Two men have drowned in the Never Never River on the NSW Mid North Coast.

"Emergency services were called to John Locke Place at Gleniffer, north of Bellingen, at about 6:45pm on Sunday following reports of people struggling in the water. Police were told three men, all believed to be aged in their 30's, began to struggle soon after entering the river."

"The two men were pulled from the water but were unable to be revived and died at the scene. A crime scene has been established and a report will be prepared for the coroner."
>>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-01-26/two-men-dead-bellingen-drowning/106269014

AUDIO: Two die in drowning on NSW Mid North Coast >>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-01-26/two-die-in-drowning-on-nsw-mid-north-coast/106269500

#Gleniffer #Bellingen #drowning #NeverNever #JohnLockePlace #NSW #rivers #NeverNeverCatchment #MidNorthCoast #tourism #CPRChart #swimming #heatwaves #crime

Imagine a car-free corridor from Bellingen to the Gleniffer Valley rivers

They managed to get a 6km cycling, walking and nature corridor from Sydney Harbour to the Cooks River. "For a 20th the cost of WestConnex you could build 50 greenways throughout Sydney...When we’re building more houses, increasing density … we need these green spaces to soften up our suburbs and connect them not just by black pieces of tar."
>>
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/dec/06/lewisham-greenway-cycle-path-sydney-inner-west-bruce-ashley
#Bellingen #Roads #GlenifferRoad #Urunga #NeverNever #CarFreeCorridor #GreenWay #cycling #walking #climate #sprawl #cars #GlenifferValleyReserves #traffic #waste

Image : Where the tar / headland meets the Pacific ocean

NSW platypuses are accumulating the “forever chemical” perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) in very high concentrations.

"The platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) is a semi-aquatic monotreme that occupies a high trophic position in the freshwater ecosystems of eastern mainland Australia and Tasmania. Platypuses are continuously exposed to anthropogenic contaminants including perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS). This study examined PFOS concentrations in the livers of deceased platypuses (eight wild; one captive) that were opportunistically collected across NSW over a two- and a half-year period. There was a large variation in PFOS concentrations, ranging from < 1 µg/kg to 1200 µg/kg. This study presents the first report of PFOS contamination in platypuses, revealing their PFOS levels are broadly similar to those found in river otters (Lutra canadensis) and lower than those in American mink (Mustela vison), both which occupy similar ecological niches in freshwater systems. This study raises concerns about the impact of PFOS on platypus health."

"Platypuses are vulnerable to many impacts associated with human activity including hydrological changes, decline in water quality, increase in litter and discarded fishing line, illegal opera house nets (yabby traps) and water contamination...There are no guidelines on what constitutes safe concentrations of PFOS in wildlife."

>>
Warwick, K.G., Wright, I.A., Whinfield, J. et al. First report of accumulation of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) in platypuses (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) in New South Wales, Australia. Environ Sci Pollut Res 31, 51037–51042 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-024-34704-w
#pollution #water #rivers #contamination #NSW #Wildlife #platypus #platypuses #penguins #PFOS #PFAS #ForeverChemicals #Gleniffer #bellingen #NeverNever #bellinger #catchment #AquaticInvertebrates #DrinkingWater #FoodChain #SyntheticChemicals

Are Australia's 4WD enthusiasts wrecking the bush?
From bushwalking to ALL TERRAIN driving in the bush

"4WD touring is booming and it's putting unprecedented pressure on the bush. The increased traffic is also degrading many of the tracks...Many of the tracks are historical — initially built for logging, gold mining or firebreaks — and are not designed for four-wheel driving. These tracks proliferate, they very rarely disappear."

"Something bogs up, drivers go round it, and it gets bigger, damages vegetation and spreads weeds and pests...The rules for four-wheel drives are the same whether you're in a national park or in a state forest, you're supposed to drive them on a road. You're not supposed to drive them around in the bush, willy nilly."

"Seasonal closures can also protect areas at risk of degradation.The spokesperson says 181 infringements totalling more than $60,000 were given to people caught driving cars or riding trail bikes illegally off-road or in restricted areas last year."

Déjà vu of SUVs being washed in a perennial stream (Orara River) on the eastern slopes of the Dorrigo Plateau and nappies deposited on river rocks.
>>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-07-13/4wd-tracks-see-boom-in-drivers-damaging-landscape-high-country/104049400
#conservation #NPs #TheBush #NSW #TheDrive #Bellingen #Orara #rivers #NeverNever #SUVs #ATV #OffRoad #DomesticTourism #rubbish #weeds #toilets #degradation #car #culture #regulation #bushwalking #biodiversity #habitat #climate

Unchecked tourism at Bellingen's Never Never River
Indigenous custodians embrace chance to curb tourism at 'trashed' swimming spot

"Occasional closure part of Indigenous Protected Area plan for troubled Never Never River's Promised Lands. The spot has now been declared part of an 81,000-hectare Indigenous Protected Area (IPA) in the Bellingen Valley."

"There have been concerns about pollution in the Never Never River at a popular swimming spot known as the Promised Lands, near the town of Bellingen...In January 2023, water quality at the river showed concerning levels of faecal matter, with human and dog excrement the suspected source."

"It was once regarded as something of a secret spot, but coverage on social media has seen it become an increasingly popular swimming site. But as the site is not recognised as a tourist area by Forestry Corporation NSW, which manages the Crown Land, there are no public toilets or rubbish bins, and minimal parking."

"Rather than it being a free-for-all, driving up and down from sacred places, we need to give it a rest sometimes during the year."
>>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-07-10/never-never-river-bellingen-indigenous-protected-area/103993356
#PromisedLand #NeverNever #rivers #Bellingen #TheDrive #ExcessiveTourism #tourism #NSW #pollution #dogs #SaveTuckersNob #GumbaynggirrCountry #GoBeforeYouGo #swimming #toilets #MidNorthCoast #platypus

Tourism without public toilets?
Little Blue Lake 'littered' with human faeces, sparking calls for toilets.

"The Little Blue Lake is a beautiful swimming hole that attracts thousands of people, but locals say human waste is piling up on its perimeter and the nearby car park."

Looks like the popular Never Never river is not the only place without a toilet.
https://mastodon.au/@Bellingen/109781401767955929

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-16/little-blue-lake-mount-gambier-sinkhole-human-faeces/103729160
#tourism #faeces #water #pollution #Gleniffer #PromisedLand #NeverNever #BellingenShire

Multi-drug resistant bacteria in dog poo and aquatic wildlife habitats?

Pet dogs "might be carrying antimicrobial-resistant bacteria, according to international researchers who tested E. coli found in the poo of pet dogs. They found evidence that the bacteria had developed some forms of antimicrobial resistance. The team suggest that efforts should be taken to prevent the transmission of E. coli between humans and their pets as this may pose a threat to human health."

https://www.scimex.org/newsfeed/mans-best-friend-might-be-carrying-antimicrobial-resistant-bacteria
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0298053
#dogs #pets #water #rivers #NeverNever #wildlife #platypus #MDR #pathogens #EColi #Gleniffer #PromisedLand #pollution

The poo problem
Unburied waste left by bushwalkers and swimmers causes a range of pollution problems.

National park rangers "find faeces near rivers, lakes, streams, and campsites and even next to toilets...We go along and pick those [poos] up and take them back to a toilet."

It is "expensive to install toilets in remote areas and fly the waste back to civilisation. It's about $3,000 an hour to pay for a helicopter to remove peoples' poo."
Rangers actively promote the poo pot.
>>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-01-31/poo-pots-promoted-to-bushwalkers-in-tasmanian-wilderness/103374466
#tourism #waste #rivers #DogPoo #Bellingen #NeverNever #pollution #PromisedLand #GoBeforeYouGo

Gleniffer Reserves and waterways management

There will be a review of the 5 year management plan of the Gleniffer Reserves. A meeting will be held at the Gleniffer Hall on Tuesday 23rd January from 9.30am to 12 noon.

Once residents and visitors have frequented the local watering holes in Bellingen, the swimming holes at Gleniffer are the main thing to do on a hot day. The mass tourism is funneled via ' the tourist drive'. The scenic country road has just been reconstructed into a highway-like infrastructure. Motorists are now enticed to race from the watering hole to the swimming hole. Cars park as close as possible to the small creeks and unload dogs and gear. The unwanted waste is commonly left behind for the local wildlife and the next load of visitors.

The reserves have a lot of car parking infrastructure and educational signage about settler explorers now.

A "Go before you go” campaign urges visitors to go to a public toilet before leaving the township. Many motorists/swimmers forget and the dogs can't read.

The 'upgrade' of Gleniffer road channeled the flow of visitors into local waterways that have no toilets.

#tourism #toilets #waste #rivers #cars #wildlife #platypus #waterways #GumbaynggirrCountry #GlenifferRoad #Gleniffer #PromisedLand #TheDrive #NeverNever #Bellingen #OverTourism #roads #MobilityDesign