WELLINGTON CITY COUNCIL
STATEMENT OF PROPOSAL
APRIL 2015

FOR THE PROPOSAL TO AMEND THE CAMPING PROVISIONS IN THE WELLINGTON CONSOLIDATED BYLAW 2008 PART 5: PUBLIC PLACES

-	Proposed amended Schedule 1 to section 12: Restricted and Prohibited Areas for Camping 

 

CONTENTS
1.	Summary of information	3
1.1	Have your say	3
2.	Background information	4
3.	Problems caused by freedom camping	4
3.1	Protecting popular areas from high demand	5
3.2	Protecting the health and safety of visitors to certain areas	5
3.3	Protecting access to popular areas	5
3.5	 Is a bylaw the most appropriate and proportionateway to address the perceived problem?	6
3.6	 Is the bylaw in line with the Bill of Rights?	6
3	Proposed amendments to Wellington’s Camping Bylaw	7

Statement of proposal
This statement of proposal is prepared under section 11(5) of the Freedom Camping Act 2011 (the Act), and sections 83, 86, and 89 of the Local Government Act 2002. The document contains:
•	a summary of information
•	background information
•	a description of the problem
•	legislative requirements, including reasons for the proposed bylaw amendments
•	a draft of the proposed bylaw amendments.
1.	Summary of information
Wellington City Council is proposing changes to its camping bylaw and wants to hear what ratepayers and stakeholders think about them.
The changes we’re suggesting will restrict the number of freedom campers at Te Kopahou Reserve entrance car park to 12, and restrict camping to self-contained vehicles only. The amendments would be included within Schedule One to section 12 of the Wellington Consolidated Bylaw 2008 Part 5: Public Places (the bylaw). 
The number of visitors to New Zealand who are choosing to “self-drive” (by hiring camper vans, for example) is growing. Tourism NZ actively promotes this type of experience.
The Council can deal with freedom camping-related problems in different ways, including bylaws that restrict or prohibit camping at some sites.
Consultation on these changes starts on Tuesday 16 June. Submissions must be received by 5pm on Friday 17 July 2015. 
1.1	Have your say
You can make a submission online at wellington.govt.nz, email a submission to policy.submission@wcc.govt.nz or fill out the form in this document and send it to: Camping Bylaw, Freepost, Wellington City Council, PO Box 2199, Wellington. Note that if you make a submission, it will be publicly available after the submission period closes.
If you need more copies of this proposal, it’s available online at wellington.govt.nz, from the Council Service Centre at 101 Wakefield, and the Central Library. You can also phone 04 499 4444 to ask for a copy or email policy.submission@wcc.govt.nz
If you’d like to speak to Councillors, you can make an oral submission. There will be a hearing on Thursday 6 August 2015. Please state clearly in your submission if you want to make an oral submission, and make sure you have given your contact details. We will contact you to arrange a time for you to speak on this date. 
The Council’s Environment Committee will consider the submissions and other information and make recommendations to the full Council.  The Council will then decide whether to change the Camping Bylaw.  
Table 1. Timeline for considering the proposed bylaw
16 June 2015–17 July 2015	Consultation period 	
6 August 2015	Oral submissions heard	
17 September 2015	Environment Committee considers report on all written and oral submissions received	
30 September 2015	The Council decides whether to adopt the proposed changes	
Following Council adoption of the proposed changes	The amended camping bylaw will come into force	

2.	Background information
Because the interisland ferry terminals are based in Wellington, the city is a hot spot for freedom camping. Around 100 vehicles a night are looking for places to stay, with at least two people per vehicle. They usually stay 1 or 2 nights. 
We estimate that about 70 percent are non-self-contained vehicles (without toilets and sewage storage tanks) and 30 percent are certified self-contained (with toilets and sewage storage tanks)., Given our location, it’s expected demand will stay fairly steady.
In November 2014, the Council adopted a camping bylaw to align with the Freedom Camping Act (2011). Freedom camping is generally permitted in New Zealand unless specifically restricted or prohibited, and restrictions must only be made if necessary to protect the area, health and safety, or to protect access to an area. 

The Council prohibited some areas under the 2014 bylaw, and placed restrictions at Evans Bay Marina, and Te Kopahou Reserve visitor centre. Most visitors are heading to these sites (rather than just parking anywhere) but high demand is causing problems in those areas. 
Camping is not permitted on reserve land that is managed under the Reserves Act, unless a Reserves Management Plan allows it. The current Reserves Management Plans only allow camping for educational purposes and permission must be granted.. 

3.	Problems caused by freedom camping
Freedom camping is not generally a problem for Wellington except at a few sites. A bigger issue for Wellington is attracting visitors, meeting their needs, and making sure their experience lives up to their expectations.
The Council can deal with freedom camping-related problems in different ways, including bylaws that restrict or forbid camping at some sites.
The Council can only make bylaws prohibiting or restricting freedom camping in specific public places if it is necessary to:
•	protect the area
•	protect the health and safety of people who may visit the area 
•	protect access to the area. 
The Council has identified that the proposed bylaw amendment is necessary to help manage the following issues. 
3.1	Protecting popular areas from high demand
Not all vehicles used by freedom campers have toilets, so inappropriate toileting is a common issue at sites used by freedom campers. The most popular “unofficial” camping sites are those with toilet and shower facilities nearby, but for safety reasons and the risk of vandalism these are often locked at night. This means some campers choose to defecate outdoors or in other inappropriate places. This is a health risk and unacceptable. 
Keeping some toilet facilities open at night is an obvious solution, but also makes these areas more popular. Ways to manage this demand could include limiting the number of nights campers can stay, and having more than one site available. 
The space available to campervans at the Te Kopahou visitor centre car park could also be restricted so that no more than 12 campervans can camp each night.  
3.2	Protecting the health and safety of visitors to certain areas
At popular sites where there are no or not enough toilets, or facilities can’t be opened at night, it is proposed that camping be restricted to certified self-contained campervans. This will help protect the health and safety of visitors to these areas. 
There are two toilets at the Te Kopahou car park, and the Council has been keeping these open. However, we have found there are not enough toilets for the number of campers that have been using this site.
Te Kopahou car park was never designed to cater to campers, and lacks the kitchen/ablution facilities needed for steady and sustained numbers of non-self-contained campers. The Council doesn’t think it would be suitable to provide such facilities at this site. For this reason, it may be necessary to restrict camping at Te Kopahou to certified self-contained vehicles only.
3.3	Protecting access to popular areas 
At some sites, there is already a high demand for parking and facilities from day visitors. Where there is enough room for campervans but the site is also popular with day visitors, camping may need to be restricted or prohibited. If there is not enough room at the site to cope with demand from campers, then it will be necessary to prohibit camping. 
As above, the Council is proposing to restrict the space available to campervans at the Te Kopahou visitor centre car park so that a maximum of 12 campervans can camp on any one night.  

3.4	 Legislative requirements
The following legislation is relevant to the proposed amendment:
Freedom Camping Act 2011
The Freedom Camping Act 2011 requires the Council to use the special consultative procedure in the Local Government Act 2002 to make, amend, or revoke a freedom camping bylaw.  
Local Government Act 2002
The Local Government Act 2002 sets out the special consultative procedure the Council must follow to make, amend, or revoke a bylaw.
To make a bylaw, the Council must be able to show that the bylaw is the most appropriate and proportionate way of addressing the perceived problem in relation to a specific area, and that the bylaw is not inconsistent with the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 (NZBORA).
3.5	 Is a bylaw the most appropriate and proportionateway to address the perceived problem?
The proposed bylaw will form part of a wider approach to managing and providing opportunities for campervans in Wellington, as part of a nationally consistent approach to freedom camping. 
The proposed restrictions on camping at the Te Kopahou visitor centre are consistent with the requirements of the Act. The Council considers the proposed restrictions are the most appropriate way to resolve camping-related issues at the Te Kopahou car park, while providing appropriate protection to areas. The proposed restrictions are necessary to manage camping at this site, in conjunction with other non-regulatory tools such as signs and information.
3.6	 Is the bylaw in line with the Bill of Rights?
Everyone lawfully in New Zealand has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly (section 16), association (section 17), and movement (section 18) in New Zealand. The Act provides a specific statutory framework for local authorities to manage camping by only restricting these rights in areas where it is justified and necessary. 

The Council considers that the proposed bylaw is not inconsistent with NZBORA, and does not unlawfully interfere with the rights of people to move and reside in Wellington. The restrictions on freedom camping are reasonable in the interests of protecting public places and visitors. 

3	Proposed amendments to Wellington’s Camping Bylaw
The additional restrictions to camping at the Te Kopahou visitor centre car park sit within Schedule One of clause 12, part 5 (Public Places) of the Wellington Consolidated Bylaw.