NSW Comprehensive Review of Crown Lands Management.

shivan said:

Do not get me wrong, i think everyone in NSW should keep an eye on this, but i think it is a little early for doom and gloom is all. There could be ramifications but the system is in need of an overhaul.
In regards to the commons, it could get sold to landowners but it does not look like NPWS could get their hands on it. I would hope the more likely option would be to turn it into crown land.

Possible options for the future use of commons include:
converting commons to Crown land and managing them as Crown reserves
converting commons to Crown land, with commoners continuing
to use the land through lease or licence arrangements
disposing of commons to commoners, adjoining landowners or otherwise.

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At this early stage I agree.

Some positives I can see:
Fixing this:
Crown land is currently administered under eight different pieces of legislation, which together create a complex web of overlapping and confusing requirements. This is to a large extent an inevitable but unintended consequence of legislative change since the 1890s.
Allow use of Crown land by the people of NSW
Existing provisions to manage Crown land for the benefit of the people of NSW will continue, including provisions to reserve land for public access and use, and provisions for public use and multiple use of Crown land where appropriate.
Simplifying the provisions for the management of Crown land will make it easier for the community to benefit from Crown land under tenures and reserves.
Streamline decision-making at the local level
This change will reduce the complexity and red tape for councils and allow local communities to have more of a say about how public land in their local area is managed.

The only thing I can see as a stand out issue is that any Common Lands be assessed for current use before they are converted or disposed of i.e:

• If they have current recreational activities, including but not limited to fossicking, they should be converted to Crown Lands & managed as Crown Reserves so as to allow the current activities to continue or converted to Crown Lands with Commoners continuing to use the land through lease/licence with provision for continued recreational use by the general public. [/*]

• No Common Lands that have current recreational usage or potential for recreational use (this may include Common Lands where access by trusts has previously been denied but hold areas of interest to recreational users such as fossickers, fishers etc.) be disposed of without consultation at least on a local level, and with a sufficient time period to allow meaningful submissions, to ascertain any recreational usage opportunities/value before disposing of.[/*]

Hi Gang,
Looks like there is not a lot of interest on this issue, we will have to see what pans out over time; thanks to those who posted comments etc.If anybody is inclined they can lodge an individual submission.
Cheers,SinHof.

SinHof said:

G'Day Everyone,
Just to clarify a point here for the members that have not had a chance to read through the NSW Crown Lands White Paper; The issue here is not dealing with how we prospect, it concerns where we can legally prospect on public lands at this point in time and the changes to the access that we may or not enjoy if some of these proposed changes go through. For example, if the Commons act of 1989 is revoked or changed to allow them to be sold off to neighboring land holders we could find ourselves being locked out.
Take the 7000 acre Hill End Tambaroora Common, if it was put up for a change of ownership/management it would be a fair bet that in this situation the NSW NPWS would take control given they already manage the Hill End Historic Precinct and that, based on past occurrences would be the end of prospecting as we know it today in that area.
A couple of members have asked if there is a state body in NSW/ACT representing prospectors, as Nugget mentioned in an earlier post anything we do here will add support to what the NSW/ACT Prospectors & Fossickers Association Inc, NAPFA is doing by way of a submission.
More to follow on this important subject,it's time for another coffee; stay tuned.
SinHof.

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SinHof

thanks for the work you have done here , sorry that it feels like you have no workers backing you up.

I am prepared to put time into it , though i dont have as good an understanding of the processes and legislation as some people here.
Please advise if you want to construct anything for submission ?

The NAPFA president is currently away on a trip in WA and wont be back until end of June , otherwise i think he would have chimed in here to update us on what submissions they have made

Here are details on their sub's on ;

Tuena-Crookwell State Conservation Area
Copeland Tops SCA
meeting with Minister for Tourism on issue of fossicking in National Parks in NSW

http://www.napfa.net/NAPFA-Submissions.html

I see value in cementing agreements for access to areas that do have known gold reserves but i think now is also a good opportunity to get approval in writing for the actual equipment that we use , or want included.

The current legislation seems a little bit ambiguous on highbankers and crevicing pumps , and i believe that we should also make application for the use of battery powered vacuums for crevicing purposes.
A Vacuum IS a low impact device ecologically but also an intelligent solution in terms of efficiency of process and recovery of gold bearing material.
my gut feel is that with the right video presentation that those devices could be approved for use.

Does anyone else consider it worthwhile to make submissions for inclusion of the above based upon a more accurate description using modern terms to describe the equipment and uses ?

What would people like to be done ?

SinHof said:

Hi Gang,
Looks like there is not a lot of interest on this issue, we will have to see what pans out over time; thanks to those who posted comments etc.If anybody is inclined they can lodge an individual submission.
Cheers,SinHof.

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Have already put one in

mbasko said:

SinHof said:

Hi Gang,
Looks like there is not a lot of interest on this issue, we will have to see what pans out over time; thanks to those who posted comments etc.If anybody is inclined they can lodge an individual submission.
Cheers,SinHof.

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Have already put one in

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MBasko any chance of examining a copy of your submission, post through to my email if possible. Secondly there's still time, with or without a lobby groups help. I was awaiting some bullet points and happy to attempt to help not only with a group submission but an individual one based upon the group lead, as alot of members could do or support.

Here are the email and postal addresses to lodge a submission

closing date is June 20 , 2014 , 5 pm



My written submission will be as follows

My name is "Mister Citizen"

I have travelled all over NSW , Victoria and Western Australia engaging in prospecting activities since 1996.
I have been interested in gold prospecting since i was 8 years old while on family holidays where i observed panning being carried out.

I am both a greenie at heart and also a prospector , both activities and philosophies are integral to my personality

I wish to retain access to current gold and gem bearing areas to engage lawfully in my prospecting hobby

I do not pollute the environment with my activities , in fact i am more of an environmental cleaner , having collected over 11.3 kg of lead bullets over the years while detecting and sluicing , with 1.2 kg of lead shot being recovered from just one day of highbanking at Tuena ,NSW in April 2014.
I average 100 pieces of junk recovered while detecting for every bit of gold i find , the junk i recover either goes in the rubbish or to a scrap dealer for recycling.
I often bring home other peoples rubbish that i pick up while in the bush , and many of my club colleagues do the same.

I would like to validate that i will have the right to use metal detector , sluice , highbanker and panning methods to fossick for gold in the future as i believe is my democratic right as a law abiding taxpayer.

I always fill in my dig holes if using a detector.
I use only a shovel or garden trowel to load gravel or sand into my sluice or highbanker , both of these methods are non mechanical and therefore completely within the current law.
If i am using a highbanker i position it so the discharge from the sluice exits onto a sand or gravel bar which acts as a natural filter , giving clean water flowing back into the waterway.
If i am using a river sluice , it doesnt create any more turbidity than normal river flows.

I believe that the environmentally friendly practices i engage in can only improve the value of our forests and rivers as a treasure for future generations and for the wildlife that share it with us.

photos attached of bullets and junk i have recovered
photos attached of highbanking and sluicing operations

yours faithfully

Mr Green Digger

Can members post here if they are going to lodge their own submission too please ?

members from anywhere in the country can do this to support our rights to carry out this hobby in NSW , i travel interstate and so too do many lads and ladies from outside of NSW also travel here for a dig.

Its as easy as following your hearts and write your story

Send it in by email or post well ahead of the deadline please.

My submission was via the online form by providing answers/response to the questions that I thought were applicable to me. http://www.lpma.nsw.gov.au/crown_la...ew_of_nsw_crown_land_management/have_your_say
Unfortunately I didn't save it but the gist of it was that where they asked for additional low impact activities I listed fossicking, additional Western Lands use I listed fossicking & for question 8 tabled my concerns as per post above re: Common Lands. The rest I answered where applicable or just put in N/A.

You can also make a submission online http://www.lpma.nsw.gov.au/crown_la...ew_of_nsw_crown_land_management/have_your_say
Fairly painless process of just answering the questions that you think are applicable to you in regards to the white paper.

HeadsUp said:

Can members post here if they are going to lodge their own submission too please ?

members from anywhere in the country can do this to support our rights to carry out this hobby in NSW , i travel interstate and so too do many lads and ladies from outside of NSW also travel here for a dig.

Its as easy as following your hearts and write your story

Send it in by email or post well ahead of the deadline please.

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Done mate, and in the nick of time...........

Yep, I'm in too mate. I want to be able to carry out my hobby if I choose to visit my son in NSW. And thanks Headsup for the letter you wrote as it gave me the plan to follow. Thanks mate. TD

Just got a submission in on time.
Had to be fast as only just logged on this afternoon after being in the USA since last month.

Hope it helps

Thanks for everyone who put in individual submissions.

NAPFA put in a comprehensive (10 page) response on behalf of our 750 members and all the others wo fossick in NSW.

see the link under associations section:

https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=7376

Now that I am back after my WA trip I will post more often!

Cheers

Stephen

President NAPFA

Thanks for everyone who put in individual submissions.

For your information NAPFA put in a comprehensive (10 page) response on behalf of our 750 members and all the others wo fossick in NSW.

see the link under associations section:

https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=7376

Now that I am back after my WA trip I will post more often!

Cheers

Stephen

President NAPFA