Regional Council notes

New Zealand is bursting at the seams with tourists even with the lack of summery weather this season. While it’s a bit hard to find out exactly how this is affecting the Wairarapa it’s reasonable to expect that visitor numbers here are up too. After all, this is a lovely rural district just an hour from the capital city and its largely unspoilt rugged coastline is a magnet to tourists keen to see some ‘real New Zealand’.

It’s also obvious that Wairarapa is a popular destination for campervans as they are now a very common sight on both town and country roads. So far there seems to be enough room for them all at existing camping grounds and with Wairarapa’s reasonably liberal Freedom Camping bylaws but what if the numbers doubled or even trebled? Where would they go and what pressure would that put on our reserves and infrastructure?

Imagine the huge investment that would be required and who would pay for it? What if though, we looked through a different lens and allowed people to use facilities that already exist through the length and breadth of the country? No, not council or government owned amenities but those that are often found in woolsheds and whares on a great many farms.

Currently if a farmer allows two or more campers on to his property, to stay the night and make use of his woolshed loo and charges them a modest amount to do so, he is considered to be running a camping ground. This requires a permit from the council and all the rigmarole that goes with it so it’s hardly worthwhile. Obviously you do need some controls or your neighbours could set up an uncontrolled ‘Hi De Hi’ which could really annoying. With the surge in popularity of campervans and mobile homes though, maybe it’s time for a review of these laws.

In some states in Australia these regulations have been relaxed a little and now, with the help of an app it is possible to find a camping friendly farm. With appropriate checks and balances it seems like something that could work here too with minimal cost and plenty of benefit.
Adrienne Staples