The problem of illegal camping in NSW coastal towns just never seems to go away

 

A question that is increasingly facing residents of NSW coastal towns – what do you when a group of loud, sometimes intoxicated people come to holiday right outside your family home? Who use your front lawn as a solid-waste toilet, openly urinate in front of your children, litter the kerb and when they finally leave they are replaced by yet another set of noisy freeloaders.

Council or NPWS fines for camping on streets, in car parks or certain road rest areas, local parks, reserves, foreshores, or other Crown land appear to be barely stemming the influx in some areas.

In New South Wales illegal camping appears to attract a fine of between $1,000 to $5,500. However, I would be surprised if many of these ‘free spirits’ ever pay any fines they incur.

ABC News, 23 February 2021:

Those who flout strict camping regulations risk on-the-spot fines of up to $2,200.(Supplied: Alison Drover)

Edging through the logjam of traffic along Ewingsdale Road, a car horn offers an unlikely reprieve from the tedious hum of engines.

"Welcome to Byron Bay," reads a wooden sign in the distance. "Cheer up, slow down, chill out."

It is, in many ways, an apt reflection of the Byron dichotomy — a city both trapped and liberated by its own reputation.

With roots in the counterculture movement, the coastal paradise is renowned as a mecca for backpackers, the rich and famous and everyone in between.

A place, as one Vanity Fair writer offered, where "nomadic broods" come to "find their tribes on life's journey".

But with Byron's visitor numbers eclipsing its permanent population, the local community has found itself at a crossroads, struggling to reconcile this "free-living" ethos with the inexorable costs of tourism.

And as "van lifers" increasingly seep into the suburbs, it is ordinary residents who have suddenly found themselves bearing the brunt of tourism's ugly side: motorhomes lining residential streets, human waste on front lawns, and authorities trying in vain to keep it under control.

"As an area, we're too open to contradiction," muses Alison Drover, who has lived in Byron for 10 years.

"We're known as being free-spirited and open to everything, but it doesn't really serve us in some ways.

"We're being sort of trampled on."……

Full article here.

Vandals wreck the enjoyment of others and damage can lead to public park closures - as occurred in the Clarence Valley this month

What mindless vandalism removed from the Clarence Valley this month - two free camping sites.

The Daily Telegraph, 19 October 2020

Free camping at Copmanhurst and Lilydale will soon come to an end after multiple complaints were made to Crown Lands.

Residents have discovered several makeshift campsites with high volumes of rubbish left behind In recent months.

It’s understood some individuals and groups have also trespassed onto private property to set up campsites.

“The department has been made aware of complaints about inappropriate vehicle camping and other anti-social behaviour including littering and rubbish dumping at the reserve,” a Department of Planning, Industry and Environment – Crown Lands representative said.

“We will work with Clarence Valley Council to undertake compliance action to deal with any unauthorised camping.” Illegal dumping has been an issue that has contributed to camping being banned at reserves at Lilydale and Copmanhurst.

In the meantime, Clarence Valley councillor Debrah Novak said in a social media post that Crown Lands “intend to decommission the camping reserve at Lilydale and Copmanhurst and return it back to a public recreation reserve”.

“They have identified they don’t have the available resources to monitor or enforce the compliance matters related to the toilets (no disability access) or the camping,” she said….

The Daily Telegraph, 15 October 2020:

A popularpiece of playground equipment at Grafton’s Jacaranda Park will be off limits for some time after an alleged vandalism attack.

Clarence Valley Council announced on Facebook that they’ve had to close the tower at Jacaranda Park.

“It’s really sad for everyone that a community playground that brings so much happiness and laughter – to so many local people – would be a target for this kind of mindless behaviour,” a council spokesman said.

“If anyone has any information please report it to Grafton Police on 6642 0222 or call Crime Stoppers NSW on 1800 333 000. “If you see something – say something.”