Dredging in Australia for recreational activities IS illegal..

WalnLiz said:

Pretty obvious it's never going to become legal again...and totally pointless pursuing that chain of thought. My problem with the whole scenario is it will also happen to highbanking, sluicing and eventually panning, as everyone thinks someone else will do something about it, and by doing that, nothing will get done. The remaining lands will become national Parks / conservation areas / Heritage regions.....and the access roads will be increasingly padlocked....just give it time.

Current laws and regulations can, and will be changed, and unless a majority expresses concerns about these laws the minority will get to change them...and that's the Greens.

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Sounds like S.A...
we're allowed 3 piddly search grounds and the biggest alluvial creek is S.A water property all other mined land is fenced pretty much or privately owned.. (government land)
It sucks and also any mineral taken from S.A soil is apparently the property of the crown of S.A

It's probley already been said but there's to much and its something I have said to some greenie kinda people before ask them how many tonnes is moved everyone it rains hard....then there's little old me moving a few kgs(well maybe a bit more then a few kg lol) but you get my drift ?!?.....iam only talking about me with a sluice...but its not to far of the dredgeing fact ??

Hey guys im a bit of a greenie byron bay hippy. lol, I think most prospectors do more good than bad to the environment. most greenie hippy folk around byron are easily influenced and tend to jump on the band wagon with what they think is a good cause without knowing the bigger pictiure. I think this is the usual situation with any issue greenies deal with. Prospectors are more intouch and a part of the environment i believe than most greens out there.

I think highbanking is better for the environment as u dont need to run material directly back into the river, but rather onto a tailings pile which gets rid of turbidity. Also the modern prospector cleans up alot of trash , every prospector ive met hits the creeks for the love of getting out into untouched land, more so than the typical easily influenced over passionate greens out there.

Some which u find camping in byron one week, sh:#!ing in the bushes around town, leaving heaps of rubbish, living like bums by choice, then jumping on the band wagon the next week to protest a cause they know nothing about...
:/

I will always take my yabby pump out, though not my old copper one which left colour in my first ever pan lol :8

I think that we need to clarify one thing. Dredging IS NOT ILLEGAL in NSW per say. You just need a permit from the Dept of Primary Industries. You will need a Part 7 Fisheries Management Act permit for activities involving dredging and reclamation work. I applied about 5 years ago to do a spot on the Shoalhaven River. I must have scared the shit out of them.....I'm still waiting for a reply to my application, emails and numerous phone calls....lol.

Regards
Rusty
PS: and for those of you who will want to check: dpi.nsw.gov.au/fisheries/habitat/help/permit

Naturally not all forms of dredging are illegal but in the context of this forum being a gold and gem prospecting forum yes it is illegal.

Obviously in land reclamation and inlet entrances right around the coast dredges operate within the law and often contracted by local governments.

Somehow i dont think they took your application or interpretation of the permit seriously

NSW DPI said:

There are instances where NSW DPI will approve dredging and reclamation, such as for essential public navigation and environmental rehabilitation purposes. However, it's unlikely the activity would be allowed if it would:

reduce water quality
damage or destroy marine vegetation, including mangroves, seagrasses, and wetlands
damage or destroy riparian vegetation, gravel beds, reefs, or snags, or
interfere with commercial and recreational fishing or aquaculture activities.

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The part 7 Fisheries Management Act Permit is only one part of it.

First & foremost you'll also need to apply & be approved for a Mining Lease that meets the requirements http://www.resourcesandenergy.nsw.gov.au/landholders-and-community/minerals-and-coal/mining
If the land/waterway you want to mine/dredge is crown land then you will also need a licence or lease from the Dept. of Lands subject to their conditions.
http://www.lpma.nsw.gov.au/crown_lands/leases/licences
Although it may be technically possible I would say that under the current Act/Regulations that dredging wouldn't be feasible in NSW due to the approval requirements & restrictions that would be placed on it.
There are still some current DL's (Dredging Leases) in NSW but I don't know if they are operating? One local one expires this month & I would be surprised if it's renewed, at least as a dredging lease. Maybe under a new Mining Lease with an updated MOP?
As fossickers/hobby prospectors dredging is illegal! We neither have the leases/licences/approvals required to carry it out & nor could we get them in our capacity hence the no response to your enquiry I assume?
Don't take this as me being against it. I reckon a small hobby dredge can be more environmentally friendly than a highbanking set up but rules are rules.

http://www.resources.nsw.gov.au/__d.../A-Guide-to-Fossicking-in-New-South-Wales.PDF What techniques cannot be used for fossicking?
Neither explosives nor dredges can be used in fossicking.

If you can find a way of doing it legally, good onya and go right ahead, why wouldn't you? But long story short, dredging is illegal in Australia, for prospecting purposes at least. I think it might have been mentioned somewhere before. If you decide that you are going to do it anyway, and you get caught, you personally might even get away with a slap on the wrist. But then if your actions result in tighter restrictions on prospectors, don't expect to make any friends on this forum or out in the goldfields.

I don't do this yet but would like to give it a go , ~ dry dirt vacuuming is Not considered a form of dredging correct !

Manual hand tools only, is the way I understand things are. You aren't permitted to use any type of powered equipment to excavate material. Wal does a bit of blow tubing, but only lung power is needed.

Processing the dirt you have manually excavated is a different story of course, then you can use powered equipment, depending on your relevant state regs.

Thanks Chewy for the information , your previous post was promising

No probs Outback. Good hunting mate.

Just to clarify the situation in Tasmania, as of mid-2015:

Rule # 7: "The use of suction dredges is illegal in Tasmania"

So any dirt below the water line is illegal ? , Cant dip ya shovel in and get some ?

All dirt below water line is legal. You just can't remove it through a "suction dredge". Removing with a shovel is absolutely fine.

Wal.

WalnLiz said:

All dirt below water line is legal. You just can't remove it through a "suction dredge". Removing with a shovel is absolutely fine.

Wal.

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thanks wal , Most of it seems to be common sense and respect for the land which is great.

Hmmm,,,,,,,,the opening statement was "Dredging is illegal in Australia". Assuming that WA is still part of Australia then that statement is not correct. Dredging is allowed in WA providing you do it on a mining tenement of some type. It is subject to Mining Proposal approval but it can be done and it is legal.

Wedgetail said:

Hmmm,,,,,,,,the opening statement was "Dredging is illegal in Australia". Assuming that WA is still part of Australia then that statement is not correct. Dredging is allowed in WA providing you do it on a mining tenement of some type. It is subject to Mining Proposal approval but it can be done and it is legal.

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True, and I believe what you're saying has been covered throughout the topic. With approved and licensed mining being an exception, to my knowledge the general statement still remains true for the everyday prospector / fossicker (which would probably make up 99.96% of our members at a guess).

Yes we are talking about us prospectors here Wedgetail, we are prospectors mostly not miners although alot of us would love to be everything in context, for the general bloke dredging is illegal.