The hearing of submissions on the Proposed Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) Freedom Camping Bylaw 2019 is being held today (Thursday, November 21) at 1.00pm in the Armstrong Room, Lake Wānaka Centre, followed by another hearing in Queenstown on Friday.

The hearing panel consists of councillors Callum MacLeod (chair), Penny Clark, Heath Copland and Niamh Shaw. Despite concerns the bylaw may not be in place for peak season, QLDC stated, “The hearings panel will be deliberating straight after Queenstown’s hearing on Friday if time permits, otherwise early the following week. The panel’s recommendations will then be reported to the full council meeting on December 12. The council will consider the recommendations in that meeting and decide on adopting the bylaw. The new bylaw will come into effect immediately if council agrees.”

The key changes in the proposed bylaw (compared to the current bylaw) include expanding prohibited areas to include residential areas that have grown since 2012, including Lake Hāwea, Wānaka, Albert Town, Luggate, and Cardrona.

Thirty-three submissions supported the proposed bylaw in full; 38 submissions

were partly in support and partly in opposition; the majority of these submitted that the

proposed bylaw did not go far enough to prohibit freedom camping; two submissions

had no opinion on the changes; eight submissions opposed the Proposed Bylaw.

Interestingly, the New Zealand Motor Caravan Association submission stated that freedom camping should have less restrictions but, conversely, should consider introducing a higher standard of self-containment than NZS 5465: 200 —  which is not being addressed by the proposed bylaw.

The question of whether getting rid of cheap station wagons that have a ‘token’ blue sticker with an unused toilet buried in the back has long been debated. If all campers used campervans with fixed toilets, would the district be open to loosening the freedom camping restrictions or are there more issues to consider than just public defecation? 

The hearing panel has the option to recommend to council that the Proposed Freedom Camping Control Bylaw be adopted with changes that require stricter standards that the New

Zealand Standards for Self Containment; however, the report states that “imposing additional controls to current standards and legislation would lead to inefficiencies and confusion for campers. Digressing from the national approach for camping is inconsistent with council’s own Responsible Camping Strategy.” 

Go to our Facebook page and share your thoughts on whether freedom camping in general is the problem, or is it just toileting that gets up our noses? Would you support more freedom camping freedom if everyone drove proper self-contained campervan vehicles?