Great news for members on Responsible Camping
Announced this week, the first statement in the report is that the working group ‘considers it is important to protect and retain New Zealanders’ rights to access and use our public spaces but that the current system can be improved so that councils and landowners have more effective tools to manage camping on their land’.
“That’s a battle the NZMCA has been at the forefront of for at least six years,” says NZMCA CEO Bruce Lochore, who was a member of the Responsible Camping Working Group.
“We know how important that privilege is to our members – in our most recent survey some 98 per cent of members identified protecting the right to freedom camp as the number #1 priority for the Association.
“And over the years we have invested significant resources to achieve that goal; so it’s very rewarding to see such agreement from the range of interests in the working group.
“I’m certain we were invited to participate because we’ve shown that we are solutions focussed, rather than just moaning about the problem – and it was encouraging to see the other participants taking a similar positive approach.”
One of the most significant signs of that accord was pretty much the working group’s first act – to request a change of name from Freedom Camping to Responsible Camping.
“That was a change that’s close to our hearts and very much in line with how the majority of our members think,” said Mr Lochore.
Delighted that the Minister had taken immediate action on the report’s most pressing recommendations by allocating $8.5 million to support councils in providing better facilities, Mr Lochore said: “Just how well those actions have been received can be seen by the positive response of communities round the country in the last few days.
“It’s great to see too that the government is now working towards a long-term solution so we don’t have to address this issue day in and day out.
“What the Minister has talked about is continuing to work with those at the coalface – representatives from the tourism and motorhome industries, responsible campers, MBIE, DOC and Local Government New Zealand – who have hard-earned knowledge of what the issues are and ideas on how to address them,” said Mr Lochore.
“This is clearly the first step in a process to address what are real issues for communities across the country and I’ve got to say it has been very refreshing to work with a Tourism Minister who has the humility to listen, takes the time to understand the issues and then initiate decisive action.”
Along with protecting Kiwis’ right to camp responsibly, the working group’s recommendations also advocated ‘shifting to a better camping system which has a sustainable and flexible network of camping places, and mean that camping had a positive economic, social and environmental impact overall’.
Key steps to achieve that – many of which have long been championed by the NZMCA - include:
• A review of the Freedom Camping Act 2011 to ensure it’s still fit for purpose, or the introduction of a new piece of legislation that encourages responsible camping. This would include:
- The introduction of four ‘camping zones’ that can be applied to local circumstances but which ensure there is consistency in responsible camping rules across New Zealand; and
- A review of the compliance regime to ensure it is an effective deterrent to unwanted behaviour.
• A review of the administration system for the New Zealand Standard for self-containment of motor caravans (NZS 5465:2001), including whether that certification should be overseen by a national body, in a similar way to the warrant of fitness system for vehicles; and
• A review of the Camping-Grounds Regulations 1985, which some operators see as too restrictive and prohibitive to setting up new sites.