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Showing posts from September, 2022

Our public lands belong to ALL of us!

My Article in the Spectator Australia... The starting point for policy on this needs to be the acknowledgment and commitment that Public lands will remain in Public hands.   Paying the rent with our national parks ‘ The NSW Government recognises  that land title is central to the development of a new model for Aboriginal joint management. Accordingly, it is anticipated the new model will provide for the potential handback of title to all NSW national parks – covering nearly 10 per cent of the state – over a 15 to 20-year period, subject to the land being leased back (long-term and for nominal rent) to the NSW Government for its continued use and management as a national park.’ On a cold wet Sunday in July this year, the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), responsible for managing 10 per cent of the land area in NSW (about 80,000 km2 or the size of Austria), quietly announced plans to (eventually) hand over title of  all  the National Parks in the sta...

Mt Warning - NPWS leave some questions unanswered.

Mt Warning - NPWS leave some questions unanswered I have been having some difficulty obtaining answers to simple questions about Mt Warning from the seat warmers at NPWS. If anyone can cut and paste the following and mail them to NSW Minister for Environment James Griffin it would be greatly appreciated (email:  office@griffin.minister.nsw.gov.au ). NPWS banning Awe and Wonder in NSW Dear Kane,  Thanks for your email. I have outlined some comments and associated follow-up questions below. In your reply can you please address and quote the numbered questions? 1. The nomination of Mount Warning as an Aboriginal Place in 2014 included the statement that there were " at least eight separate stories about the mountain and its cultural meaning. Each story is equally valid; with no one story taking precedence." Given that some of the indigenous stories allow for public access to the summit how will the NPWS provide for continued public access to the summit, or will NPWS ignore the d...

New Uniforms for Parks Victoria

Following the story below in the Australian reporting on rising authoritarianism and petty bureaucracy in Victoria's Parks we have been given a sneak preview of the Parks Victoria's new ranger uniforms. Wear them with pride guys and gals. New uniform for Parks Victoria  Daniel Andrews tightens screws with new ‘nanny-state’ rules in Victoria JOHN FERGUSON ASSOCIATE EDITOR Walkers and riders face heavy new fines for not using ­government-sanctioned trails in Victoria, while swimmers could be barred from using some waterways without a necessary permit. The planned new Andrews government regulations, affecting more than 50 city and regional parks, have been criticised as “nanny state” measures. They also allow for the wider imposition of fines for rock climbers and other adventurists who fail to adhere to strict controls over the way they pursue their sport. The draft regulations include fines for anyone who fills a chainsaw with oil and petrol on a soft surface such as grass and d...