When freedom camping isn’t free
A freedom camping app is asking users to make voluntary online donations to cover running costs for a popular Kaiko¯ura campsite, and the trial could be extended to other areas.
CamperMate is inviting campers staying at the Meatworks site beside a well known surf break to donate $3 or $5 through the app to the Kaiko¯ura District Council, and they can choose to give more.
A message to app users said some councils had restricted freedom camping this summer because they could not sustain maintenance costs, and donations were a way of proving there was an alternative to further closures.
CamperMate has 50,000 users a day and founder Adam Hutchinson said that if the Kaiko¯ura trial was successful, the donations scheme could be extended to other councils with low ratepayer bases and high numbers of freedom campers.
‘‘The aim is to test a new model where we can build a culture of koha or donation if the visitor had a good stay.’’
Hutchinson said feedback from hirers returning their campervans after touring the country indicated they were willing to pay if good facilities were provided.
Kaiko¯ura mayor Winston Gray said the council would gratefully accept donations because it was expensive removing waste from the toilet serving the camping area at Hapuku where some residents have complained about mess from freedom campers.
But Gray said it was a challenging issue because local surfers also camped at the beach, and had done so for decades.
One possibility was that a local trust could run a pay camping area on the road reserve, but he said he was also keen to see a change to the law on freedom camping.
Gray will be among the 30 mayors and deputies meeting with Tourism Minister Kelvin Davis on Thursday to discuss solutions for freedom camping problems.