Bringing Firearms to WA

Thursday a prospector on a quad bike with a tow coil was spotted with a rifle propped up on his quad. Unfortunately for this goose the Police as well as the GSDU are involved and his prospecting holiday has ended early and will cost him dearly.

Western Australia has some of the harshest firearms regulations in the country. You can bring a firearm into WA, but it is via a permit which you obtain at the first Police station once you cross the border, but where are you going to use it?

Unlike some states and territories, there is no shooting on crown land.
Shooting in WA is limited to an approved range, farms or on a Pastoral lease. Shooting on a Pastoral lease can only be done with a Pastoral letter and sorry we do not write out Pastoral letters.

No firearms are permitted to even be carried on ground covered by a mining lease except under exceptional circumstances which include inductions, a set of rules as long as your arm and a hell of a lot of paper work.

From a pastoralists point of view, every prospecting season we have solar panels, tanks, mill heads and cattle shot. From a mining companies point of view, they have geo's, drillers and any number of people on their ML's and EL's who don't want to cop a stray bullet.

Best option? Leave your gun at home.

Honestly, you don't need one over here. You can't use it any way. Everyone caught with one always cites "personal protection against wild dogs" and while dog attacks have and do happen, it is extremely rare. I still say the most dangerous thing in the WA bush is another white fella.

Cheers,

Steve

Good info I had no idea of the legalities , reckon a lot of prospectors would want to carry a rifle now and never thinking of discharging but for the goings on around Sandstone . I do know a couple who take compound bows for " target practice " but perhaps they are banned as well ?

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Thanks mate.
Not sure of the rules regarding bows so I can't comment other than most pastoralist would probably jack up at the carrying of any sort of weapon on a pastoral lease. They are just sick and tired of having stock shot.

Even feral animals like camels and horses are worth money at around $4.00 a kg for pet meat or dog bait

Bacchus said:

Good info I had no idea of the legalities , reckon a lot of prospectors would want to carry a rifle now and never thinking of discharging but for the goings on around Sandstone. I do know a couple who take compound bows for " target practice " but perhaps they are banned as well ?

Good Share

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Unlike the Palmer River murders the incident at Sandstone was not a random act by the looks of it. I think the police are convinced that one of the party of three was responsible for the murder. The problem is having enough evidence to prove it. We were informed that the brother of the convicted murderer at Palmer River is even madder than him and the same type of thing could happen again.

Most of the problems we have in WA are from fellow prospectors just being bullies and trying to intimidate others and in that case it's best if no guns are involved. Or in other cases we have pastoral lease holders who think they own the land and throw their weight around.

Too many visitors to the goldfields don't behave in a responsible manner and the result is a lot of agro coming from the people affected. Nearly everywhere we go we see fresh rubbish discarded. They drop random drink bottles and cans, leave all sorts of junk in their campfire and dig a shallow grave for their rubbish. If you take a look about there are 1080 and strychnine bait signs everywhere. That's because there are too many wild dogs. The buried rubbish can be dug up and spread about adding to the problem.

I've seen experienced prospectors throw all their rubbish into the fire at the end of the day and pick out the cans in the morning. They say that it prevents the problem of ants getting into the rubbish. But what about all the beer bottle caps, glass, partially melted aluminium cans, foil from the milk cartons and other small items that don't burn. They just end up somebody else's problem after you leave.

Please take ALL rubbish away with you and dispose of it at a recognised disposal point. :Y:

How true is that MB, it is so simple to do the right thing in WA and have the freedom to camp and prospect that is the envy of most states.

EL's, P's and ML's with either permission or a 40E (which ever applicable) Know where you are.
Make contact with Pastoralists and lease holders. Let them know where you are and when you intend to leave.
Fill in holes.
Take rubbish out.
Do not drive on wet tracks.
Do not camp near water points.
No fire arms.
No dogs without prior permission.
Don't steal stuff

Realistically, you'll have more trouble with a small lease holder if you're caught uninvited on his lease than you will with a pastoralist. There are a few rogues, but the majority are welcoming and friendly, they just need to know where you are for their safety and yours.
Two days ago I dragged a laced carcass through a prospectors camp I had no idea was there because they didn't have the courtesy to let us know they were even on the station.

Good advice MT.

Just on the firearms permit and getting it at the first police station. I'm not sure what the exact ruling is there but when we went through WA in 2013 I contacted WA firearms ahead of time and got the permit pre-entry. Wanted to know date of entering state, date of leaving, etc. Ended up getting an extension because we ended up staying a bit longer than the planned 3 months.

I had been warned that it was onorous to get the permit but actually found that by being upfront and proactive it was quite easy - all done through email.

I must also add that I never had any intention of hunting in WA - planned to use it once we got to the NT. So that made it a bit easier because didn't need pastoral letters, etc.

So, if you are planning on taking a firearm into WA I reckon give the appropriate dept a call and get all your T's crossed before you even leave home :Y:

Thanks for adding that NE. Good helpful info :Y: