What a relief. The Dunedin City Council is considering whether to seek official public feedback about freedom camping.
The council has just made a U-turn on its proposal to develop three new freedom camping sites in Dunedin - Rotary Park in Highcliff, Brighton Surf Life Saving Club and at Puddle Alley near Invermay.
After an outcry from affected residents, and in the face of growing unease elsewhere in Otago and nationwide about the negative impacts of freedom camping, Dunedin Mayor Dave Cull has indicated the council may revisit its approach and engage in official public consultation. It is considering a report on the issue today.
This is an entirely appropriate - and overdue - way to address what has become a bone of contention. To date, the approach by many councils has been piecemeal and reactionary, and any feedback sought is on urgent site-specific issues.
To be fair, local authorities have been caught short - and short-changed - by the tourism boom and the Government's tourism push. Efforts have certainly been successful on paper. Tourism has rapidly overtaken dairying to become our biggest export earner. However, on the ground, because of a lack of planning, the cracks are showing. Councils have been left having to clean up the mess - often literally as the reports and pictures of overcrowding, littering and human waste at scenic hotspots attest.
The Government's response to the problem last year, the Regional Mid-Sized Tourism Facilities Grant Fund (providing $3million a year), was criticised as woefully inadequate. That fund and $8million a year of Tourism Growth Partnership funding was rolled together to form part of this year's Budget-sweetener Tourism Infrastructure Fund (worth up to $25million per year) for the development of tourism-related infrastructure such as car parks, freedom camping facilities, sewerage and water works and transport projects. (The Department of Conservation also received an extra $19million a year to upgrade and develop tourist facilities and expand the Great Walks network.)
It is still less than the $100million a year for infrastructure some industry leaders have called for - and well short of the $1billion Local Government NZ has said is required.
If that seems a lot, consider the returns on investment. Domestic tourism is worth $20billion annually and international tourism $12billion. The number of foreign tourists coming here is forecast to grow 39% to 4.9 million within the next six years - and with that the amount they spend.
New Zealanders are all too aware of the importance of economic growth and our reliance on exports. We are famed for our welcoming nature, and proud to show off our piece of paradise. But many are increasingly uneasy at the price they are being asked to pay for others' enjoyment - and the impact on the clean green environment visitors are coming to see.
An overall consideration of the issue - with input from all residents who wish to be heard - is welcome, therefore. Residents should not feel alienated in their own backyard, but visitors should not be alienated, either.
There is much to do to reach a happy equilibrium, and that will not simply involve throwing money at the problem. As well as infrastructure, the tourism industry's Responsible Camping Forum also believes education and penalties are key. But everyone must be on board, and some attitudes might need revising. The freedoms that were possible in our halcyon days may simply not be possible given the numbers living in and travelling to New Zealand today.
We must learn from mistakes made elsewhere so we do not kill the goose that lays the golden egg. Our biggest problem remains how to sell ourselves without selling out.
