New freedom camping bylaw set to be in place by May

Council’s freedom camping bylaw, which allows for freedom camping at 11 sites across the district up from just five originally proposed, is set to come into effect this May.

The sites in which freedom camping will be provided for under the Responsible Camping Control Bylaw 2022 are; the Wairau Diversion, Taylor Dam, the Renwick Dog Park, Renwick Domain car park, Wynen St car park, Lansdowne Park car park, Lake Elterwater road reserve (Ward), Blairich Reserve (Awatere Valley), Opouri Rd (Carluke Domain), Alfred Stream (Rai Valley) and Wash Bridge recreation reserve on State Highway 63.

Many of these locations will have limits in terms of the number of nights freedom campers can stay, and the number of vehicles permitted at each of the sites, for example, camping at Lansdowne Park will be limited to four vehicles and a one night stay Monday to Thursday.

Speaking at the Assets and Services Committee meeting, Mayor Nadine Taylor, who also sat on the hearings panel noted that the bylaw has been many years in the making and has been through three rounds of public consultation.

“Following a claim for judicial review by the New Zealand Motor Caravan Association in May 2021 over the limitations of the 2020 Bylaw, Council has been through two additional consultations and we have followed a very robust process,” Mayor Taylor said.

“The Hearings Panel conducted a thorough assessment of the sites as part of their decision making,” she said.

The panel considering the latest version of the bylaw was made up of independent commissioner Martin Williams, then Marlborough Mayor John Leggett and current Mayor, Nadine Taylor.

The implementation of this bylaw is subject to full Council ratification on Thursday 2 March 2023.