BYRON Shire Deputy Mayor Michael Lyon is looking towards the bigger picture.

Officially launching his campaign as Greens candidate for the seat of Richmond in the 2019 Federal election, Cr Lyon said he was a "new breed" of Greens wanting to bridge the gaps between business and environment.

"There's a new breed of Greens who are more pragmatic and more focused on outcomes and getting past the ideology," he said.

"It's about putting that into practice. I offer a lot to the Greens as I come from the business community, I'm the business manager of Santos Organics in Byron Bay. We've only got one Green in the Lower House, so it's important we have more numbers in that area.

Cr Lyon said he wanted to shine a light on climate change, affordable housing and more generally the equity within society.

"I'm aligning my values with my actions and I see some considerable challenges within society that I don't feel are being met by the major parties," he said.

"Over the past 10 years, I've seen a massive change in people's ability to afford housing, and that's both renting and owning.

Across the electorate there's a real sense of discontent and generally speaking people have been apathetic traditionally but that's turning into anger. They're starting to ask questions. Public transport in this region is also a big issue here. I'm still learning about what the issues are here in the Tweed."

Cr Lyon said he was determined to learn more about the bigger issues facing the Tweed, including the Tweed Valley Hospital debate.

"I'm trying to get a better understanding from those people who are involved," he said.

"The hospital is at breaking point and they're just trying to keep it together.

"There's that desire for transparency and making sure that these decisions are based on the best interest of the people. If it does go ahead on that site, I will be sure to protect the existing state-significant land."