Proposed changes to Caravan and Camping Legislation

Hi all,
Reading the Sunday Times letters to the editor and interesting submission was on the proposed changes to the caravan and camping legislation which is up for public comment until the end of this month. So I went to the government website to review the document and had a quick read which has really got me concerned where the recommendation to change the camping on other land not a registered/licenced caravan park. As we camp out on pastoral leases how will this affect it? Below is an extract of an option being considered?
These changes, full document available at https://www.dlgc.wa.gov.au

1. “A person may camp for up to three nights in any 28 day period on land where the owner has given permission
2. A landowner may apply to the local government seeking approval for a person to camp for longer than three nights but not more than three months. This includes if the intention is to make their property available for more than three nights in any 28 day period
3. Applications will be accompanied by a prescribed fee
4. Only one accommodation vehicle and/or tent is allowed on the property at any time without an event approval
5. A local government must consult with the affected neighbours, consider the health and safety of users, impact on the environment and feasibility of staying in an approved facility before an approval can be granted “

So would like to ask your comments on this subject.

Ian

Hi Ian, in relation to implications for prospecting, and based on what you have posted (without looking at the actual document), as far as I am concerned it should not affect us because it refers to 'landowners'. Pastoralists are not landowners they are Lessee's - they don't own the land - they lease it from the Government. We have approval from the 'landowner' through our Miner's Rights and Section 40's.

I presume they are trying to stop mini caravan parks in the burbs.  But its like using a sprinkler to put out a match - this potentially penalising everyone to try and stop the extreme minority - and those few probably won't give a crap anyway. We are all threatened with getting squirted if we look sideways and they'll just keep lighting matches anyway.

It's like not being 'allowed' to collect shells off the beach at Ningaloo. The rationale is becasue it's 'habitat'. Well, a shell in the water is habitat fair enough - but a shell on a beach is hardly marine 'habitat'. But the truth be known the actual reason for the regulation is to stop 'professional' shell collectors raping and pillaging live shells. But it potentially affects everyone and relies on 'discretion'. But technically your kid could get fined for picking up a shell and taking it home. But what's a shell anyway? - is a shell with a hole in it a 'shell'?… is a bit of a shell a 'shell'. The botton line is that the sand is pretty much ground up shells so technically you could be busted for not washing your feet. I am sure a ranger wouldn't do it - but my point is they could, and that's plain wrong.

As you have probably worked out by now - this sort of thing really pi*sses me off.

So if you're out bush and get fronted tell them the truth - tell em you're not camping - you're prospecting. If someone is 'camped' at your house. They aren't, they have just parked and airing out their gear. There's no law against that….yet.

Cheers
Stingray

Also it is a provision of your "miners right" to be able to camp on pastoral leases, asking permission from the lease holder is more a courtesy rather than regulation, some lease holders think that they own the land, if you get fronted you simply remind them that the land is crown land and they are leasing it, so you do have the right of access and you can camp there.

Some towns like Mt Magnet, you will get bailed up by the ranger and told you cant camp outside of town so either move on or go into the caravan park, guess the caravan park is owned by the local shire, so no prizes for guessing why they do this--ka-ching, but if the ground is under a pastoral lease and you have a miners right I wonder if they have the legal right to do this?

au-fever

I have raised the issue with APLA and they were going to have a look at the proposal to see how it affects us while we were detecting/camping under the provisions of our Miners Right. Haven't heard anything back as yet but I'll let you know if I do.

Gday guys
Heard a govt rep talking about this at length on the abc the other day. Make no mistake, they are trying to stop free camping throughout the state. You,ll have to apply for a permit for a certain location( station) for a specified period and they will charge you for the pleasure. At present we are covered under our MR but they could change that when the loophole is pointed out to them.
Something has to be done to stop them, so that future gens can enjoy the freedom we have had.
Cheers
Brett

Hi All,

Look at Shark Bay,you have to pay $10/ head /night just to stay on the beach , it's not enough to bring people to the area to buy food and petrol and unless there is some extremely honest people (to which I am one of the few)none of this money is going to see the tax coffers(my opinion)

if the station lessee's want money from travellers by all means set up places around their homesteads with showers and power and charge for it but if people want to travel out bush and look after ourselves we should be able to...last I knew it was a free country

Ron

make a statements with your votes and im not talking about the mainstream parties that are all the same.

These types of misguided government initiatives are why we should all be membersof APLA. APLA is there to fight for our rights and represent us, and our views, to the goverment of the day. If you haven't joined, now is probably a damn good time to do so. You can do it online, and renew online.

http://www.apla.com.au/

Its a sign of the times, all these money hungry useless pricks can think about is to how best pull pennies out of anybody and everybody, its all about money and greed as simple as that, but at the end of the day we are getting what we deserve because we vote the pricks in and then let them get away with doing whatever they want without any fear of reprisal, that in the future might change when people get sick of being bullied but by that time it will be way to late.

Access to many areas are now being closed with more fencing and less access gates, look at all the areas between Cue and Nannine, big bell road etc, slowly but surely they are preventing access, placing gates further apart and such, they claim its about keeping the cattle in but its more likely its to keep people out.

Its sad that our kids probably wont be able to do what we do, or that they will get screwed over and have to pay for the privilege of seeing their own country.

Sad

au-prospector

WA - You do not want to follow the lead of the East Coast. Not happy at all with what is being proposed. Come across to NSW and you will find difficulty with finding bush where you camp without the regulations of camping fees and limited to camping between the plots surrounded by treated pine posts. I have renewed my APLA membership to help represent our rights.

JohnO

Long way to go with this rubbish proposal and I'm sure APLA will do everything they can to get it stopped or limited.
From what I've been reading, this new crap is inconsistent with the Mining Act. I can't see pastoral lease holders jumping thru hoops with the paperwork required but then again, some of them don't want us on the pastoral leases.
And then you have the idiot pollies who don't realize it will sound the death knell for some of the goldfield towns.
without us, their is no tourism, unless you want to pay extra to be stuck in a caravan park and having to drive to your spots everyday.

Your spot on with what you are saying, it will kill the gold towns - there will be no winners except the shiny bum greens.