Greens Member for Ballina Tamara Smith is calling on the state government to deliver a long overdue ambulance station for Alstonville and Wollongbar as part of the increase in 750 paramedics and ambulance control centre staff over the next four years.

Greens call on Education Minister to hold the line for NSW

Greens Education Spokesperson and Member for Ballina, Tamara Smith MP today joined the NSW Primary Principals’ Association, NSW Secondary Principals’ Council, the NSW Teachers Federation and the NSW P&C Federation in calling on the NSW Education Minister Rob Stokes to hold the line on needs-based funding for schools. (see letter below)

Gold plated roads in the city means regions miss out

The NSW Nationals have abandoned rural voters, with announcements this week that just $50 million will be spent on fixing blackspots on rural roads this year, while a mind boggling $16.8 billion will be spent on Westconnex in Sydney, according to Greens MPs.

Media Release

Tamara Smith MP, Member for Ballina, has welcomed $166,000 in funding to be used to save an endangered ecological community of Coastal Cypress Pines at Brunswick Heads in Northern New South Wales and three species of large forest owls that live in the area.

Ms Smith today asked Environment Minister Gabrielle Upton at Question Time to preserve the Coastal Cypress Pines in the Terrace Reserve at Brunswick Heads and prevent damage to them from large vehicles and intensive year-round camping.

“In response to the concerns I raised today and in May this year, funding has now been awarded under the state-wide Save Our Species program to secure threatened plants and animals in the wild in NSW,” said Ms Smith.

Community voices its opposition to West Byron

Almost one thousand Byron residents have voiced their opposition to the West Byron mega-development in a survey by Greens Member for Ballina Tamara Smith.

“Local residents have demonstrated time and again their opposition to the West Byron Mega Development, and after consulting with the local community we have received almost 1,000 responses rejecting the development,” said Ms Smith.

Greens Member for Ballina Tamara Smith MP today met with a group of local traffic  and road safety representatives to discuss action on the Bruxner Highway intersection with Ballina Rd, Alstonville.

Congratulations to the Northern Rivers companies and people who have made it to the Green Globe Award finalist list - including Suffolk Park youngster Arlian Eckert, aka Plastic Free Boy, seen here with his mother, Karin.

"I am very proud to see our region so well represented in many of the Award categories. Clearly, our area punches well above its weight when it comes to environmental innovation,” said Ballina MP Tamara Smith.

Photo: A dead koala at the side of Ewingsdale Rd Byron Bay July 2018, courtesy Friends of the Koala

 Our local koala populations continue to be at risk from vehicle strikes as well as from disease and habitat loss.

 Content warning - Heartbreaking footage from 2017 of a koala trapped in the St Helena tunnel has been released by the RMS after some dedicated work by members of our community to obtain the video.

Media Release

15 August 2018

The Liberal/National Party last night voted against Greens amendments that would have given communities like Byron Bay and local councils more power to regulate short-term rental accommodation including Airbnb.

The Greens support the sharing economy and the new business models and opportunities it provides.

However, the Fair Trading Amendment (Short-term Rental Accommodation) Bill 2018 passed last night fails to balance these opportunities with the impacts on people and communities, particularly in popular coastal destinations such as Byron Bay and the NSW South Coast.

Sea Shepherd visits Byron

It was my pleasure to meet Mal Holland, the captain of Sea Shepherd's flagship vessel the M/Y Steve Irwin, when it called in to Byron Bay, and to hear about his commitment to stopping the $16.5 billion coal mine, rail link and coal port proposed by Adani for Queensland’s Galilee Basin.