Policies & Codes Of Conduct

Codes Of Conduct

ON ROAD DRIVING

  • Obey all the laws and regulations that apply to vehicles on public and private roads.
  • Respect the rights of others to use and share the road space – acknowledge that your vehicle may be wider and higher than others, so keep as far left of the road as possible so as to allow a following driver some oncoming line of sight before fully committing his vehicle to the opposite side of the road.
  • Keep a safe distance between vehicles – acknowledge that increased weight and tyre choice can affect braking distance.
  • When following a smaller vehicle, increase the distance so that its mirrors have adequate vision beyond the larger vehicle.
  • Break up convoys into groups of no more than 5 vehicles with larger separation between groups.
  • Leave overtaking space between groups – be aware of overtaking vehicles and their requirements when moving through the group.
  • Take care when cornering – acknowledge that increased weight combined with a raised centre of gravity can affect vehicle handling.
  • Take care when reversing – check blind spots and ensure that no one has walked behind your vehicle before you reverse. If necessary get out of the vehicle to make sure the area behind is clear.
  • Be aware of vision limitations and be particularly observant near children to avoid accidents.
  • Ensure your vehicle complies with relevant State legislation in relation to roadworthiness and modifications.
  • Keep your vehicle clean and in good mechanical condition to reduce the environmental impact.
  • Make others aware that your four-wheel drive is a legitimate choice of lifestyle or family vehicle.
  • Consider joining an affiliated four-wheel drive Club.

THIS CODE SUPPORTS THE NATIONAL RECREATIONAL FOUR WHEEL DRIVE VEHICLE POLICY.

Produced by Four Wheel Drive Australia in the interest of promoting responsible vehicle use.

For advice and assistance in meeting the requirements of this Code of Conduct contact the Secretary

©Four Wheel Drive Australia, August 2010

OFF ROAD DRIVING

  • Obey the laws and regulations for Recreational Vehicles that apply to public lands.
  • Respect the cultural, heritage and environmental values of public/private land, by obeying restrictions that may apply.
  • Respect our flora and fauna. Stop and look, but never disturb.
  • Keep to formed vehicle tracks. When you can, drive over obstacles rather than making the track wider.
  • Keep the environment clean. Carry your own, and any other, rubbish out.
  • Keep your vehicle mechanically sound and clean to reduce the environmental impact.
  • Adopt minimal impact camping and driving practices.
  • Lower your tyre pressures, dont try and get through at highway pressures.
  • Seek permission before driving on private land. Do not disturb livestock or watering points, leave gates as found.
  • Take adequate water, food, fuel, basic spares and a first aid kit on trips. In remote areas travel with another vehicle and have Royal Flying Doctor Service, or equivalent emergency contact by radio or satellite.
  • Plan ahead and lodge trip details with a responsible person.
  • Enjoy your recreation and respect the rights of others.
  • Support four-wheel drive touring as a legitimate family activity.
  • Consider joining an affiliated four-wheel drive Club.

THIS CODE SUPPORTS THE NATIONAL RECREATIONAL FOUR WHEEL DRIVE VEHICLE POLICY.

Produced by Four Wheel Drive Australia in the interest of promoting responsible vehicle use.

For advice and assistance in meeting the requirements of this Code of Conduct contact the Secretary

©Four Wheel Drive Australia, August 2010

CAMPING

Four Wheel Drive Australia supports dispersed vehicle based camping. Campers stopping in unspoilt areas are responsible for the next camper’s enjoyable stay. This is achieved by those who have been there before you, having left nothing but footprints when they have departed. Upon departure, leave the area as if no one had been there and in the same or better condition than previously. Ensure that the area you are visiting is not so sensitive that your presence will leave a permanent impact.

CAMPING

  • Dispersed camping is recommended so as not to compact the ground surface and inhibit vegetation growth or regrowth.
  • Use huts where provided only under the advertised conditions of use – many are for emergency shelter only. Use established campsites. When on a camping trip
    campers must be self reliant and carry your own tent or swag.
  • Do not dig trenches or gutters around tents or swags.
  • Locate your camp out from the drop zone of suspect trees and in particular keep clear of eucalypts which may shed branches at any time.
  • Camp on elevated land and avoid at all times dry river beds, which are
    extremely dangerous as flash flooding can and does occur.
  • Camp at least 30m from any natural waterhole, creek or river in such a way that you do not prevent native fauna and station stock from gaining access to
    water.
  • Do not camp within a 500m radius of a dam or constructed stock watering point.
  • Do not camp within a 100m of any building unless specific permission has been
    granted.

CAMPFIRES

  • Always check for fire restrictions with local authorities and comply with their regulations.
  • A Total Fire Ban is applicable to all types of fuel other than electricity, so be prepared.
  • Do not create a new fireplace where one already exists.
  • If a fire pit needs to be dug, try to remove the topsoil as a sod and place to one side. When the fire has been extinguished and is not to be used again, replace
    the sod over the cold  ashes.
  • Keep the area surrounding any open fire be clear of vegetation for a radius of 4m, or as required by the local authority.
  • Spare firewood is to be kept a minimum of 3m from a fire.
  • Do not use stones in the construction of a fireplace as they are prone to explode from the heat of the fire sending dangerous fragments in all directions.
  • Use only dead fallen timber for fuel if permitted.
  • Campers are not to cut standing trees as these are a key part of the environment.
  • Never burn ‘treated’ timber in a fire. Suitable alternative fuels are heat beads, shellite, gas and unleaded petrol used in appropriate cookers.
  • Never leave a fire burning unattended.
  • Campfires should not exceed one metre in diameter and 0.5m in height. Separate cooking fires may be permitted if fuel is in abundance but should be kept to as few as possible. Set a time at which combustible rubbish, food etc, may be reduced in the fire.
  • Do not place plastic/foam/metal objects in a campfire.
  • When decamping, ensure that the fire is completely extinguished as residual hot ashes present a fire hazard and are likely to cause injury to foraging animals.
  • Dispose of cold ashes around plants as these will liberate nutrients in the soil.

WASHING

  • Don’t wash anything using soaps or detergents in streams and lakes.
  • Wash points should not be located within 50m of any creek, stream, river or waterhole to prevent contamination of such waters.
  • Care must also be taken to ensure that a wash point is not located over a watercourse that feeds into the water supply.
  • When disposing of waste water spread it across the ground to enable natural filtration.
  • Do not use waste water to feed the root systems of native flora as the residue contained within the water could be  harmful.

RUBBISH

  • Adopt the practice of “leave no trace” camping.
  • Take out what you bring in and dispose of rubbish in designated rubbish bins or dumps.
  • Carry suitable containers in which to store rubbish and re-use where possible.
  • Avoid carrying high rubbish potential items such as bottles, cans and plastics, and remove unnecessary packaging prior to departure on trips.
  • Do not bury rubbish as it may be dug up and scattered by native animals.
  • Dispose of plastics in disposal facilities provided or take it home with you for approved disposal.
  • Nappies and sanitary napkins must not be disposed of in composting or deep pit toilets but should be packed safely and taken out to an approved disposal
    point.

TOILETS

  • Use properly constructed toilets where provided.
  • Self dug toilets should be not less than 100m distant from campsites and water courses or water holes.
  • Individual toilet holes should be as deep as practicable to prevent excavation by fauna.
  • Do not attempt to burn toilet paper in toilet holes. Bushfires have been started by this practice.
  • Fill in hole with removed soil and compact as much as possible.
  • Chemical toilets should be used in those areas where the ground surface prevents digging adequate toilet holes or the soil is of a type that is not suited to such a purpose. They should also be used in those areas which have a sensitive environment and ecology which is easily disrupted. Waste from chemical toilets should be disposed of at authorised sewerage points.

Environmentally sustainable vehicle based camping is a shared responsibility.

Produced by Four Wheel Drive Australia in the interest of promoting responsible camping practices.

For advice and assistance in meeting the requirements of this Code of Conduct contact the Secretary

©Four Wheel Drive Australia, August 2010

TRIP LEADERS GUIDELINES

Download our trip leaders guidelines document. Click HERE >>

Our Policies

NATIONAL RECREATIONAL 4WD POLICY

Four Wheel Drive Australia supports the traditional recreation of four wheel driving, and in particular that:

  • Federal, State and Local Government agencies acknowledge that four wheel-drive vehicle use is a legitimate form of recreation.
  • Four wheel-drivers are entitled to equitable access to public land, whilst having regard to minimal impact practices and the rights of other land users.
  • Federal, State, Local Government agencies and recreational four wheel drive vehicle organisations recognise that education is a shared responsibility in the following areas:
    • Driver training
    • Minimal impact practices
    • Environmental sustainable practices
    • Cultural and heritage awareness
  • Federal, State, Local Government agencies and recreational four wheel drive vehicle organisations recognise that planning, development and management of recreational areas is a shared responsibility.
  • Federal, State and Local Government land managers support the concept and development of uniform land zoning for public land.
  • Environmentally sustainable four wheel driving is a shared responsibility.

THIS POLICY SUPPORTS FOUR WHEEL DRIVE AUSTRALIA CODES OF CONDUCT.

Produced by Four Wheel Drive Australia in the interest of promoting responsible recreational four wheel drive vehicle use.

For advice and assistance in meeting the requirements of this National Recreational Four Wheel Drive
Vehicle Policy contact the Secretary

©Four Wheel Drive Australia, March 2003

4WD LICENCE POLICY

The Australian National Four Wheel Drive Council does not support the introduction of special licences for drivers of any four wheel drive vehicles. The reasons for this policy include:

  1. Federal, State, Local Government agencies and four wheel drive vehicle organisations agree that drivers rather than vehicles are generally to blame for the majority of “accidents” that occur on the roads. The Council maintains that discriminating against a particular vehicle type fails to address the prime factor in most accidents – that of driver error.
  2. Four wheel-drivers are entitled to be treated equally with other drivers operating vehicles in the nationally recognised “Up to 4.5 tonne GVM” classification. The range of four wheel drive vehicles and their comparison to similar two wheel drive vehicles makes further subdivision of the classification based on vehicle type impractical and unrealistic.
  3. Federal, State, Local Government agencies and four wheel drive vehicle organisations recognise that education is a shared responsibility in the following areas:
    • Driver training & licensing
    • Pedestrian safety practices
    • Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) practices
  4. Federal, State, Local Government agencies and four wheel drive vehicle organisations recognise that planning, development and management of shared transport areas is a shared responsibility.
  5. Federal and State Government agencies acknowledge that a special licence for four wheeldrive vehicle use is not warranted.

THIS POLICY SUPPORTS THE FOUR WHEEL DRIVE AUSTRALIA CODE OF CONDUCT – ON ROAD DRIVING.

Produced by the FWDA in the interest of promoting responsible four wheel drive vehicle use.

For advice and assistance in meeting the requirements of this National Recreational Four Wheel Drive Vehicle Policy contact the Secretary

©Four Wheel Drive Australia, May 2005

PRIVACY POLICY

We value your privacy and understand the importance of maintaining confidentiality. We adhere to the Privacy Act 1988, as amended by the Privacy Amendment (Private Sector) Act 2000 and have a firm commitment to protecting your privacy.

Our Privacy Policy outlines our information handling practices, covering issues such as:
collection of your personal information
•  use and disclosure of your personal information
•  direct marketing
•  our duty of confidentiality
•  your consent
•  quality of your personal information
•  access to your personal information
•  security of your personal information
•  how to contact us

Collection of your personal information

Generally, we collect personal information directly from you, for example, when you deal with us in
person, over the telephone or via our website. The nature of personal information collected and
maintained by us generally comprises information such as your name, address, contact details
(including telephone, fax and email) and place of work.

Use and disclosure of your personal information

Your personal information is collected for the purposes of establishing and maintaining our data
records and to service our relationship with you and our members. We may use your personal
information to facilitate these purposes and for related purposes such as:
•  internal administration; and
•  to assist us to identify and inform you of activities conducted by us that may be of interest to you.

We will use reasonable endeavours to prevent the disclosure of your personal information except to
the extent:
•  indicated at the time you supply information to us;
•  expressly permitted under any agreement with you;
•  required for performance by us of our activities for you;
•  required under compulsion of law or provided in cooperation with any government authority; or
•  where it is already publicly available or it is disclosed by us in a manner that does not readily permit
identification of information relating to you.

We undertake not to sell, rent or trade your personal information to any individual or entity outside the FWDA. Your personal information may be shared among the entities operated by the FWDA, unless you tell us otherwise.

Quality of Your Personal Information

We will use reasonable endeavours to ensure that the information held is accurate and update our records at the earliest opportunity following notification of any errors or changes.

Access to Your Personal Information

On request, you may access personal information collected and held by us. Further, if you believe that your personal information is not accurate or complete, you may request that we make the necessary corrections, additions or deletions. In order to do so, we ask that you put your request in writing. We will endeavour to respond to your request within seven days.

Security of your Personal Information

The personal information will be held in a secure manor with access limited to the officers and employees of FWDA.

How to Contact Us

Should you wish to discuss any aspect of this statement, or would like more information on our approach to privacy, please do not hesitate to contact us Secretary

Contact Us
PO Box 5252 Port Macquarie BC NSW 2444
Email: @Secretary

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