mr Kelly.

“And we hope that people can taste this in our single origin coffee.”

For more information, visit the Green Cauldron website .

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Announced last Friday 19th February and covered in The Weekend Australian, this accolade has been awarded to The Byron at Byron for the second year running.

“We are constantly surprised at the recognition we receive from both our new and repeat guests,” said John Parché, General Manager at The Byron at Byron.

“It was an absolute surprise and a great boost to the staff that this award was announced in our favour. We constantly strive to ensure that total guest satisfaction is achieved, and our staff are just overjoyed to receive this accolade”.

Receiving an award for two consecutive years places The Byron at Byron in the salubrious ‘Best of the Best Winners Circle’ with only three other tourism operators nationally.

These being Abercrombie & Kent (Best Tour Operator), Crystal Creek Meadows Luxury Cottages & Spa Retreat in Kangaroo Valley (Best Hosted Accommodation) and Kingfisher Bay Resort on Fraser Island (Best Family Focused Tourism).

“The Byron at Byron Resort has contributed hugely to the local community, both financially and through their on-site ecological restoration,” said Russell Mills, Chief Executive Officer of Northern Rivers Tourism.

“They constantly win awards because they maintain the highest commitment to delivering a wonderful experience to every guest. This latest award is a great achievement for our region. I congratulate them wholeheartedly as they have worked tirelessly for it.”

To celebrate this Award The Byron at Byron is offering locals a complimentary glass of wine with every mid-week restaurant booking for the month of March (lunch and dinner Monday to Thursday).

For bookings phone (02) 6639 2000 or visit thebyronatbyron.com.au

PICTURE: Lyn and John Parche celebrate with staff.

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The CEO of NRT, Russell Mills, said the appointment is a key element in its marketing program to build awareness of destinations, experiences and events and convert this into new business for tourism operators in the Northern Rivers region.

“Our strategy is to expand our range of export-ready products, instil confidence amongst international trade wholesalers and retailers in selling our region, as well as capitalise on the iconic profile Byron Bay enjoys to encourage international visitors to experience the wider Northern Rivers region,” Mr Mills said.

Parker Travel Collection has well-established credentials in representing Australian tourism operators and destinations in international markets for more than 12 years.

“For the past two years we have been working with some tourism operators who are active in international marketing or want to  increase their distribution and promotion. The appointment of Parker Travel Collection  increases our resources to target specialist wholesale and retail travel agencies and online travel companies to promote our region,” Mr Mills said.

The managing director of the Parker Travel Collection, Todd Parker, said it was  very encouraging to see regional areas like the Northern Rivers dedicating resources to the international markets.

“Such a fabulous destination offers international travellers an authentic Australian holiday experience — beach life and water-based experiences, thriving market culture, an emphasis on health and wellness, precious natural assets in the hinterland and National Parks of the region and an incredible bounty of locally grown produce – all combined in one accessible region,” he said.

In the year ending September 2009, the Northern Rivers received 227,200 international overnight visitors who spent more than 1.8 million nights in the region, both down marginally on the year prior. 

The top five countries from where the visitors came were the UK (69,977), Germany (25,446), USA (18,630), New Zealand (16,812), Scandinavia (13,859).  The Northern Rivers region has a 39% share of all international visitors to regional NSW, up 2% on the previous year.

NRT’s International Destination Marketing Program includes a Regional Travel Planner, featuring high-quality imagery, editorial and itinerary and package suggestions featuring the product partners.  It will be distributed and promoted over 12 months to key markets in Europe, North America and New Zealand.

There are 11 current product partners participating in the program including The Byron at Byron Resort and Spa, Apartments Inn Byron, Friday on the Beach, Outrigger Twin Towns Resort, Santai Casuarina Beach, Tweed Endeavour Cruises, Byron EasyBus, Gold Coast Airport, Bluesfest, Mojo Surf School and Cape Byron Kayaks.

The program is supported by the NSW Government through Tourism NSW and its Regional Tourism Partnership Funding Program.

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Byron Shire Council’s executive manager of environment and land use Ray Darney said the approval was valid for five years and subject to conditions granted by the court.

“One of the conditions included is that installation cannot commence until the approval issued by the Minister has been modified to incorporate the redesigned on-site system,” Mr Darney said.

He said the council was yet to see a final copy of the court’s conditions of approval.

In August 2009, Byron Shire councillors rejected Woolworths’ Section 68 application for any on-site sewerage system in Station Street, Mullumbimby.

Mr Darney said the application was refused because the applicant failed to demonstrate that appropriate arrangements could be made for the management of sewage generated by the development.

A Section 68 Application was required to be obtained prior to a construction certificate being issued. 

Woolworths lodged an appeal against the council’s decision in the Land and Environment Court and was permitted to submit revised proposals for the on-site system.

Mullumbimby currently has in place a moratorium that prevents any new developments being connected to the town’s overloaded sewage system until a planned upgrade is complete.

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Southern Cross University’s Professor of Information Technology and Information Systems, Professor Peter Croll, today handed the submission to Ms Saffin during a ceremony at the Student Services Centre, at the Lismore campus.

NSW Minister for Planning, Infrastructure and Lands, Tony Kelly, who was in the region for a series of infrastructure funding announcements, also attended to receive a briefing from Professor Croll.

The submission was simultaneously electronically lodged for assessment with NBN’s government relations and external affairs chief Mike Kaiser and with Federal Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy.

Professor Croll said Southern Cross University was committed to the NBN with the construction of a state-of-the-art research and demonstration ‘broadband hub’ as part of a $10 million upgrade of facilities at its Coffs Harbour campus.

The Australian Government had allocated $5 million for rural NBN co-ordinators and the submission advocated that one of these positions should be based at this hub, Professor Croll said.

The submission showcases a number of case studies in E-Health, E-Learning, E-Environmental Management, E-Manufacturing, E-Creative Industries, E-Agribusiness, E-Finance, E-Tourism and E-Local Government (to include emergency management).

Ms Saffin praised the university and its Regional Futures Institute for pulling together a compelling and well-researched case for Australia’s eastern regional corridor – from Tweed Shire to the Great Lakes district south of Port Macquarie – to be among the first communities in mainland Australia to capitalise on the benefits of high-speed fibre broadband.

“They have achieved this within a very short time frame since I arranged for Minister Conroy to visit Grafton late last year for a broadband forum, where he encouraged our region to put its best foot forward,” she said.

“The submission, a collaborative effort involving 14 local councils and businesses at the cutting edge of IT, underlines that we live in a region which has demonstrated early wins though increased productivity and creative innovations. We also boast a combined population of 550,000 people, with growth rates on a par with our capital cities.”

Ms Saffin paid tribute to Coffs Harbour Mayor Cr Keith Rhoades and his Economic Development Unit officers Kristina Cooke and Barry Davis, Tweed Shire Council’s Director of Technology and Corporate Services Troy Green, Tweed Economic Development Unit CEO Tom Senti and Northern Rivers Regional Organisation of Councils (NOROC) chair and Lismore Mayor Cr Jenny Dowell, for helping to drive the project.

The submission can be viewed at www.gobroadband.org.au – a website developed by Southern Cross University information technology lecturer Dr Bill Smart. The site has already attracted more than 1600 hits from local businesses and residents interested in the NBN push.

PICTURE: Professor Peter Croll, who today handed the University’s National Broadband Network submission to member for Page, Janelle Saffin.

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“The Gold Coast Airport makes the Northern Rivers unique in NSW as the only NSW region with an international terminal on its doorstep. This is proving a real asset for the growth of tourism in the region, as well as a benefit to local residents for easy travel,” says the CEO of Northern Rivers Tourism, Russell Mills.

“Many people overseas and interstate don’t realise how close they are to the Northern Rivers via the Gold Coast Airport – in fact, most do not realise that the runway crosses both States, so sometimes they can take off or actually land in NSW!

“Over the past two years a bigger share of our international tourists have been arriving from the Gold Coast as more airlines see the opportunities offered through tourism in the region.”

The airport’s figures of a 55% increase in international visitors and 10% in domestic growth in the year to September ’09 shows clearly the growing popularity of the hub, much to the benefit of the Northern Rivers, Mr Mills said.

“We are confident that the upgraded facilities, coupled with the growth of low-cost carriers such as Air Asia X, Jetstar International and Tiger Airways, will bring even more visitors to our region in the years ahead,” said Mr Mills.

The Gold Coast Airport’s own website indicates high levels of interest in access to the Northern Rivers – both for transportation and for locations.

“Northern Rivers Tourism has built a strong working relationship with the Gold Coast Airport team and we have recently welcomed International Marketing Manager, Michael Curtis, onto our Board to strengthen our ties even further,” Mr Mills said.

In addition, the organisation is also working closely with airlines to jointly promote the Gold Coast destination as a step-off point to the Northern Rivers.

“For example, we are currently running a promotion with Air Asia X to attract more students to come and learn and play in the Northern Rivers,” said Mr Mills.

Anthony Albanese, Federal Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, and Paul Lucas, Queensland Deputy Premier, today officially opened the $100 million terminal redevelopment at Gold Coast Airport.

Minister Albanese said that the new terminal was more than double the size of the previous terminal at over 30,000 square metres.

“Completed two months ahead of schedule, this major infrastructure project employed 1850 people during construction, delivering a significant boost to the economy,” he said.

“All up, Gold Coast Airport contributes more than $1 billion to the region’s economy every year and employs more than 1200 people on an ongoing basis.

“It is one of the fastest growing airports in Australia and is a vital gateway to some of Australia’s most popular tourist destinations in south-east Queensland and northern New South Wales.” 

Minister Lucas said that the Gold Coast airport was the sixth busiest in the nation – with the top five busiest all capital cities – and 35 per cent of all domestic tourists arrived by air compared with 29 per cent in Queensland.

PICTURE: Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Anthony Albanese, Richmond MP Justine Elliot, and Managing Director of Gold Coast Airport Dennis Chant.

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The funding is being provided from the Rudd Government’s $10 million Small Business Online program which has been boosted by another $4 million to extend it to more tourism small business operators.

Member for Page Janelle Saffin said the Northern Rivers Business Enterprise Development Agency would receive $156,000 to help small businesses – especially tourism operators – make the most of the internet.

Across the nation, 95 per cent of small businesses are connected to the internet, yet only 57 per cent have a website.

The funding will help small businesses take full advantage of the National Broadband Network (NBN) by helping them install and upgrade websites, Ms Saffin said.

Small Business Minister Craig Emerson and Tourism Minister Martin Ferguson announced that grants ranging from $50,000 to $700,000 had been offered to 47 small business support groups including industry associations across the nation.

A list of successful applicants and more information on the Small Business Online program can be found at www.ausindustry.gov.au

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Richmond Landcare Inc is conducting trials using biochar, a carbon-rich product created by burning waste materials, in soils used to grow sweet corn, avocados, coffee, sugarcane, macadamias and rice, as well as grazing pastures as part of the project.

“We are pleased to report to the Minister that our trials are showing positive results. For example, different biochar mixtures on the sweet corn crop showed significant growth rates for the crop, carbon retention and limited greenhouse gases,” said Tony Walker from Richmond Landcare.

“We would love to use more Australian biochar, but we have to import most of it from Indonesia and the Philippines. There is definitely an opportunity for a biochar plant to be established in the Northern Rivers. 

“We are hoping that a local council in our area will build a plant – not only will this avoid burying or transporting green waste type garbage, but also make available locally produced biochar for trials and for farmers to utilise.”

The biochar trials have demonstrated its potential to sequester carbon, benefit soil health and increase plant growth.

The avocado trial centred around conventional fertilizer treatment versus biochar treatment for healthy and diseased trees.
 
“The results were very positive, in fact diseased trees treated with biochar out-performed the healthy trees treated with conventional fertilizer,” said Mr Walker.

Minister Burke yesterday had the opportunity to inspect sweet corn trials at Wollongbar Agricultural Institute and those in the Kahawa Estate coffee plantation in nearby Booyong.

Mr Burke also met with farmers and scientists involved with the trials, and was able to discuss results with them.

A grant of $297,000 from the Caring For Our Country Federal program has made the latest trials possible, which will continue for another year. 

Note: Biochar is defined as the stable carbon-rich product that results from heating biomass materials (such as municipal green waste, poultry litter, forestry and agricultural residues) in limited oxygen. Biochar can be applied to soils to sequester carbon, to mitigate climate change and to increase soil fertility and agricultural productivity. The process also yields renewable energy.

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He will inspect the progress of trials at the Wollongbar Agricultural Institute and at a nearby coffee farm. The project is being conducted with the support of a Caring For Our Country grant.

• When: Monday 18 January from midday to 2pm
• Who: The Minister will be brought up to date on the project by Tony Walker from Richmond Landcare, Dr Lukas van Zwieten from Industry and Investment NSW, and other scientists and farmers participating in the project, including Jos Webber from Kahawa Estate Coffee.
• Where: Wollongbar Agricultural Institute, 1243 Bruxner Highway (check at reception for exact location) from noon – 12.45pm, then Kahawa Estate Coffee Plantation, 374 Houghlahans Creek Road, Booyong, until 2pm. 
• Details: A grant of $297,000 was provided through Caring for Our Country funds to research the impact of biochar on crops in the Northern Rivers including avocados, coffee, sugar cane, rice, macadamias and sweet corn as well as grazing pastures.   Observations to date have been very positive.

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The committee, chaired by Bob Thompson of Clarence Coast Law, hopes to raise $200,000 in pledges by the end of the first quarter of 2010.

Pledges of Support of between $500 and $10,000 are being sought from Yamba residents and businesses that would like become shareholders in Clarence Valley Community Financial Services Limited.

This company was established to set up the South Grafton Community Bank Branch over 10 years ago, and now wants to share its success with the Yamba community and its own branch.

A spokesman for the committee, South Grafton Community Bank branch manager Des Plunkett, said a sufficient number of pledges are required before an independent consultant is appointed to conduct a feasibility study.

“If we raise $200,000 in pledges, we will move on to the feasibility study with view to approval from Bendigo Bank to go ahead and issue a prospectus,” Mr Plunkett said.

“If we don’t get $200,000 in pledges, the project will be unlikely to go ahead.

“At last check we have $110,000 in pledges and are more than half way to our minimum.

“Realistically, we hope to reach our target by end of first quarter 2010, and we encourage anyone who is interested in supporting the project to complete and lodge a pledge form now so we can move on to the next step.

“If we reach our target in this timeframe, our target would to have a branch open in the second half of 2010.

“Potential customers can also indicate their support by establishing some banking relationship with us now through the South Grafton Branch.

“This has been already occurring, and this new business will be domiciled on the Yamba Branch when it opens. There are also some benefits available for personal and business loans taken up during this period.”

The Community Bank initiative was developed by Bendigo Bank to provide communities around Australia with banking services and an ongoing source of local funding.

The first branch was opened in 1998 in response to what Bendigo Bank says was community demand for face-to-face banking services following branch closures throughout the 1990s.

The steering committee says that having a Community Bank in Yamba will keep local money and local jobs in the town, and provide a continuous income stream for community projects and initiatives.

“A Community Bank Branch is a franchise of Bendigo Bank operated by a local company owned by local shareholders,” the committee said.

“While Bendigo Bank provides banking infrastructure and support, the community manages the branch, marshals community support and returns profits to the local community.”

For further information on the project and to obtain a Pledge of Support form, contact:
Des Plunkett 6643 3044
Bob Thompson 6646 3077
Karen Toms 0403 195 178
John Warden 0407 361 118.

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