Peak Season and Illegal Camping - A Message from Our CEO

How we'll be responding to peak season issues this summer

Summer has officially started, and our region is getting busier. 

Augusta Margaret River has always been a favourite holiday destination for West Australians’ and now it’s a bucket-list destination attracting visitors from around the world. In addition, thanks to social media and our growing population, secret or secluded spots are becoming more crowded, especially during peak season.

Our community has raised concerns around illegal camping, and over winter our staff has reviewed data to better understand the issue. We’ll be presenting a report to Council in December and I want to let you know how we’ll be proactively addressing your concerns this summer. 

What we know about illegal camping

Our community and Rangers confirm illegal camping is an issue. Our data shows we’ve issuing more fines, but this is most likely because we’ve been getting tougher with enforcement and it doesn’t necessarily mean there’s been a significant increase in illegal camping.

We also know not all illegal campers are the same. Some are travellers who don’t want to stay in caravan park or campground because they enjoy a “nature based” camping experience. Others are people experiencing homelessness. 

Additionally, there’s a perception that anyone in a van, spending an extended time during the day at one place is illegally camping, which is not always true.  People travelling in vans are highly visible and currently there are no parking restrictions in our Shire. This means visitors (and locals) are welcome to spend as long as they want visiting one of our region’s natural attractions, beautiful beaches, or popular picnic spots, like the Weir.   

What we are going to do– now and in the future

While there is no simple solution to these challenges, this summer we’ll be implementing several targeted measures to proactively address illegal camping and the pressures of peak tourism season. These include: 

• A dedicated working group: We’ve formed a new dedicated working group who will meet weekly to ensure emerging issues are addressed as soon as they arise. 
• Monitoring day use hot spots: We’re also going to start monitoring popular day spots and explore short- or long-term solutions to help manage their increasing use by visitors and our growing population. This may include extra infrastructure – like bins or toilet facilities. 
• Enforcement, education and communication: We’ll also be focusing on enforcement, education, and communication. Our Rangers will work across the weekend and public holidays, starting early, and finishing late at night to enforce rules, issue fines, and making sure travellers understand it’s illegal to stay overnight. Plus we’ll work with MRBTA to encourage tourists to pre-booking accommodation
• Continue to explore overflow camping: We’ll continue to investigate whether we should invest rate payer funds into an overflow camping facility, because while it is an option, we need to be sure it won’t make things worse by attracting more budget travellers seeking free or cheap places to stay. Read more here.

What we need you to do

Whether you’re lucky enough to call the Shire home, or here on holidays, you can expect things to be busy over summer.  To enjoy your time on Wadandi Boodja, please remember: 

1. Book ahead: Camping in residential streets, beach carparks, national parks, nature reserves, or on Crown land, is against the law and fines will be issued.  Check this list of campgrounds on our website or go to margaretriver.com for other accommodation options. 
2. No Campfires: We’ll be in a prohibited burn period, which mean no campfires are allowed.
3. Parking spots will be scarce around town and at the beach!  Be prepared to park further away and get a few steps in, or even ride your bike or carpool! 
4. There’s no time limit on parking spots in the Shire, so staying in a car park for an extended time during the day, is not illegal camping.
5. Be patient with hospitality staff, especially juniors and backpackers who are playing a vital role for our local businesses.
6. Smile – remember we are lucky to be living and visiting here.