Crashes at Lavenders Bridge, North Bellingen

* Just a short time ago two women were killed and another seriously injured after a motorist 'lost control' near the notorious Lavender Bridge and smashed into two cars parked at the riverside swimming spot. >>
https://coffscoast.newsofthearea.com.au/a-woman-has-tragically-died-in-a-crash-at-bellingen-on-thursday-afternoon

* Today there was another serious incident involving two e-bikes. An ambulance was seen at the crash zone. An injured person was seen lying on the ground. (The ambulance is visible on the Kombu Flood Camera at 2026-05-24 11.26 ) >>
https://kombuwholefoods.com.au/floodcam/

* The long road to a bike-friendly Australia >>
https://mastodon.au/@Bellingen/116626357349183983

* In the design of the new 'Lavenders Bridge Replacement' bikes and foot traffic do not seem to be a feature. A lot of bitumen was smeared over the river banks to facilitate the convenience for cars (parking).

Image: North Bellingen, Lavender Bridge Black Spot by design

#MobilityDesign #LavendersBridge #cars #motorists #infrastructure #climate #ActiveTransport #footpaths #SharedStreet #cyclists #ProtectedBikeLanes #dehumanisation #sprawl #suburbia #traffic #aggression #RoadRage #RoadTrauma #CarDependency #FossilFuels #BellingenShire #accidents #crash #pedestrians

Vehicle idling fees

Cars, trucks and motorbikes illegally pollute our air and force residents to breathe in their exhaust. Most motorists are seen fumbling on their phones while idling in Bellingen.

Mayor Recovers More Than $9 Million in Unpaid Amazon Idling Fines
https://www.nyc.gov/mayors-office/news/2026/05/mamdani-administration-recovers-more-than--9-million-in-unpaid-a
#pollution #cars #trucks #idling #exhaust #FossilFuel #climate #FuelRationing #BellingenShire #motorists

Get a mayor

It is said that Australia is currently experiencing a nationwide pothole crisis, driven by the combustion of fossil fuel. (Extreme weather, flooding, and aging infrastructure)

Motorists (and other residents) could elect a mayor who actually acts on worn out roads as well as taking action to address issues of pressing public concerns.

* Potholes everywhere: how climate change is trashing Australia’s roads >>
https://theconversation.com/intense-rain-landslides-and-potholes-everywhere-how-climate-change-is-trashing-australias-roads-264328

* "Mamdani has also filled over 100,000 potholes. I’m no expert, but the data suggests that is a remarkable rate of hole-filling." >>
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/may/19/when-i-look-zohran-mamdani-jealous-of-new-yorkers

* Here’s a list of things Zohran Mamdani has done in just four months , First Dog on the Moon >>
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/picture/2026/may/18/heres-a-list-of-things-zohran-mamdani-has-done-in-just-four-months

Image: First Dog on the Moon, Guardian
#councils #CivicLeadership #mayors #PublicConcerns #action #inequality #BellingenShire #climate #FossilFuels #MobilityDesign #housing

Free to roam - Councils are too poor to manage roaming cats that kill 96 million native animals each year in New South Wales

"Animal rescuers across New South Wales say they're struggling to cope with a surge in surrendered cats, warning legislative gaps are fuelling a growing stray "crisis"."

"Under the Companion Animals Act in NSW, cats can only be seized if found in a dedicated food preparation or wildlife protection area, otherwise they are free to roam. "This 'free to roam' is perpetuating a constant breeding cycle that all of us rescuers are overwhelmed with."..."Until cats are treated the same as dogs and have to be desexed and contained, this is just going to get worse and worse." "

"On average the Invasive Species Council estimates each roaming pet cat kills 186 animals per year...We need council and the government to step up."

"In September the NSW Greens introduced a bill proposing to introduce cat containment laws, which would require pet owners to keep their cats inside. The state government is expected to finalise its review within the coming months."

"We would encourage people to keep their cats inside all the time, especially at night." >>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-05-18/stray-cat-crisis-new-south-wales/106595620

"Cats kill approximately 96 million native animals each year in New South Wales, including millions of mammals, birds, and reptiles." >>
https://invasives.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Pet-cat-impacts-June-2023.pdf
#cats #pets #dogs #ContainmentFailures #biodiversity #wildlife #mobility #NSW #law #values #councils #Bellingen #Gleniffer #BellingenShire

Study finds Tasmanian native forest logging increases potential for more severe bushfires

"Logging worsens bushfires because regrowth eucalyptus trees are highly flammable in comparison to mature trees, which act as "green fire breaks...A fire expert says mature forests can "act as a buffer" to slow bushfires, whereas regrowth eucalypts are more flammable."

"The study has found around a fifth of Tasmanian tall wet forest is regrowth under 40 years old, largely a result of intensive logging and recent fires."

"Professor Bowman said this raised concerns around community safety and the sustainability of the state's timber industry."
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-04-10/bushfire-risk-worsened-by-regrowth-after-logging-study-finds/106546528

Landscape-scale experimental proof that tall wet Eucalyptus regrowth burns more severely than mature forest >>
https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ae4d62
#bushfires #LoggingImpacts #NSWLogging #LoggingIndustry #BellingenLogging #FCNSW #risks #harm #forests #biodiversity #CommunitySafety #Bellingenshire #RegrowthHazard

Bellingen shire favours roaming cats over biodiversity
The council is too poor to manage the overpopulation of cats

"Management of wandering cats was in the spotlight at the Bellingen Shire Council’s Ordinary meeting last week. That caution stems from a lack of council resources and the results of a NSW parliamentary inquiry into management of pet cats held last year. "

"While the inquiry found “there is an urgent need to implement cat management strategies in NSW to address the overpopulation of cats, both in urban environments and in the wild”, they also found NSW “may not be ready to adopt mandatory cat containment laws”.

"Cr King said management of wandering cats should be a “top of the list” issue for Council. “It feels like it’s a do nothing, too hard basket response to a really concerning issue we have in our shire,” Cr King said." >>
https://bellingenshirenews.com.au/2026/03/26/council-favors-education-over-cat-curfews-in-bellingen/

"Domestic cats are estimated to kill many of our native animals each year, including an estimated 53 million reptiles, 61 million birds, and 67 million mammals. Keeping cats home and wildlife safe " >>
https://www.nsw.gov.au/ministerial-releases/keeping-cats-home-and-wildlife-safe
#cats #CatCurfews #Bellingen #InvasiveSpecies #pets #biodiversity #Wildlife #BellingenShire #NSW

Image: 'Missing cat' roamed too far, Bellingen poster

Roads cutting through mountain ranges and waterfalls
Do they cause landslides and reactivate old ones?

Temporary fix for Waterfall Way at Gordonville slip site
"Waterfall Way has reopened between Bellingen and Dorrigo after temporary repairs to the Gordonville slip site. The temporary fix consists of a gravel filled shipping container wall, two containers high and eight containers long, attached to the rockface using nine high-strength steel anchors drilled deep into the rockface." >>
https://insidelocalgovernment.com.au/temporary-fix-for-waterfall-way-at-gordonville-slip-site/

Video of landslide: Waterfall Way, Gordonville Crossing Landslip >>
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGymAVc1u8g

Do roads mean landslides are more likely? >>
https://blogs.egu.eu/geolog/2015/01/16/geosciences-column-do-roads-mean-landslides-are-more-likely/

Could road constructions be more hazardous than an earthquake in terms of mass movement?

"In this study, we report a distinct correlation of mass movements and major road constructions that explicitly shows human impact on mountainous environments which are under anthropogenic disturbance recently. Our results further suggest that slope instabilities increased drastically after major service road constructions for hydroelectric power plants and as well as other road extension works."

"We also stress that the impact of road construction can disturb the natural slope equilibrium to an extent comparable with moderate (larger than 6 Mw) earthquakes."

"Such an observation implies that human activities can have a large, if not even dominant, impact on landscape evolution and the natural regime of surface processes. This is part of the definition of “Anthropocene,” an age where our society shapes nature for our purposes, frequently at the risk of damaging ourselves."
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11069-021-05199-2

Image: Sisyphus, Franz von Stuck, 1920

#roads #WaterFallWay #mountains #ecosystem #denudation #overloading #waterfalls #Bellingenshire #Dorrigo #landslides #landslips #infrastructure #cars #engineering #Sisyphus #mindsets #Anthropocene

Addressing overtourism

"Experts and operators say overtourism isn't just a matter of overcrowding, but also change to local areas in ways that disadvantage residents. The biggest impact of overtourism is the loss of a region's original value and character."

"When too many tourists concentrate in one area, the focus of the town gradually shifts from daily life to tourism."

"Businesses naturally begin prioritising tourists over local residents because it becomes more profitable. As a result, everyday convenience for residents decreases, and the unique local identity can slowly disappear."
>>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-03-07/japan-addressing-overtourism-as-travel-booms/106390090
#tourism #Bellingenshire #culture #overtourism #NeverNeverRiver #rivers #TourismIndustry

Smoulderscape

Still suffocating in smoke pollution
from the 'agricultural activity' of
post-harvest burning by the cellulose 'plantations'
of the NSW government's Forestry Corporation.

Déjà vu
* " “Rome Plows,” massive bulldozers with an armor-fortified cutting blade, could clear 1,000 acres a day. Enormous concussive bombs, known as “daisy cutters”, flattened forests and set off shock waves killing everything within a 3,000-foot (900-meter) radius, down to earthworms in the soil. " >>
https://theconversation.com/50-years-later-vietnams-environment-still-bears-the-scars-of-war-and-signals-a-dark-future-for-gaza-and-ukraine-254971

* Ecocide and the history of herbicidal warfare in the Vietnam War >>
https://anzacportal.dva.gov.au/wars-and-missions/vietnam-war-1962-1975/events/aftermath/agent-orange

#Pollution #Smoke #pollution #HealthHazards #FCNSW #forestry #harm #Bellingenshire #Gleniffer #BellingenLogging #NSW #COPD #AirQuality #breathing #soot #PineCreekStateForest #TuckersNobSF #PostHarvestBurning #agriculture #PileBurning #NSW #EPA #AirQuality #CleanAir #SacrificeZone #extractivism #LoggingIndustry #NegativeExternalities #governance #care #StructuralViolence