I've been reseaching the NSW gov websites on our chosen hobby. I have not yet found the definition of fossicking and prospecting despite the NSW governments promotion of fossicking on state reserves, with the appropriate licence, and may rightly or wrongly assume that applies to crown lands but no licence required.
Crown land , what is it and what is the intended purpose for the use of crown land, in short, my assessment, after much reading,it is land set aside for the greater public use. It would seem to me that Newtons law of relativity is applied to our hobby, that is , for every action there is supposed to be an equal opposite reaction to maintain equilibrium, but in our case it seem we are loosing ground. I base that comment on the typical Oallen Ford scenario, that parcel of crown land has been reclassified as an environmental reservation hence the restrictions and managed by an unknown body. I note that comments have been posted on those idiots doing the wrong thing , but first i would ask, do you do the right thing when using your high banker, in that, how much material do you process in the allowed time frame and do you reinstate your digging area. i have anticipated that my post will cut close to the nerve of forum members however my objective is not to upset members but to make them think about whats really happening. I finally arrived at the HILL END meeting of NAPFA members last saturday and heard the last words spoken relating to the use of pumps and high banking. I you are a forum member and not a member of NAPFA then i would urge you to join , as I did on saturday afternoon. I am now retired and in a past life worked at the coal face in local government in the planning and development area and can see the writing on the wall on the future of fossicking and prospecting. In my opinion and professional judgement , the only way forward is to join an association such as NAPFA and CONTRIBUTE to the formulation of the proposals that your representatives can take to the NSW Government , don't sit back any let the others do it for you. I have been involved with associations and committees and dealing with the governing authorities and can tell you its not an easy task.
Government policy writers usually have a public consultation process with stakeholders ( using the usual buzz words in policy formulation) and generally acknowledge submissions from associations. whether they take note is another thing.
I don't believe that Government operations is a well oiled machine, its fragmented decision making processes and lack of communication between different departments is nothing but unbelievable, and that is reflected in the legislation applied to out chosen hobby.
Join NAPFA and be an active member .