A NAPFA win -- NSW to look at fossicking in National Parks

[imadogman]

Good News!

Last Thursday (6 March) the NSW Parliament released tabled its Committee Inquiry report on ‘Tourism in local communities’.

NAPFA, along with other individual fossickers (including some from this forum), made submissions to this inquiry which highlighted the potential of fossicking tourism and our problems with access. We also attended public hearings.

The good news for all fossickers in NSW is in the recommendations:

Recommendation 17
That the NSW Government investigate further opportunities for tourism development in national parks including accommodation, camping, mountain bike trails and fossicking.

Recommendation 19
That the NSW Government investigate opportunities for fossicking in national parks, a single access fee for state forests and linking information for fossicking activities on the Destination NSW website.

The report enclosed is available on our website www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/gpsc3 along with submissions, transcripts of evidence and other documents associated with the Inquiry.

For details on the fossicking content go to page 106 to 109 in Chapter 6.

The report and its 25 recommendations are now with the Government for consideration. The Government is required to respond to the recommendations within six months.

NAPFA will support any information request from the Government while it considers these recommendations.

There is no guarantee that we will get access to any of these national park areas, however we have stated our case and it has been at least noticed.

The single licence for State Forests is already in the pipeline and its release is imminent, so we can consider that one done.

You can support NAPFA by joining if you have not already. www.napfa.net

There is a good membership promo on at the moment, and we need all the members we can muster.

Cheers
Stephen
President
NAPFA

[Ric]

Sounds positive

Well done to all who made an effort to submit and/or speak on behalf of NSW & ACT prospectors and fossickers

Ric

[rossco]

This result is probably the best news we could wish for. congrats to Steve ,john and all the commitee. They know we are out there now and weso;re not going away.
Now for the Gov. to make REAL changes so we can get on with the digg'n.cheers Rossco.

[imadogman]

Thanks Rossco -- we need to get all the members we can.

If others reading are not members maybe now is the time to get off the fence!

We are showing that we can make a difference but it is hard going and a lot of work. Please get behind us, as we are the best chance in town at present. cheers.

[Rowdy]

I don't want to sound negative BUT you need to watch that you don t get shafted like we did here in Vic with the so called increased access to national parks. If the sneaky or should I say snakey government allows the increased areas to be approved through parliament the areas they propose are ones that have no gold or gems in the them and they have added conditions for the areas that we already had access to and restricted our activities even further.

In the 25 years that I worked in Government departments I can't recall a single time that upper management was 100% truthful in fact quite the opposite.
I would strongly suggest that those people who are negotiating the increased areas make sure that the terms of reference include that no existing areas or methods of prospecting are changed as the greens will be using this as an opportunity to push their agenda to restrict us further.
Rowdy

[imadogman]

Thanks -- yes the Victorian double cross was rather dirty...just what you can expect from green zealots.

We can only approach what may come in good faith but with the objective of a better outcome then we have at present. NSW state election in March 2015 might help the cause a bit.