A plea to the New Zealand Conservation Authority from the Otago Conservation Board to address the messy issue of freedom campers has been turned down.
New Zealand Conservation Authority chairman Don Ross told the Otago Daily Times yesterday a request from the Otago Conservation Board to investigate freedom camping fell outside the role of the authority.
The authority finished a two-day meeting in Wellington yesterday, at which members had considered the board's request, Mr Ross said.
While authority members supported the board's stance regarding freedom campers and the environmental effects of human waste and rubbish being left behind, the authority did not have the resources or scope to action the board's request, he said.
The board wanted the authority to initiate a nationally co-ordinated investigation into the commercial tourism campervan industry, including. -
• An assessment of the costs and benefits associated with the industry, having particular regard to conservation and the economy.
• Recommendations for a consistent approach to address issues of concern (e.g. waste disposal along roadside areas, affecting the Department of Conservation, territorial local authorities and the New Zealand Transport Agency, among others.
• Options for Government action.
The request came after the board's February meeting at Tarras, when board member Andrew Penniket called for a national ban on campervans.
"It was a fair enough request to carry out the analysis. But it is simply not our business," Mr Ross said.
The authority had made two recommendations regarding options for an analysis of freedom camping and they were scheduled to be tabled at the Otago Conservation Board meeting in Berwick today, Mr Ross said.
