Freedom camping site at Whanganui’s Kai Iwi Beach still closed following cliff erosion
A freedom camping site at Whanganui’s Kai Iwi Beach will remain closed for at least the next two weeks.
Whanganui District Council closed the Mowhanau Lookout carpark on Sunset Parade on January 26, due to new erosion on a cliff wall.
The carpark also serves as a freedom camping site, with three vehicles permitted for no more than two days.
During a Whanganui Rural Community Board meeting this week, council regulatory and compliance operations manager Jason Shailer said visitors were now permitted to park at the site.
“What we’ve found is freedom campers park as close as they can to the edge of that cliff, but most people who go there for a look will park on the tarseal, which is a few metres away from the edge.”
Shailer said consultant WSP was preparing a report “on the suitability of the site moving forward”.
“The idea for us is a bit of reassurance, then to make a decision whether we close it permanently or not,” he said.
“I anticipate the report should be with me in a couple of weeks.”
Shailer said there would be consultation with the Mowhanau Village community about the issue.
Board chairman Jack Bullock said people in the village seemed to be “quite happy” freedom camping had been prohibited.
“There’s been interesting, positive feedback.”
Board member Quentin Handley said the council did not monitor the campsite during weekends and he had been told recently 12 campers were there at one time.
“Myself, I’ve regularly seen more than three,” he said.
“It’s pretty much a free-for-all.
“There is a perfectly good motor camp [Kai Iwi Beach Holiday Park] about 300 or 400 metres away.”
Shailer said there was a presumption that “you can freedom camp anywhere in New Zealand” and bylaws were put in place to restrict it.
“We have one compliance officer that deals with freedom camping, plus a whole lot of other things,” he said.
“I give him the weekends off, which he is quite grateful for.
“If we do have evidence of 12 people there, I would encourage people to report it, because we do follow it up.”
The council signed off on a new freedom camping bylaw last October.
Major changes included prohibiting freedom camping along the entire Whanganui River Rd and permanently closing sites at Taupō Quay and Anzac Parade.
Mike Tweed is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present his focus is local government, primarily Whanganui District Council.