Thread: Bonfires and the law

... shock... horror etc etc

... cut up some creature's home in a national park - gosh !


In nsw I think you're only supposed (at the very most) to use ranger provided wood in ranger provided fireplaces

e.g.

Blue Mountains National Park - Camping | NSW National Parks
here, beside one of the mountains' best lookoutsThe camping ground offers spectacular views of the Grose Valley and Mount Banks - together with basic toilet facilitiesIt's a great base for walking trips in the valley belowYou'll need to bring drinking water and a fuel stove: camp fires are forbidden.
http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/N....rongcampground

I believe it's related to the size of your chainsaw.
Eg. If you have a 14" bar on your saw, you'd be limited by that. But if you have a 20" bar you can chop bigger trees and so on and so forth.

Ralph

For starters in Qld you wouldn't be cutting any fallen trees. You have to bring in your own milled timber.

Then you usually have to use the fireplace provided which are generally cooking fire things with grates etc.

Originally Posted by Ralph1Malph

I believe it's related to the size of your chainsaw.
Eg. If you have a 14" bar on your saw, you'd be limited by that. But if you have a 20" bar you can chop bigger trees and so on and so forth.

Ralph

- well said

Originally Posted by Utemad

For starters in Qld you wouldn't be cutting any fallen trees. You have to bring in your own milled timber.

Then you usually have to use the fireplace provided which are generally cooking fire things with grates etc.

In NSW, all fires must be in a fire place. Having said that, I don't always comply but keep it to a reasonable size.
Rarely (if ever) see rangers about after dark in the places I go.

Check the Forests NSW website, but I am pretty certain that you can not legally light a fire in any state forest using anything lying on the ground or growing. There are almost certainly restrictions on where you can light a fire using wood you brought with you, and there are most certainly restrictions on when you can light a fire, the distances from burnable material, what sort of fireplace and firefighting equipment is required etc. But I am not aware of restrictions on size of fires.

On the other hand, if you want to know what you can get away with - it depends on a whole host of factors, mainly where you are and how well you cover your tracks!

Hope this helps,

John

National Parks and Wildlife Regulation 2002
14 Lighting of fires

(1) A person must not in a park:

(a) light, maintain or use a fire:

(i) if there are fireplaces designated for that purpose by a park authority—elsewhere than in such a fireplace, or

(ii) if there are no fireplaces designated for that purpose—elsewhere than in a temporary fireplace situated at least 4.5 metres from any log or stump and at least 1.5 metres from any other flammable material, or

(iii) in any case—in contravention of a notice erected or displayed or given to a park user by a park authority regulating the use of fire in the park, or

(iv) when a total fire ban has been imposed under the Rural Fires Act 1997, or

(b) leave unattended, whether temporarily or otherwise, any fire that the person has lit, maintained or used before the fire is thoroughly extinguished, or

(c) fail to call for help to control or extinguish a fire that the person has lit, maintained or used and that is beyond the person’s power to control or extinguish, or

(d) handle any inflammable substance (such as petrol, matches or cigarettes) in a manner that is likely to cause a fire in the park.

Maximum penalty: 30 penalty units.

(2) A person does not commit an offence under this clause for anything done or omitted with the consent of a park authority and in accordance with any conditions to which the consent is subject.

(3) A person does not commit an offence under subclause (1) (a) (iv) by doing anything authorised by or under the Rural Fires Act 1997.

17 Protection of vegetation

(1) A person must not:
(a) gather, pluck, pull up, poison, take, dig up, cut, fell, remove, damage or destroy any vegetation in a park,
(b) have any vegetation in the person’s possession in a park, whether for removal or otherwise, or

A person does not commit an offence under subclause (1) (b) if the person has in his or her possession vegetation (including firewood) that was lawfully obtained from outside the park.

(4) A person does not commit an offence under this clause by using firewood:

(a) that has been provided at established visitor use areas in the park where the burning of fires is permitted, or

(b) that comes from deadfalls of timber, if timber is not provided at established visitor use areas in the park.

(4A) However, for the avoidance of doubt, subclause (4) (b) does not permit a person to collect or use deadfalls of timber for firewood in contravention of a notice (as referred to in clause 4) or an oral direction (as referred to in clause 5).

(5) In this clause:vegetation means the whole or part of any tree, shrub, fern, creeper, vine, palm, plant or seed, whether alive or dead.

Well that's what the law says........



Martyn

I thought the taking of a chainsaw into a NSW NP was verboten.

And in reference to Bushie's post....

Originally Posted by Bushie

Well that's what the law says........

'Twould be good if I understood it.