OZ ATV :: The Australian ATV Forum

[Ozpilot]

As those following the changes at Stockton will know, I have been attending meetings with representatives of the various people that use Stockton Beach since last year. The meetings are organised by (the organisation know to most of us as) National Parks and Wildlife Services. The process is called "Plan of Management Consultation" and it is a process whereby the National Parks people consult with those in the community who use and are interested in the area with the aim of acheiving the best possible Plan of Management for the area. The Plan of Management will govern how the area is used into the future. I am the representative for "Recreational Vehicle Area interests".

The details of the above are on the internet at http://www.worimiconservationlands.com/services.php?top=services&category=parkmanagement&sid=82 (a quick search for "Worimi Stockton" brings up the right sites).

I have not heard from anybody from this board (other than those I know well) since becoming involved in this process so I thought I would make sure people know that on Saturday 27 August the meeting of the management consultative group will be devoted to discussing the Recreational Vehicle Area. I do not have an agenda for the meeting yet but I expect it will cover issues such as access, use, numbers, area(s) to be used, regulation of usage etc.

My email address has been published in newsletters etc relating to the above for some time (burke@ebc44.com) and I am happy to hear from anybody that wants to contact me. I will do my best to respond (which has been easy so far).

I am also happy to meet with people if anybody wants to organise a meeting. I am in Sydney at present but I am in Newcastle regularly. If anybody wants to arrange a "public" meeting prior to or after 27 August I will try to attend. I have done my best to represent everybody's interests but it would be easier if others let me know what thoughts they would like put forward.

If people feel a meeting before 27 August would be beneficial, the times that seem most likely for me to be able to attend at the moment are the evenings of Wednesday 17, Thursday 18 or Monday 22 August.

Brendan Burke

[Oldrodder]

Brendan,
You state that you are the representative for the RVA for Stockton.
You also state that you have not heard from anybody on this board or forum, but what you will find is that most people on the forum do not have a clue who you are, nor have you made any announcements or posts regarding the fact that YOU were made the RVA representative. Nor have you requested input from the people on the forum.
The people on the forum do not know to go to the NPWS site and check on progress but you as the representative do, and have not thought that it would be useful to keep everyone up to date.
I went along to the meetings and put my hand up to be the representative but you were chosen over myself and a number of others.
What we need from you is for you to get your finger out and tell us what you have organised whether that be meetings, online questionnaires or other means of information gathering and then keep us up to date via this forum so that we all know what you as the representative is planning.

[Ozpilot]

All positive input welcome.

[Jamie]

no matter what we say or ask I dont think it will make a difference.Im just going to pay my rego every year and keep riding til we get the boot out of there.A few of us got caught the other day riding out of bounds.we didnt get a fine but explained our reasons why we were riding not where we are suppose to.the ranger listened and told us about this new management thing happening and any input.I dont think there going to give us anymore sand to ride in so just have to make the best of what we got til its gone.....im going riding this weekend? whos keen ha

[brad0080]

Would be good if the NSW ATV Club would get involved. It's one of the very few places to legally ride an ATV in NSW.

Last edited by brad0080 on Wed Aug 10, 2011 10:49 pm; edited 1 time in total

[jordan1]

Something needs to be done quick smart I say
We pay rego ,, well we got rite to ride the whole frigging beach justice a
4wd drive has...!

[bno12a]

We pay rego, well we got the right to ride the whole beach, ahh no we dont thats why there is that pig pen called an RVA area. (quote)
The safty reason is getting us noware, maybe somone with the right connections should look at getting the beached changed from being a public road to a 4wd recreation area through the RTA as this is why there is an RVA cause the beach is claased the same as the F1 or main st in sydney when it's clear that it is totaly different.

[Oldrodder]

Now that the RVA representative has declared who they are we need all of us on the forum to send to him either via PM or Email your suggestions.
Those of you who are able to attend any of the meetings that he has informed us of that would be appreciated by the balance of us on the forum who may be time poor with regard to work and family and unable to attend.
This may or may not make a difference but it could be the only chance we get to have some say.

[Ozpilot]

Thanks to everybody for the positive emails. It was a shame the posts above were turned negative by one person - thankfully that was not the flavour of the other responses.

The 333 "views" of this thread in just over a week resulted in a number of personal responses. I have been happy to deal with them via email. As I had expected, there are quite a few gaps in the knowledge people have in relation to the WCL Recreational Vehicle Area and the constraints within which it has to operate but I found that people who took the time to read material on the WCL web site were willing and able to give me plenty of positive input. There were still questions but I think I managed to answer them adequately.

If there were some sort of structured meeting I could explain things to people once rather than having to repeat things but doing it on an individual basis has worked well so I am happy I have the input of those who want to help. I am only one person and I have done my best in the role as representative. If anybody else wishes to help out I am happy to work with them. I think the the organisation of a "public" meeting for users of the RVA would be advantageous at the moment as there are a large number of people whose use of the area will be effected by what is happening in the near future but those people are not part of a structured "group". The people within National Parks have done their best to recognise us as a group even though there is no structure but more could be done by us as a group and I am sure having a structure in place would help.

I recommend that everybody take the time to go through the WCL web site as it explains many things that people need to be know and understood if they want to use the area.

Links to Plan of Management Newsletters are being included on the WCL web site and through these people can see the progress of the Plan of Management consultation process. I am also happy to answer any questions people have so please feel free to send me an email any time.

[jobbo]

Alls I can say is it's getting pretty harsh.
Something needs to be changed. Us atvs need a divided section with a few dunes, trails and what not the 4wds are making it hard for us as the ruts r getting worse..
I just think we need to get the Rva extended giving us more room to play.. No harm in that.

[jordan1]

jobbo wrote:

Alls I can say is it's getting pretty harsh. Something needs to be changed. Us atvs need a divided section with a few dunes, trails and what not the 4wds are making it hard for us as the ruts r getting worse.. I just think we need to get the Rva extended giving us more room to play.. No harm in that.

well said!