victorian national parks camping and accommodation fees

Transcription

OCTOBER 2013
VICTORIAN NATIONAL
PARKS CAMPING AND
ACCOMMODATION FEES
REGULATORY IMPACT STATEMENT
Authorised and published by the Victorian Government,
Department of Environment and Primary Industries,
8 Nicholson Street, East Melbourne, October 2013
© The State of Victoria Department of Environment and Primary Industries 2013
This publication is copyright. No part may be reproduced by any process except
in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968.
Print managed by Finsbury Green October 2013
ISBN 978-1-74287-863-8 (pdf)
Accessibility
If you would like to receive this publication in an alternative format, please
telephone DEPI Customer Service Centre 136186, email customer.service@depi.
vic.gov.au via the National Relay Service on 133 677 www.relayservice.com.au.
This document is also available in on the internet at www.depi.vic.gov.au
Disclaimer
This publication may be of assistance to you but the State of Victoria and its
employees do not guarantee that the publication is without flaw of any kind or is
wholly appropriate for your particular purposes and therefore disclaims all liability
for any error, loss or other consequence which may arise from you relying on any
information in this publication.
Victorian National Parks Camping and Accommodation Fees RIS
Contents
Executive Summary....................................................................................................................... vi
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1
1.1
Purpose of the report............................................................................................................. 1
1.2
Background to the project ..................................................................................................... 1
1.3
Structure of report ................................................................................................................. 2
Problem to be addressed .................................................................................................... 4
2.1
Definition of regulatory problem and rationale for government intervention ...................... 4
2.2
Objectives of government intervention ................................................................................. 5
Context ................................................................................................................................ 6
3.1
Legislative framework ............................................................................................................ 6
3.2
Victorian camping and accommodation ................................................................................ 9
3.3
Policy context ....................................................................................................................... 12
3.4
Role of key stakeholders ...................................................................................................... 15
3.5
Alternative providers ........................................................................................................... 17
Financial analysis ............................................................................................................... 22
4.1
Methodology ........................................................................................................................ 22
4.2
Delivery costs ....................................................................................................................... 27
4.3
Current usage ....................................................................................................................... 28
4.4
Forecast cost base ................................................................................................................ 35
4.5
Efficiency of costs ................................................................................................................. 36
Framework for options analysis ........................................................................................ 39
5.1
The pricing framework ......................................................................................................... 39
5.2
Approach for assessing the options ..................................................................................... 39
5.3
Identified options ................................................................................................................. 41
Assessment of regulatory options ..................................................................................... 45
6.1
The base case ....................................................................................................................... 46
6.2
Option 1 ............................................................................................................................... 49
6.3
Option 2 ............................................................................................................................... 52
6.4
Option 3 ............................................................................................................................... 55
The preferred option ......................................................................................................... 58
7.1
Determining the preferred option ....................................................................................... 58
7.2
Fees and financial implications ............................................................................................ 59
Statements on compliance ................................................................................................ 62
8.1
Impacts on small business .................................................................................................... 62
8.2
Competition assessment ...................................................................................................... 62
8.3
Implementation ................................................................................................................... 63
8.4
Enforcement......................................................................................................................... 63
8.5
Evaluation strategy .............................................................................................................. 63
9
Consultation ...................................................................................................................... 65
9.1
Consultation undertaken to-date......................................................................................... 65
9.2
Further Consultation ............................................................................................................ 66
References ................................................................................................................................... 67
Appendix A - Detailed costings .................................................................................................... 69
Appendix B - Pricing framework .................................................................................................. 72
Appendix C - Level of Service ....................................................................................................... 80
Appendix D - Visitor attitudes towards camping ......................................................................... 84
Appendix E - Benchmarking ......................................................................................................... 86
Appendix F - The proposed determination.................................................................................. 90
Appendix G - Proposed fee structure .......................................................................................... 95
Charts
Chart 4.1 Number of separate trips to Victoria’s Parks (last three years)................................... 29
Chart 4.2 Usual camping accommodation ................................................................................... 30
Chart 4.3 Location of last Victorian camping visit ....................................................................... 30
Tables
Table 1 Outline of Level of Service Standard for camping and roofed accommodation
categories..................................................................................................................................... vii
Table 2 Options for camping fees (average fee for each category, prices per night) ................... x
Table 3 Options for roofed accommodation fees (average fees per night) .................................. x
Table 4 Financial analysis of Options (annual average over ten years, 2013-14 prices) .............. xi
Table 5 Summary of MCA results.................................................................................................. xi
Table 6 Proposed fees for permit camping (2013-14 peak rates) ............................................... xii
Table 7 Proposed fees for camping pass (2013-14 rates)........................................................... xiii
Table 8 Proposed fees for special camping sites (2013-14 rates) .............................................. xiii
Table 9 Proposed fees for overnight hiker permits (2013-14 rates) .......................................... xiii
Table 10 Proposed fees for roofed accommodation (2013-14 rates) ........................................ xiv
Table 11 Proposed average fees (peak rates) - current and proposed ...................................... xv
Table 12 Camping cost in National Parks by level of service (based on one family of two
adults and two children including one night’s park entry where applicable) ............................ xvi
Table 13 Estimated annual revenue yield under preferred option ($ million) .......................... xvii
Table 3.1 : 2013-2014 camping fees as set under the National Parks Act 1975 (average
prices per campsite night for each category)1,2,3 ........................................................................... 8
Table 3.2 : Camping service level categories ............................................................................... 11
Table 3.3 : Historical camping fees (peak) by service level category (per campsite night) ......... 12
Table 3.4 New South Wales camping fees on public land ........................................................... 18
Table 3.5 : South Australian park entry and camping fees .......................................................... 18
Table 3.6 : Benchmarking select private provider's fees (prices per campsite night) ................. 19
Table 3.7 : Summary of fees charged by alternative providers (Peak rates, average prices
per campsite night for each category) ......................................................................................... 20
Table 4.1 : Assumed inflation rates from 2008-09 to 2012-13 and ongoing to adjust 2007-08
cost baseline* .............................................................................................................................. 22
Table 4.2 Camping and Accommodation important visitor attributes/attitudes: ....................... 31
Table 4.3 : Visitation by service level category ............................................................................ 32
Table 4.4 : Estimated cost of camping and accommodation facilities in parks and reserves
managed by Parks Victoria (2011-12, $million)1.......................................................................... 32
Table 4.5 : Description of costs .................................................................................................... 33
Table 4.6 : Revenue from camping and accommodation facilities managed by Parks Victoria
(2009-10 to 2011-12) ................................................................................................................... 34
Table 4.7 : Ten Year Average annual cost of camping and accommodation facilities managed
by Parks Victoria ($ million)1 ........................................................................................................ 35
Table 4.8 : Summary of the estimated cost of providing camping facilities in parks/reserves
managed by Parks Victoria (2013-14) .......................................................................................... 37
Table 5.1 Weighting of assessment criteria ................................................................................. 40
Table 5.2 : MCA scale ................................................................................................................... 41
Table 6.1 : Current 2013-14 fees (average fee per night for each category)1 ............................. 47
Table 6.2 : Financial analysis of the base case (current fees annual average over ten years,
2013-14 prices) ............................................................................................................................ 47
Table 6.3 : Scoring of the base case ............................................................................................. 48
Table 6.4 : Option 1 fees (average fee per night for each category)1.......................................... 49
Table 6.5 : Financial analysis of Option 1 (annual average over ten years, 2013-14 prices) ....... 50
Table 6.6 : Scoring of Option 1..................................................................................................... 52
Table 6.7 : Option 2 fees (average fee per night for each category)1.......................................... 52
Table 6.8 : Financial analysis of Option 2 (annual average over ten years, 2013-14 prices) ....... 53
Table 6.9 : Scoring of Option 2..................................................................................................... 54
Table 6.10 : Option 3 fees (average fee per night for each category)1........................................ 55
Table 6.11 : Financial analysis of Option 3 (annual average over ten years, 2013-14 prices) ..... 56
Table 6.12 : Scoring of Option 3 .................................................................................................. 57
Table 7.1 : Summary of MCA results............................................................................................ 58
Table 7.2 : Proposed fees (peak rates)1 ....................................................................................... 59
Table 7.3 : Estimated annual revenue yield under preferred option ($ million)1........................ 60
Table 8.1 : Impacts of new camping pricing structures on competition ..................................... 62
Table A.1: Estimated costs of camping facilities in national parks and reserves operated by
Parks Victoria (2013-14)............................................................................................................... 69
Table B.2 : Methods of collecting payment ................................................................................. 76
Table B.3 : Pricing structure options ............................................................................................ 77
Table C.1 : Level of service categories for campgrounds under the National Parks Act ............. 80
Table D. 1: Community attitudes towards camping .................................................................... 84
Table E.1 : Benchmarking of private provider prices (select, prices per campsite night) ........... 86
SCHEDULE 1 ................................................................................................................................. 92
Camping fees peak season (fee units per night).......................................................................... 92
SCHEDULE 2 ................................................................................................................................. 92
Fees for special camping sites year round (fee units per night) .................................................. 92
SCHEDULE 3 ................................................................................................................................. 93
Fees for overnight hiker permits year round (fee units per night) .............................................. 93
SCHEDULE 4 ................................................................................................................................. 94
Fees for roofed accommodation (fee units per night) ................................................................ 94
Table G.1 : Proposed fees for permit camping (2013-14 peak rates).......................................... 95
Table G.2 : Proposed fees for camping pass (2013-14 rates) ...................................................... 95
Table G.3 : Proposed fees for special camping sites (2013-14 rates) .......................................... 96
Table G.4 : Proposed fees for overnight hiker permits (2013-14 rates) ...................................... 96
Table G.5 : Proposed fees for roofed accommodation (2013-14 rates per accommodation) .... 97
Figures
Box 3.1: Objectives of the National Parks Act 1975 ...................................................................... 6
Figure 3.1 Nature and extent of forest, parks and reserves in Victoria....................................... 10
Figure 3.2 DEPI’s Pricing Framework for public land ................................................................... 15
Figure B.1 : DEPI’s pricing framework for public land ................................................................. 72
Glossary
DEPI
Department of Environment and Primary Industries
DEWNR
Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources (SA)
DPI
Department of Primary Industries
DSE
Department of Sustainability and Environment
DTF
Department of Treasury and Finance
HPHP
Healthy Parks Healthy People
MCA
Multi Criteria Analysis
NPWS
National Parks and Wildlife Service (NSW)
RIS
Regulatory Impact Statement
Executive Summary
Introduction
Victoria’s parks and forests provide fantastic nature-based recreation experiences,
supported by some of the most accessible campgrounds in the world. From the Alps
to the Grampians, the Otways to the Prom, our parks and forests are places people
go to escape, rejuvenate and get in touch with nature. Victorian parks and forests
offer a range of great camping experiences to suit any visitor.
To continue to protect and enhance these special places for the community, the
Victorian Government intends to introduce a more sustainable user pays system for
camping and accommodation. This will also ensure that future generations can
continue to enjoy our parks and forests. Currently, fees are applied inconsistently
across the state leading to confusion for visitors, and sometimes fee evasion.
The new fees and charges will ensure that users of campgrounds and roofed
accommodation in parks contribute toward the cost of providing these facilities and
services. Costs associated with delivering camping and accommodation include:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Campground/accommodation maintenance
Asset maintenance – i.e. shelters, toilets, barbeques
Environmental management of surrounding areas impacted on by visitation
Ranger patrols and staff presence associated with delivering the services
Refuse and recycling, revegetation and site protection
Operation and maintenance of wastewater, water treatment, underground
gas/electricity supply and power generation infrastructure
• Bookings, ballots, issuing of permits, visitor information and interpretation
• Risk and emergency management, emergency response.
The user pays model will also be consistent with Government’s broader policies for
cost recovery and will assist Parks Victoria with the management and protection of
the surrounding environment and ensure ongoing access and enjoyment of these
special places. The model is also consistent with other Australian states, for example
New South Wales where a user pays system is in place.
Camping and accommodation fees have not increased significantly in the ten years
from 2004 to 2013 with fees increasing in most years by the Treasurer’s rate. The
proposed fees are expected to be introduced on 1 March 2014 to all parks where a
camping permit may be issued under the National Parks Act 1975.1 This Regulatory
Impact Statement (RIS) outlines the implications of changes on sectors of the
Victorian community.
The Department of Environment and Primary Industries (DEPI) and Parks Victoria
have prepared this RIS with assistance from Deloitte Access Economics in drafting key
chapters and undertaking the cost recovery and financial impact analysis.
1
Camping fees for other public land will be addressed in a separate process. However to ensure a
consistent pricing framework across public land, total costs and revenue estimates relate to all land
tenures managed by Parks Victoria.
vi
This RIS is released for public consultation to assess the impact of the proposed fees
and ensure camping will continue to be affordable, accessible and enjoyable for all
members of the community.
Importance of camping and accommodation in parks
Victoria’s national and other parks play a vital role in protecting the natural
environment and cultural heritage, providing opportunities for recreation, and
bringing social benefits in terms of the health and wellbeing of individuals and the
community. Parks also bring economic benefits to local, regional, state and national
economies. Campgrounds and roofed accommodation in parks allow visitors to
access and enjoy Victoria’s natural environment and cultural heritage and enhance
the social and economic benefits provided by parks. These benefits contribute to
prosperous, cohesive, socially active and healthy communities.
Provision of campgrounds, roofed accommodation and associated facilities such as
walking tracks not only enable people to enjoy the benefits of parks, but they also
protect the natural and cultural values that make parks such wonderful places to
visit.
Management of camping and accommodation in Victoria’s national and state parks
Parks Victoria, on behalf of the Secretary, Department of Environment and Primary
Industries, manages Victoria’s parks and reserves. Camping and accommodation is
provided in 133 parks and reserves across Victoria and includes approximately 680
campgrounds together with many dispersed camping sites. It is estimated that there
are more than 2.2 million overnight stays in Victoria’s national park each year. This
represents nearly 7% of all visits to national parks annually. Table 1 outlines the
different service categories for camping and roofed accommodation in Victoria’s
parks and reserves. This table also includes a categorisation for different roofed
accommodation types available in parks across Victoria.
Table 1 Outline of Level of Service Standard for camping and roofed
accommodation categories
Service
level/type
Description
Examples
Very high
Hot showers, fully serviced, full time ranger
presence, sewer toilets, designated campsites,
booking service, treated drinking water, laundry
facilities, unique location
Tidal River, Wilsons
Promontory NP
High
Some showers, Partially serviced, regular ranger
patrols, mostly septic/sewer toilets, mostly
designated sites, booking service, some drinking
water, unique location
Cape Conran CP,
Grampians NP, Lake
Eildon NP
Mid
No showers, partially serviced, infrequent ranger
patrols, booking service, pit/composting toilet,
mostly undesignated sites
Brisbane Ranges NP,
Great Otway NP, Cape
Liptrap CP, Cathedral
Range SP
vii
Basic and
very basic
permit
Unserviced, minimal ranger patrols, typically no
booking service, pit or no pit toilets
Mornington Peninsula
NP, Bunyip SP,
Lerderderg SP
Special
Select campgrounds with unique characteristics
that give rise to the need for a special fee
Grampians NP, Great
Otway NP, Mount Buffalo
NP, Wilsons Promontory
NP, Croajingolong NP
Group
lodges
12, 24 & 30 bed, bunk style Group Lodges
accommodation
Wilson’s Promontory NP,
Cape Conran CP
Huts
4 & 6 bed single room bunk style Huts selfcontained no ensuite
Wilson’s Promontory NP
Cabins
6 & 8 bed self-contained Cabins
Cape Conran CP, Buchan
Caves Reserve
Wilderness
retreat
Sole use or twin share tent style accommodation
with or without ensuite
Cape Conran CP, Buchan
Caves Reserve
Lightstation
Self-contained Cottage style accommodation
Gabo Island
Source: Parks Victoria
Camping and accommodation charges on public land in Victoria have been applied to
selected areas (such as Tidal River, Wilsons Promontory National Park) for many
decades. Currently camping and accommodation fees are charged at only 24 of the
133 parks and reserves (18 per cent), with 109 camping grounds requiring a camping
permit. Six parks offer roofed accommodation facilities and services, including cabins,
cottages, huts, lodges and wilderness retreats.
The Problem
At present, the total annual cost of delivering camping and accommodation facilities
and services within Victoria’s national and other parks is estimated to average $17.8
million over the next ten years. However, only $6.5 million is currently collected in
revenue from user fees and charges. The estimated shortfall of $11.3 million is
neither fair nor sustainable.
The current pricing framework for camping and roofed accommodation in national
and state parks does not provide for financially sustainable delivery of these services.
Campgrounds and roofed accommodation offered in parks are currently provided at
significant cost to taxpayers and do not align with the Government’s cost recovery
principles. The Government’s objective is to encourage the use of parks by making
them accessible to the broader community. However, unless the users of our
magnificent public land estate and natural assets contribute a fair share of the cost of
providing and managing these camping and accommodation sites, providing for these
facilities and services will become more difficult.
Without investment campgrounds and roofed accommodation facilities and services
offered in parks will degrade, requiring either costly maintenance or providing a substandard visitor experience for those who choose to use our parks.
viii
These issues were highlighted by a 2010 Deakin University research report, 2 which
identified the following issues with the current camping and accommodation pricing
structure:
•
Fees vary across and within parks. There are currently twelve pricing levels for
camping, with site fees ranging from $5.60 to $48.00 per night
•
Current camping fees have an inconsistent and unstructured relationship with
the level of service provided and are generally only applied at high visitation sites
or where collection is easiest
•
There are inconsistencies in the camping fees charged for peak, shoulder and off
peak season
Objective of fee determination
The Victorian Government is seeking to establish a fee structure that addresses the
issues outlined above and provides for ongoing, financially sustainable provision of
camping and accommodation facilities and services in Victoria’s national and state
parks.
The National Parks Act 1975 requires that the Minister sets camping fees in national
and state parks through a determination. This determination will apply to all camping
places and facilities provided in national and state parks.
In the future, the Government will also consider a camping pass for dispersed
camping and some basic/very basic campgrounds. This will ensure users pay for the
ongoing management of these areas, including the associated access tracks. Similarly,
camping fees will be considered for forests and other areas of public land to ensure
camping across all public land is sustainable. Just as for parks and reserves, managing
camping areas in forests and other public land incurs significant costs to the state, for
such things as maintenance, waste management and ranger patrols, and it is
important to recover these costs in order to continue to ensure campgrounds are
accessible to those wishing to enjoy Victoria’s wonderful forests and parks.
Pricing options considered
The pricing options considered in this RIS were:
•
Current Fees (Base Case): Current fees for camping and accommodation
facilities and services provided in national and state parks are shown in Tables
2 and 3
•
Option 1: Fees are based on achieving full cost recovery with the assumption
of 100% compliance, and set according to the level of service of the facility
provided. Fees between different service levels differ due to the different costs
per visitation night (i.e. no cross subsidies between different service levels or
accommodation types)
Deakin University, 2010, Research report for Parks Victoria: Camping and Accommodation Product &
Pricing.
2
ix
•
Option 2: Fees are based on rates charged by private operators (for
accommodation only) or public providers in other jurisdictions (for both
camping and accommodation). These are referred to as market rates
•
Option 3: Fees are based on improved revenue yield for camping and
accommodation facilities and services. All fees achieve improved revenue
generation, reflect differences in quality between the levels of service and are
mindful of market rates. Roofed accommodation fees were also set in
consideration of scarcity rents (Preferred Option)
The proposed fees and financial implications of each option are outlined below. Note
that fees are set by Parks Victoria to apply from 1 September to 31 August each year.
The proposed 2013-14 prices shown in this document are the new fees proposed for
introduction from 1 March 2014 and would apply to 31 August 2014.
Table 2 Options for camping fees (average fee for each category, prices per night)
Current fees
(Base Case)
Option 1
Option 2
Option 3
Service level
Peak
Off
peak
Peak
Off
peak
Peak
Off
peak
Peak
Off
peak
Very high (pwrd) (per site)
$55
$49
$45
$40
$55
$50
$66
$59
Very high (non-pwrd) (per
site)
$33
$30
$49
$44
$50
$45
$59
$53
High (per site)
$32
$29
$38
$34
$42
$38
$50
$45
Mid (per site)
$22
$19
$46
$42
$25
$23
$38
$34
Basic and very basic (per
vehicle)
$0
$0
$13
$13
$13
$13
$13
$13
Special (per site or per
person)
$14
$13
$34
$31
$15
$13
$18
$18
Source: Deloitte analysis
Table 3 Options for roofed accommodation fees (average fees per night)
Current fees
(Base Case)
Option 1
Option 2
Option 3
Accommodation
type
Peak
Off
peak
Peak
Off
peak
Peak
Off
peak
Peak
Off
peak
Group lodges
$557
$501
$729
$656
$516
$465
$648
$547
Huts
$89
$80
$175
$157
$125
$113
$131
$111
Cabins
$195
$176
$155
$140
$197
$177
$236
$202
Wilderness retreat
$245
$245
$241
$216
$247
$222
$245
$245
Lightstation
$133
$121
$97
$87
$119
$108
$135
$122
x
Table 4 Financial analysis of Options (annual average over ten years, 2013-14
prices)
Current fees
Total cost
Option 1
Option 2
Option 3
$17.8
$17.8
$17.8
$17.8
Max potential
revenue
$7.3
$17.8
$16.5
$18.4
Estimated yield
$6.5
$14.7
$13.6
$15.3
$11.3
$3.1
$4.2
$2.5
Shortfall per year
($million)
Estimated yield is lower than the maximum potential yield due to estimated levels of
non-compliance.
Accommodation fees for option 3 were set using the principles of:
•
Scarcity rent: Where there is excess demand for a good or service, due to scarcity
or a restriction on supply, prices should capture private benefits that exceed cost
recovery
•
Considerations over quality differences and consumer willingness to pay
Fees were also set with consideration of DEPI’s Pricing Framework for public land
outlined in Appendix B.
Determining the preferred option
A Multi Criteria Analysis (MCA) was used to determine the preferred option to ensure
sustainable camping and accommodation facilities and services are provided in parks
and reserves. MCA was chosen as it utilises qualitative and quantitative techniques to
assess policy options against decision criteria. A MCA was used to test which of the
three options would best meet both the Government’s objective of encouraging the
use of national and state parks while delivering increased revenue for camping and
accommodation facilities and services. The results of the MCA are shown in Table 5.
Table 5 Summary of MCA results
Criteria
Weighting
Option 1
Option 2
Option 3
Efficiency
40 per cent
+7
+6
+8
Equity
30 per cent
-3
+5
+8
Effectiveness
30 per cent
-10
+3
+3
Weighted total
100 per cent
-1.1
4.8
6.5
It is foreseeable that, under the base case, camping facilities would become
degraded resulting in a situation that is counter Government’s objective of
encouraging the use of national and state parks, particularly if some campgrounds
xi
need to be closed for health and/or safety reasons. Option 1 achieved a score that
indicates it is worse than the base case, primarily driven by equity and effectiveness
implications. Options 2 and 3 both receive scores indicating that they are better than
the base case for generating increased revenue. These options significantly reduce
the funding shortfall of providing camping and accommodation facilities and services,
providing a more sustainable funding approach relative to the base case. In
particular, revenue generation is highest under option 3.
While options 2 and 3 may be argued to be counter to the Government’s objective of
encouraging the use of parks, as increasing fees may reduce visitation rates, options
2 and 3 generate the necessary funds to maintain campgrounds and roofed
accommodation sustainably into the future. Without the increased revenue, as in the
base case, Parks Victoria will not be able to maintain campgrounds and roofed
accommodation to the current levels leading to closures and reduced services which
would be further at odds with the Government’s objective of encouraging the use of
national and state parks.
On balance, option 3 scores the highest as the fees achieve the most sustainable
revenue stream (i.e. it best addresses the efficiency criterion) and most accurately
reflect differences in quality (i.e. it best addresses the equity criterion). As such,
option 3 is the preferred option.
Details of the Preferred Option
The preferred camping and accommodation fees are outlined in further detail below.
The proposed fees reflect differences within each category, such as for size of groups,
school groups and types of vehicle.
Table 6 Proposed fees for permit camping (2013-14 peak rates)
Site up
to 8
persons
Site up
to 6
persons
Per
person
School
groups
site up
to 6
persons
School
groups
per
person
Additional
vehicle
Very High Non powered
$59.20
N/A
N/A
$53.30
$8.90
$9.20
Very High Powered
$65.90
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
$9.20
High - Non
powered
N/A
$48.70
N/A
$43.80
$8.80
$9.20
High Powered
N/A
$54.10
N/A
$48.70
$9.70
$9.20
Mid
N/A
$37.80
$18.90
$34.00
$6.80
$9.20
Basic & Very
Basic
N/A
$19.30
$9.70
N/A
N/A
N/A
Category
Notes: A 10 per cent discount applies during off-peak periods (May to October each year).
xii
Table 7 Proposed fees for camping pass (2013-14 rates)
Category
Per
Vehicle/Boat
Annual
$121.70
$347.70
$608.50
$43.50
$43.50
Monthly
$81.10
$231.70
$405.50
$29.00
$29.00
7 Day
$46.40
$132.60
$232.00
$16.60
$16.60
Overnight
$17.40
$49.70
$87.00
$6.20
$6.20
Small bus
Large bus
Motorcycle
Hiker/Cyclists
Table 8 Proposed fees for special camping sites (2013-14 rates)
Category
Exclusive
School
Groups
per
person
Per
person
Boat /
Canoe
/ Kayak
per
person
Booking
administration
(per booking)
Lower
Glenelg NP
Canoe
Camp
N/A
$9.00
N/A
$10.00
Individuals $10.00
Groups $15.00
Mt
Arapiles
N/A
N/A
$5.00
N/A
N/A
Plenty
Gorge
Parklands
Nioka
Bush camp
$360
($420 with
kitchen &
hall)
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Yarra
Valley
Parklands
$315.00
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Table 9 Proposed fees for overnight hiker permits (2013-14 rates)
Category
Per
person
School
groups
per
person
Site 1-3
persons
Group
exclusive
Group
site 13
Booking
administration
(per booking)
Great Ocean Walk, Falls to
Hotham Alpine Crossing
N/A
N/A
$30.00
$216.00
$27.00
Individuals $10.00
Groups $15.00
Wilsons Prom, Mt Buffalo
$12.50
$11.30
N/A
N/A
N/A
Individuals $10.00
Groups $15.00
xiii
Croajingolong (Wilderness
Coast Walk), Grampians
National Park, Alpine
National Park, Baw Baw
National Park,
Cobboboonee National
Park, Discovery Bay Coastal
Park, Lower Glenelg
National Park (Great South
West Walk)
$10.00
$9.00
N/A
N/A
N/A
Individuals $10.00
Groups $15.00
Table 10 Proposed fees for roofed accommodation (2013-14 rates)
Category
Peak
season
Shoulder
season
Off
peak
season
Extra
person
Booking
fee ballot/
booked
period
Administration
fee – applies to
phone assisted
amendments
and changes to
bookings
34 Bed Bunkhouse Plenty Gorge Nioka
Bush camp
$510.00
N/A
$510.00
N/A
N/A
$20
6 Bed Cabins - Wilsons
Prom
$304.30
$243.40
$222.70
N/A
$10.00
$20
8 Bed Cabins - Cape
Conran
$224.80
$179.80
$161.90
N/A
$10.00
$20
5 Bed Cabin - Buchan
Caves
$95.60
N/A
$86.10
N/A
N/A
$20
4 Bed Huts - Wilsons
Prom
$132.70
$106.10
$95.50
N/A
$10.00
$20
6 Bed Huts - Wilsons
Prom
$202.20
$161.70
$145.50
N/A
$10.00
$20
12 Bed Lodges Wilsons Prom
$495.50
$396.40
$356.80
N/A
$10.00
$20
24 Bed Lodge Wilsons Prom
$997.70
$798.10
$718.30
N/A
$10.00
$20
30 Bed Lodge Wilsons Prom
$1,247.20
$997.70
$898.00
N/A
$10.00
$20
17 Bed Lodge - Cape
Conran
$756.10
$604.90
$544.50
N/A
$10.00
$20
Lightstation - Wilsons
Prom Standard Plus
133.80
N/A
$120.50
N/A
N/A
$20
Lightstation - Wilsons
Prom Standard
100.50
N/A
$90.50
N/A
N/A
$20
Lightstation - Gabo
Island
$350.00
N/A
$315.00
N/A
N/A
$20
14 Bed Shearers
Quarters - Murray
Sunset
$374.10
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
$20
xiv
Wilderness Retreat Wilsons Prom (Sole
use or twin share,
with ensuites)
$302.50
N/A
$302.50
$24.80
N/A
$20
Wilderness Retreat Cape Conran &
Buchan Caves (Sole
use or twin share, no
ensuites)
$181.50
N/A
$181.50
$21.80
$10.00
$20
Fees and financial impacts under the preferred option
Fees (peak rates only) under the preferred option are outlined in Table 11. The proposed
fees for camping facilities are an increase on the current fees, in particular where fees are
being introduced for the basic and very basic campsites for the first time. This reflects the
current modest fee structure, where patrons are being subsidised by tax payers and
camping sites are not being adequately maintained.
Table 11 Proposed average fees (peak rates) - current and proposed
Base case
(current)
Camping
Fees
$55
$33
$31
$22
$0
$14
$66
$59
$50
$38
$13
$18
$3.7
-$10.9
$11.5
-$3.1
$557
$89
$195
$245
$133
$648
$131
$236
$245
$135
Estimated revenue yield
Estimated shortfall/surplus
$3.2
$0.0
$3.8
$0.6
$6.5
-$11.3
$15.3
-$2.5
Very High (pwrd)
Very High (non-pwrd)
High (non-pwrd)
Mid
Basic & Very Basic
Special
Financials
($m)
Accommodation
Fees
Group Lodges
Huts
Cabins
Wilderness Retreats
Lightstation
Financials
($m)
Total
Financials
($m)
Option 3
(proposed)
In comparison with other jurisdictions, the proposed fee structure compares favourably
with other states that apply variable fees on the basis of the level of service (see Table 12).
When combined with the applicable entry fees in other states, the proposed fees are
comparable for the Basic, Mid and High service categories.
xv
In Victoria, the majority of camping occurs is in the Basic service level category and the
proposed fees are either below or comparable with all other states. While the fees
proposed for the Very High service level are slightly higher than other states in Table 12,
few states offer equivalent facilities in national parks. The proposed fees for the Very High
service category remains comparable with private sector offerings (eg. caravan parks and
tourist parks).
Table 12 Camping cost in National Parks by level of service (based on one family of two adults
and two children including one night’s park entry where applicable)
State/Territory
VIC
(preferred
option)
TAS
NSW
SA
WA
QLD
ACT
NT
Basic
Mid
High
Very high
$13
$38
$50
$59
$37
$28
$20
$31
$21
$12
$7
$37
$28
$23
n/a
$21
$12
$7
$46
$41
$28
$46
$21
n/a
$15
$52
$46
$41
n/a
n/a
n/a
$15
Note: Figures obtained from each state’s website September 2013
Nightly camping fee and daily park entry fee are combined in the figures shown
Figures are indicative only and based on selected sites with equivalent service level
Fee structure, levels of service and other fee components are not always directly comparable.
Overall, the estimated revenue yield from camping and accommodation facilities under the
proposed fees is $15.3 million, in comparison to the revenue yield under the current fees,
which is estimated at $6.5 million. However, the proposed fees will not achieve full cost
recovery due to the expected level of compliance which was included in this assessment.
When accounting for the assumed levels of payment compliance, the estimated budget
shortfall under the proposed camping and accommodation fees will be reduced from $11.3
million to $2.5 million. This may be further reduced by compliance measures taken during
the implementation of these changes.
Estimated revenue yield from the proposed camping and accommodation fees are shown
below in Table 13. Revenue from camping and accommodation facilities and services is
expected to increase from $13.5 million in 2013-14 to $16.9 million in 2022-23, with a net
present value of $126 million assuming a real discount rate of 3.5 per cent.
These revenue estimates are modelled on full implementation of the proposed fees across
all parks and reserves managed by Parks Victoria. In practice, a staged implementation is
proposed, with permit camping within national parks being implemented during 2013/14.
Fees associated with dispersed camping, such as a ‘camping pass’ and other tenures such as
other Crown land and forests will be implemented in subsequent years once legislative
and/or regulatory processes are completed. As such, the actual revenue yield will be less
than modelled here in the early years.
xvi
Fees outlined in this RIS are for the year 2013-14. Fees in subsequent years will be adjusted
to maintain the financially sustainable provision of camping and accommodation facilities
and services. In general, fees will be increased on an annual basis in accordance with
Treasury guidelines to ensure fees are consistent with general price inflation.
Table 13 Estimated annual revenue yield under preferred option ($ million)
Year
Revenue yield
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19
2019-20
2020-21
2021-22
2022-23
$13.5
$13.7
$13.9
$14.2
$14.4
$16.3
$16.5
$16.6
$16.8
$16.9
Conclusion
The increased revenue generated under the preferred option will allow campgrounds and
roofed accommodation in parks to be managed sustainably so that future generations can
continue to access and enjoy Victoria’s magnificent parks. Assets associated with these
facilities and services will be revitalised, rejuvenated and renewed and better facilities and
services will be provided. Visitors will enjoy a better experience and land managers will be
able to appropriately manage the natural assets that underpin these areas. The benefits of
the proposed fees will therefore outweigh the costs to society.
Public Consultation
Public release of the RIS will provide an opportunity for members of the public to comment
on the proposed changes to camping and accommodation fees. DEPI and Parks Victoria
therefore encourage feedback regarding the impact of the proposed fees. In particular,
stakeholders may wish to provide comment on the proposed rates for each camping and
accommodation type as well as the extent of the proposed changes.
Submissions must be received by 5pm on 22 November 2013.
All submissions received are public documents and may be made available as requested.
xvii
1 Introduction
This chapter explains the purpose of this report, provides background to the project and
outlines the structure of the Regulatory Impact Statement.
1.1 Purpose of the report
The opportunity to camp or stay in accommodation in parks was first introduced over 100
years ago at Wilsons Promontory National Park and Mount Buffalo National Park. These
opportunities have grown so that now visitors can immerse themselves year round in parks
by pitching a tent, parking a caravan or camper trailer, or relaxing in a cabin or wilderness
retreat. Staying in parks has grown significantly in popularity over the years, now attracting
over 2 million overnight stays at over 680 campsites and a range of accommodation types
such as cabins, huts, lodges, wilderness retreats and lightstation cottages. The experience
of staying overnight in a park is complemented by the provision of quality services and
facilities including visitor information, walking trails, toilets, water, picnic and barbeques
facilities as well as the presence of rangers.
In recent years, a range of influences such as increases in costs, fire and flood events,
maintenance to keep infrastructure/facilities at acceptable standards and inconsistent fee
structures have all affected the nature of camping and accommodation in our parks. The
total cost of providing camping and accommodation opportunities within Victoria’s national
and other parks is estimated to be $17.8 million per annum. Currently only $6.5 million is
collected in revenue from user fees and charges. The estimated annual shortfall of $11.3
million is neither fair nor sustainable.
To continue to protect and enhance these special places for future generations, the
Victorian Government intends to introduce a sustainable user pays system for camping and
accommodation.
1.2 Background to the project
Victoria’s national parks and reserves attract approximately 30.1 million visitors per annum.
Of these it is estimated that nearly 2.26 million (7.5%) are overnight visitors utilising the
camping and accommodation opportunities available throughout the state. Parks bring
direct and flow-on economic benefits to local, regional, state and national economies. They
are also central to the health of communities. Camping and staying in roofed
accommodation is a valuable way of enjoying the benefits provided by our parks.
Parks Victoria is the statutory authority responsible for the management of Victoria’s parks,
reserves, and other land and water. Camping and accommodation is provided in 133 parks
and reserves across Victoria. This encompasses almost 680 camping grounds together with
many dispersed camping sites.
Camping and accommodation charges on public land in Victoria have been applied to
selected areas (such as Tidal River, Wilson’s Promontory National Park) for several decades.
1
Camping and accommodation fees have not increased significantly in the ten years from
2004 to 2013 with fees increasing in most years by the Treasurer’s rate. Currently 24 (18
per cent) of the 133 parks and reserves are fee for service, encompassing 109 camping
grounds which require fees. Six parks offer roofed accommodation, including cabins,
cottages, huts, lodges and wilderness retreats.
A 2008 review by Parks Victoria and Deloitte, identified that Parks Victoria was subsidising
both camping and roofed accommodation. It was determined that the current financial
model for the provision of the camping and accommodation was unsustainable.
The Government is therefore seeking to increase revenue from camping and
accommodation services and facilities provided on public land to ensure they can be
provided into the future. Increased fees, consistent with the Cost Recovery Guidelines 3 and
market rates are needed to achieve this increased revenue.
Section 21 (2) of the National Parks Act 1975 (the Act) provides the necessary head of
power to set camping and accommodation fees and charges (and associated terms and
conditions) for land governed by the Act. The attached ministerial determination (Appendix
F) sets the new fees for all land managed under the Act. Terms and conditions associated
with these fees are included in the determination.
An RIS was prepared to assess the impact of the proposed changes on the Victorian
community.
This RIS was prepared by the Department of Environment and Primary Industries (DEPI) and
Parks Victoria. Deloitte Access Economics assisted in drafting key chapters and undertaking
the cost recovery and financial impact analysis.
1.3 Structure of report
The report is structured as follows:
•
Chapter Two sets out the regulatory problem being addressed and the objective of
government intervention
•
Chapter Three provides context for the determination, including the current legislative
framework, the current fee structure for Victorian camping and accommodation, the
policy context, the roles of key stakeholders and inter-jurisdictional approaches
•
Chapter Four outlines the financial analysis underpinning the RIS, including current
usage and forecasts, assumptions made and an overview of the cost calculations
•
Chapter Five outlines the framework for options analysis and identifies several feasible
options. Criteria for assessment are also developed. Options have been developed to
address the cost recovery problems identified in Chapter Four
•
Chapter Six contains an assessment of regulatory options, including a financial analysis
of each identified option and a ranking of each option against the criteria for
assessment developed in Chapter Five
3
Department of Treasury and Finance (DTF), 2010, Cost Recovery Guidelines, State of Victoria
2
•
Chapter Seven provides an overview of the preferred option and how implementation
of this option will take place
•
Chapter Eight contains the statements of compliance, namely: the impact on small
business; assessment of competitions impacts; implementation and enforcement
considerations and the evaluation strategy
•
Chapter Nine outlines the consultations undertaken during the RIS development
process thus far and the consultation strategy going forward.
3
2 Problem to be addressed
This chapter provides an overview of the problems inherent in the current camping fee
pricing structure and establishes why regulatory change is necessary.
2.1 Definition of regulatory problem and
rationale for government intervention
There is currently a significant shortfall in the revenue generated from camping and
accommodation facilities and services provided in parks. The current financial model is
unsustainable and current facilities and services will not be able to be provided to the
standards expected by the community. In 2011-12 the estimated cost to Parks Victoria of
the camping and accommodation facilities in parks and reserves under its management was
around $12 million. In the same year, the revenue earned from these facilities was around
$4.2 million, falling from the previous year’s $4.4 million. Assuming costs were much the
same in the previous year, this suggests that the current overall level of cost recovery is
around 35 per cent. The estimated shortfall is expected to grow to a ten year average of
$11.3 million per annum.
A research report conducted by Deakin University for Parks Victoria identified that the
camping and roofed accommodation product was an underperforming area and that key
management issues with the camping products were:
•
Under performing financially with only partial cost recovery achieved in existing pay for
use parks
•
Complex pricing and terms & conditions that are not standardised across the park
estate
•
Inconsistent pricing in relation to services and facilities offered in the park
•
Inconsistent quality and service delivery across the park estate
•
Structured in a way that does not easily facilitate high quality and effective marketing
to maximise yield 4
Furthering this, the key issues with the current pricing regime were found to be the
following:
•
The majority of campsites are available to be accessed at no cost by the public, with
only 24 out of the 133 parks that offer camping operating on a fee for service basis
•
Fees vary across and within parks. There are currently twelve pricing levels for camping,
with site fees ranging from $5.60 to $48.00 per night
•
Existing fee structures with a base rate plus additional persons are difficult to enforce
and administer leading to fee evasion, non-compliance and revenue leakage
4
Deakin University, 2010, op. cit.
4
•
Current camping fees have an inconsistent and unstructured relationship with the level
of service provided and are generally applied at high visitation sites or where collection
is easiest
•
There are inconsistencies in the camping fees charged for peak, shoulder and off peak
season5
The camping fees pricing structure currently employed in Victoria’s parks does not align
with the Government’s cost recovery principles, cost neutrality principles or DEPI’s pricing
policy for public land. By providing camping facilities at costs much lower than market
prices Parks Victoria is at risk of distorting the market. Additionally, Parks Victoria is
operating at a significant deficit through the provision of camping product below cost
recovery levels.
Due to specific provisions in the Act, camping fees in national and state parks can only be
set or changed through a ministerial determination. For this reason, intervention through
some form of regulation is necessary in the case of any fee changes.
2.1.1
Increased revenue for regulatory activities
If the determination to raise and extend the level and application of camping fees was not
made, Parks Victoria would be unable to sustainably provide camping and accommodation
facilities, services and associated assets in parks. The current financial model is inconsistent
with the principle of cost recovery and creates a need for government funding, resulting in
the subsidisation of camping product by non-users of the facilities.
2.2 Objectives of government intervention
The Government’s objective is to encourage the use of our parks by a wide spectrum of the
community by providing safe and accessible camping and accommodation facilities and
services expected by the community. The objective of the proposed determination is to
prescribe fees which implement the user pays principle to ensure the sustainable provision
of camping and accommodation facilities and services in all national and state parks. The
determination is consistent with cost recovery principles. Government intervention
provides a consistent, fair and transparent user pays approach to for service activities on
the public land estate.
5
Ibid.
5
3 Context
This chapter sets out the context for the determination, including the current legislative
framework, the current fee structure for Victorian camping and accommodation, the policy
context, the roles of key stakeholders and inter-jurisdictional approaches.
3.1 Legislative framework
The proposed fee determination to be made by the Minister will come under Section 21 (2)
of the Act. The determination applies to permits issued under Section 21 (1)(a) of the Act
and is supported by subordinate legislation, the National Parks Regulations 2013 (the
Regulations), which have been made under the authority of Section 32AA, 37 and 48 of the
Act.
3.1.1
Legislation
The purpose of the Act is to establish the statutory basis for the protection, use and
management of Victorian national and other parks, covering nearly 3.45 million hectares.
The objectives of the Act are listed in the box below.
Box 3.1: Objectives of the National Parks Act 1975
The objectives of the National Parks Act 1975 are:
a) To make provision, in respect of national parks, state parks, marine national parks
and marine sanctuaries:
i. For the preservation and protection of the natural environment including
wilderness areas and remote and natural areas in those parks;
ii. For the protection and preservation of indigenous flora and fauna and of
features of scenic or archaeological, ecological, geological, historic or other
scientific interest in those parks;
iii. For the study of ecology, geology, botany, zoology and other sciences relating
to the conservation of the natural environment in those parks; and
iv. For the responsible management of the land in those parks;
aa) To make further provision in respect of designated water supply catchment areas in
national parks:
i. For the protection of those areas;
ii. For the maintenance of the water quality and otherwise for the protection of
the water resources in those areas; and
iii. For the restriction of human activity in those areas for the purposes of
subparagraphs i and ii.
ab) To make provision in respect of wilderness parks :
6
i. For the protection, enhancement and management of those parks as
wilderness so as to maximise the extent to which those parks are
undisturbed by the influences of the European settlement of Australia;
ii. For the protection, preservation and evolution of the natural environment
including indigenous flora and fauna and of features of ecological,
geological, scenic, archaeological and other scientific significance;
iii. For the use and enjoyment of those parks by the public for inspiration, solitude
and appropriate self-reliant recreation; and
iv. For the study of ecology, geology, botany, zoology, archaeology and other
sciences relating to the environment in those parks;
b) In respect of ‘other parks’:
i. To make provision, insofar as is appropriate to each such park, for the
protection and preservation of indigenous flora and fauna and of features
of scenic or archaeological, ecological, historical or other scientific interest;
and
ii. Subject to such provision as is made under subparagraph (i), to make provision
for the public to observe, experience or otherwise become acquainted in
those parks with the countryside and rural skills activities and pursuits and
for carrying on, in those parks and for those purposes, agricultural,
horticultural, or other agrarian projects and botanical, biological, ecological,
geological, zoological, or other scientific studies or projects; and
c) To make provision in accordance with the foregoing for the use of parks by the public
for the purposes of enjoyment, recreation or education and for the encouragement
and control of that use.
Section 21 (2) of the Act prescribes that the Minister may determine from time to time the
terms, conditions, charges and fees to which permits granted or that may be granted under
subsection (1) are or are to be subject.
Subsection (1) refers to granting a person a permit to occupy a building, camping place or
other facility erected in the park for a period not exceeding six weeks.
In addition, traditional owners who have recognised native title rights under the Native
Title Act 1993 (Cth) or recognised traditional owner rights under the Traditional Owner
Settlement Act 2010 (Vic), which include the right to camp, are exempt from paying
camping fees in national and state parks located within their respective agreement areas.
3.1.2
The National Parks Regulations 2013
The National Parks Regulations 2013 (the Regulations) provide for offences in any parks
within the meaning of the Act. The objectives of the Regulations are outlined in Box 3.2.
7
Box 3.2: Objectives of the National Parks Regulations 2013
The objectives of the National Parks Regulations 2013 are—
a) to provide for the management and control of parks and to regulate or prohibit
certain conduct in relation to parks, so as to promote—
i. the preservation and protection of parks, flora, fauna and indigenous fish in
parks and various other features of, and facilities in, parks;
ii. the protection of designated water supply catchment areas and other water
supply catchment areas;
iii. the safety, enjoyment, recreation and education of visitors to parks;
b) to prescribe penalties for contravention of requirements in relation to occupation
sites;
c) to prescribe travelling allowances for members of the National Parks Advisory
Council and advisory committees;
d) to prescribe an area in Cape Howe Marine National Park in which a prescribed class
of boat is prohibited;
e) to prescribe the conditions for Ministerial approvals under section 45B of the Act;
f) to prescribe other matters necessary or required to be prescribed under the Act.
Division 2 of Part 9 of the National Park Regulations 2013 specifies that a person must not
occupy an occupation site (building, camping place or other facility for which a permit
under section 21(1)(a) of the Act may be issued) without a permit.
3.1.3
Regulated fees
The fees for camping in national and state parks in Victoria are set by a Ministerial
determination under Section 21 (2) of the Act.
The published fees to be charged for the 2013-14 year are outlined in the table below. Note
that, for ease of comparison, these fees are expressed as averages across various products
within each service level category. For example, there are a number of fees for different
products within the ‘Special’ category which, when averaged, amount to $16.
Table 3.1: 2013-2014 camping fees as set under the National Parks Act 1975
(average prices per campsite night for each category)1,2,3
Service level
Peak Rates
Off Peak Rates
Very high (powered)
$55
$49
Very high (non-powered)
$33
$30
High (powered)
$34
$30
High (non-powered)
$32
$29
Mid
$22
$19
8
Basic and very basic
$0
$0
Special
$16
$16
Source: Parks Victoria fee schedule, prices set on a per site per night basis
1
Note: Peak period rates apply from the Melbourne Cup Weekend to the last Sunday in April inclusive, and also
2
for the September school holidays. Special refers to site specific characteristics and special offerings such as the
3
Great Ocean Walk. For ease of comparison, these fees are expressed as averages across various products
within each category of service level/type.
3.2 Victorian camping and accommodation
Approximately 40 per cent of the State is public land, managed for the shared benefit of all
Victorians (see Figure 3.1). This includes:
•
National Parks, State Parks and other parks – land managed and protected mainly for
natural values under the Act
•
State forests – land protected and managed to balance a variety of uses and values
under the Forests Act 1958
•
Wildlife and Nature Reserves – land managed and protected under the Wildlife Act
1975
•
other land reserved for a variety of public purposes, such as recreation, under the
Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978
•
land owned or managed by the government, a local council, or other organisation and
made available for public use
•
other land that is unreserved and which may in some cases be sold or occupied through
the issue of various types of leases and licences under the Land Act 1958
About 4 million hectares of forests and parks are national parks and other conservation
areas (wilderness, state and regional park and reserve areas) managed mainly for their
natural values. Parks provide Victorians with opportunities for recreation, tourism and
enjoyment of open space, while protecting significant environmental features, ecosystems
and landscapes.
Forests and parks are managed for the benefit of all Victorians. The sustainable
management of forests and parks is central to protecting Victoria’s precious natural
environment and biodiversity while providing opportunities for Victorians to enjoy the
benefits.
In managing this estate as one of our significant environmental and natural assets, the
government responds to a wide range of community concerns and interests and balances
the need for environmental protection with appropriate use.
Management approaches for forests and parks vary with the purpose and use of that land.
The management of pristine, natural areas and national parks which are managed mainly
for conservation differs from the management of other areas, such as our forests and
beaches, which are managed for a range of uses, including recreation and commercial uses.
This means that land management practices aim to strike a balance to ensure that the use
of that land always provides a net benefit to the public. This balance aims to ensure that
public values are protected while community access is enhanced.
9
Figure 3.1 Nature and extent of forest, parks and reserves in Victoria
Source: DSE 2012
Parks Victoria operates camping and roofed accommodation sites across a range of land
classifications including national parks, State parks, Crown land and coastal parks. This is
broken down as follows:
•
24 fee/permit parks, including 109 campgrounds
•
109 non-fee for service parks, including 571 campgrounds
•
Six parks which offer different types of accommodation including cabins, huts, cottages,
lodges and wilderness retreats
In 2005, Parks Victoria adopted the Levels of Service Framework Policy which allocates a
service level to each park based on the facilities and services available at the site. There are
five service levels, ranging from ‘very basic’ to ‘very high’. The facilities associated with each
service level were decided based on over 10,000 visitor surveys completed by Parks Victoria
over a ten year period. The surveys gauged from visitors which particular facilities were
deemed as important. A detailed outline of the facilities associated with each service level
is provided in Appendix C.
In applying the Levels of Service Framework Policy to camping product, the proposed
facilities associated with each level of campsites were determined, as outlined in the table
below.
10
Table 3.2: Camping service level categories
Category
Very high-permit camping
High-permit camping
Mid-permit camping
Basic & very basic
Special fees
Product Features
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Fully serviced
Hot showers
Full time ranger presence
Sewer toilets
Designated campsites
Booking service
Treated drinking water
Unique location
Laundry facilities
Partially serviced
Regular ranger patrols
Mostly septic/sewered toilets
Some showers
Designated sites
Booking service
Unique location
Some drinking water
Partially serviced
Infrequent ranger patrols
Booking service
Pit/composting toilets
Mostly undesignated sites
No showers
Un-serviced
Minimal ranger patrols
Pit or no pit toilets
Typically no booking service
Distinct characteristics and product offer such as boat based
camping or overnight walking
Source: Deloitte 2011
3.2.2
Historical fees
Table 3.3 shows the camping fees charged by Parks Victoria over the past four years. The
fees have been allocated to campsite service levels in alignment with the fee groups
represented in the current Parks Victoria fee schedule. Parks which fall into each service
level are detailed in Appendix C.
11
Table 3.3: Historical camping fees (peak) by service level category (per campsite
night)
Service Level
2008-09
2009-10
2010-11
2011-12
$22.30
$22.80
$23.30
$23.80
High-permit camping
$16.00
$16.50
$17.00
$17.50
2
$13.00
$13.50
$14.00
$14.50
Very high-permit camping
Mid-permit camping
Basic & very basic
1
3
Special fees
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
Varied
Varied
Varied
Varied
Source: Parks Victoria fee schedule
1
Notes: These prices are the average of Cape Conran, Wilsons Promontory and Mt Buffalo National Parks.
2
Fees are charge for many campsites in this category although there are a number where fees are not currently
3
charged Almost all campgrounds in the ‘basic and very basic’ service level category are currently provided free
of charge.
3.2.3
Terms and conditions
Under the current pricing system, there are numerous terms and conditions that influence
the price charged to different groups of people at different times. The new pricing structure
will seek to standardise these terms and conditions across the national and state parks.
The current terms and conditions include:
•
Peak, off peak and shoulder periods are applied around the state. Currently these time
periods differ by location and occasionally by service level offered
•
Standard booking terms vary across the state. Parks Victoria currently uses a mix of site
based and per person based fee structures which are complex, difficult to enforce and
administer leading to fee evasion, non-compliance and revenue leakage
3.3 Policy context
The Government is determined to ensure the sustainability of providing camping and
accommodation services and facilities on public land. To do so, it is intended that fees will
be introduced for all camping and accommodation and increased as necessary in Victorian
national and state parks through a ministerial determination, consistent with the principles
of cost recovery.
3.3.1
Public land policy
Victoria’s forests and parks provide enormous environmental, social, cultural and economic
benefits to all Victorians. These include providing ecosystem services; providing
recreational and health benefits to the public; offering opportunities for indigenous peoples
to maintain connection to country; and supplying economic needs of the community reliant
on public land resources such as apiary, grazing and tourism opportunities. 6 There are many
flow-on economic benefits associated with these industries, particularly the tourism
industry. Visitors often spend money on accommodation, transport, catering and related
tourism infrastructure, providing significant benefits to surrounding local communities.
6
DSE, 2012, op. cit.
12
Parks Victoria estimates that the Grampians, Port Campbell and Wilsons Promontory
national parks alone contribute $487 million annually to the state’s economy. 7
Parks Victoria notes that there is also a strong correlation between the accessibility of
parks, the physical and mental health of individuals, and the creation of a healthy and
harmonious community. In this sense, camping facilities offer access to the national parks
and the activities made available through this, including walking, fishing, mountain
climbing, four wheel driving, caving, cycling and much more. Parks Victoria notes that the
provision of this access to parks is vital in improving general community health as it allows
individuals to experience ‘moments of respite in which to recharge’. 8
As a common community resource, the parts of the public land estate could be used
excessively if government did not have a role in managing the use of activities, goods and
services on the land through consents. The allocation of consents also seeks to ensure that
those who receive private benefits from the use of, or access to, the land or natural assets,
or who give rise to the need for regulation, pay an appropriate share of the cost. 9
3.3.2
Cost recovery
Cost recovery through fees occurs on the basis of a user-pays system, whereby those who
utilise services are obliged to pay for the cost of those services, rather than having them
funded from general taxation revenues. Under full cost recovery through fees, the people
who use the services are not being subsidised by the taxpayers who do not use the current
services. The current Victorian Government policy is for fees and user charges to be set on
a full cost recovery basis, consistent with the Victorian Government’s Cost Recovery
Guidelines (summarised in the box below). Setting fees on a full cost recovery basis also
aligns with DEPI’s Public Land Pricing Framework.
Box 3.3: Cost recovery
Cost recovery is the recuperation of the costs of government provided or funded products
or services that, at least in part, provide private benefits to individuals, entities or groups,
or reflect the costs their actions impose.
The Victorian Department of Treasury and Finance has published Cost Recovery Guidelines
that establish a framework to promote the development of appropriate cost recovery
consistent with the Victorian Government’s vision of a best practice regulatory
environment and transparent arrangements that promote efficient use of resources within
the State.
Victorian Government policy is for fees and user charges to be set on a full cost recovery
basis as this ensures efficiency and equity objectives are met.
7
Parks Victoria 2003, The value of parks - the economic value of three of Victoria’s national parks: Port
Campbell, Grampians, Wilsons Promontory, Parks Victoria, Melbourne
8
Parks Victoria, n.d., Camping in Victoria’s parks
9
DSE, 2012, op. cit.
13
Appropriate cost recovery can improve the way that resources are allocated within the
economy, thereby contributing to allocative efficiency (a situation where resources are
allocated in a way that maximises the net benefit to society).
Equity can have both horizontal and vertical dimensions. Horizontal equity refers to treating
people in similar situations in similar ways. Vertical equity refers to those with greater
means contributing proportionately more than those with lesser means.
Allocative efficiency will be achieved when the value placed on the ability to camp in
Victoria’s national and state parks by users equates to the cost of resources used up in
production. By requiring payment for the camping product on the basis of cost recovery,
Parks Victoria will be signalling to users the resources involved in its provision. If users are
willing to pay the increased fees for camping, allocative efficiency would have improved.
Applying the principles outlined in the box above, in the case of camping and
accommodation fees, horizontal equity would imply that the fees to cover the services
provided in Victoria’s parks are equivalent to fees charged for similar services. This means
consistency in fees across all camp sites in Victoria’s parks and on other public land and
similar services offered by private providers.
Vertical equity may imply that individuals on low incomes would contribute less to the
overall cost recovery than those with higher incomes, although DEPI does not, and is not
planning to offer concessions for camping and roofed accommodation facilities in national
parks. Vertical equity can be achieved by the provision of a range of camping and
accommodation types in parks which offer accessible ways for all Victorians, regardless of
income, to value, act and enjoy national and state parks.
3.3.3
Competition
Benchmarking was undertaken by Deloitte in 2010 to determine if the provision of camping
and accommodation facilities was consistent with similar services offered on private land.
The results of the benchmarking suggested that some facilities are currently being offered
at a lower rate than by some private providers, although comparable services were difficult
to determine for the lower service level categories. Benchmarking is also useful to
determine the market rate for particular services offered in parks and to identify if
adjustments are needed to avoid any anti-competitive outcomes.
3.3.4
DEPI Pricing Framework
DEPI has developed a Pricing Framework to be applied to all licence, lease, permit and fee
for service activities which take place on public land within DEPI’s portfolio. The objective of
this Framework is to provide a consistent, fair and transparent approach to pricing that
complies with government policy of cost recovery, regardless of land tenure or
management arrangements. 10 The Framework also aims to facilitate a more streamlined
and simplified decision making process. The Pricing Framework is outlined in Figure 3.2
below and discussed in more detail in Appendix B.
10
Ibid.
14
Figure 3.2 DEPI’s Pricing Framework for public land
Source: DEPI 2013
3.4 Role of key stakeholders
The Secretary of the Department of Environment and Primary Industries is responsible for
the management of land under the Act. Parks Victoria is the key land management service
provider for the parks and reserves estate.
Victoria’s public land estate management agencies are seeking to achieve the following
outcomes:
•
Deliver community benefits from Victoria’s public and private land assets
15
•
Effective social and environmental policy and regulation to deliver sustainable
outcomes and protection for future generations
•
A reasonable return on the exclusive use of public land estate assets, conferred through
a range of consents 11
3.4.1
Department of Environment and Primary Industries (DEPI)
DEPI is Victoria’s lead environmental policy agency whose core purpose is to set the
standard for the management of natural resource protection and use. One of their primary
responsibilities is to enhance the value of Victoria’s parks and forests. In addition to this,
key DEPI responsibilities include:
•
Efficiently managing water resources
•
Reducing the impact of major bushfires
•
Providing effective stewardship of the environment
•
Increasing community benefits from Victoria’s public land assets
•
Adapting effectively to the impacts of climate change
•
Providing high quality land and property information services 12
DEPI delivers the management of the State’s National and State parks in partnership with
Parks Victoria. The delegation of responsibilities between the two bodies is set out in a
management agreement.
3.4.2
Parks Victoria
Parks Victoria is a statutory authority and was established under the Parks Victoria Act
1998. Under the Act, Parks Victoria is responsible to provide services to the State and its
agencies for the management of parks, reserves and other public land. Subject to
ministerial approval, it may also provide land management services to owners of private
land used for public purposes. Parks Victoria is governed by a Board of up to nine members
including the Chair. All board members are appointed by the Governor in Council on the
recommendation of the Minister. The Board is accountable to the Minister for the
performance of Parks Victoria and its operational direction. It is also accountable to the
Secretary of DEPI and the Department of Transport for the delivery of services. The Board
recommends to the Minister the appointment of a Chief Executive to whom it delegates the
day to day management and administration of Parks Victoria.
Parks Victoria is responsible for managing, protecting and enhancing the value of parks
across a diverse estate of public land, covering more than four million hectares. The key
principle, ‘Healthy Parks Healthy People’ (HPHP) is at the core of all Parks Victoria activities.
This aligns community wellbeing with access and enjoyment of parks. Under the Health
Parks Healthy People framework, all Victorians are encouraged to enjoy the free access to
parks and reserves in order to improve their general wellbeing.
11
Ibid.
12
DSE website, 2012, What We Strive For
16
Increased access to the parks and reserves, however, must be achieved in a sustainable
manner in order to align with other Parks Victoria goals such as protecting the
environmental values for current and future generations.
3.5 Alternative providers
There are a variety of different approaches to fees charged for camping in parks and
reserves in the States and Territories. Similarly, private providers also offer camping
opportunities in many locations across Victoria. In addition to this, Victoria’s parks currently
have a number of private operators who run camping and leased accommodation through
lease and licence arrangements. These include lightstations (Point Hicks, Otway and Nelson)
as well as Port Campbell Caravan Park and Princes Margaret Rose Caves. The average fees
charged by inter-state governments and Victorian private providers are explored in the
sections below.
3.5.1
Inter-jurisdictional comparison
The following section outlines the approach taken to camping provision in national and
state parks by New South Wales and South Australia. It is not known whether the current
subsidy level received by these states to provide camping or weather the fees are set to
achieve full cost recovery.
New South Wales: Camping grounds in NSW national parks are managed by NSW National
Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS). NPWS is a part of the Office of Environment and
Heritage within the NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet. The governing legislation for
camping fees in NSW public parks is the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 and the
National Parks and Wildlife Regulation 2009.
While NPWS provides and operates the majority of visitor facilities and accommodation
situated on public land, a selection of accommodation opportunities are established and
run by the private sector in a landowner/lessee relationship 13. NPWS regulates this through
legally enforceable leases, licences and contracts which align with the NPWS Visitor
Accommodation Policy 14.
NPWS sets their camping pricing structure for visitor facilities and services across parks has
been established in alignment with several principles, including:
•
Achieving cost recovery
•
Ensuring a user pays system
•
Decentralised system of fee and price setting for many products
•
Local retention of revenue
•
Recognition of NPWS’s role in building awareness and understanding of conservation in
the community 15
Currently NSW charges camping fees in 146 (out of 279) parks. The range of camping fees
charged by NPWS is outlined in Table 3.4 below.
13
New South Wales Taskforce on Tourism and National Parks, 2008, Final Report
14
NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, 2010, Visitor Accommodation Policy
15
New South Wales Taskforce on Tourism and National Parks, 2008, Final Report
17
Table 3.4 New South Wales camping fees on public land
Type of fee
Fee range
Adult fee (per night)
$5-$10
Child fee (per night)
$3-$5
Vehicle fee (per night)*
$20-$40
Source: NSW Taskforce on Tourism and National Parks, 2008
Notes: Some camping fees are in addition to daily vehicle entry fee
South Australia: Camping in South Australia’s parks and reserves is the responsibility of the
Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources (DEWNR). South Australian
camping fees are set by the relevant Minister under the authority of Section 43 C of the
National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972.
Fees apply for camping in South Australia’s national parks and reserves. These fees are
charged on a vehicle per night basis, with the charges reflecting the park’s maintenance
costs and the level of services provided (Parks SA 2012). The camping fees also vary on the
vehicle type, with different prices charged for cars, motorcycles and hikers/cyclists. There
are over twenty types of camping service levels currently offered in South Australia, from
campsites accessible by foot only to wilderness retreats.
Current annual passes for South Australian camping is costed as follows:
Table 3.5: South Australian park entry and camping fees
Pass name
Multi Park Pass with camping
Pass entitlements
12 month unlimited entry and
camping (for periods of up to
five nights at a time in any one
place in a designated campsite)
in all parks excluding Desert
Parks and Flinders Chase
National Park
Holiday Pass with camping
Two months unlimited entry
and camping( for periods of up
to five nights at a time in any
one place in a designated
campsite) in all parks excluding
Desert Parks and Flinders Chase
National Park
Desert Parks Passes
12 months unlimited entry and
camping (where permitted) to
a series of Desert Parks. Also a
comprehensive 4WD handbook
and maps, hints, tips and
attractions
Cost
Vehicle: $165
Second vehicle: $80
Concession: $130
Vehicle: $70
Concession: $60
Vehicle: $150
Renewal: $90
18
Single Park Pass
12 months unlimited entry and
camping (for periods of up to
five nights at a time in any one
place in a designated campsite)
in a single park of your choice
Vehicle: $110
Second Vehicle: $55
Concession $85
Source: Parks SA, 2012
Inter-jurisdictional benchmarking
In 2011 Deloitte undertook a benchmarking analysis of the fees charged for camping in
national parks by Victoria compared to similar camping provision in other States and
Territories.
Product benchmarking of Victorian camping and accommodation prices against comparable
public sector offerings across Australian states and territories suggested that the current
Victorian pricing structure is comparatively lower than those in New South Wales,
Queensland and Tasmania. Conversely, it is marginally higher than those of South Australia,
the Northern Territory and Western Australia.
3.5.2
Private providers
Desktop research was used to determine fee benchmarks for private providers. Camping
facilities were randomly selected and data on fees for powered and non-powered sites
during off peak, shoulder and peak season was collated based on information publically
available through providers’ websites. The camping facilities selected and their fees are
provided in more detail in Appendix E.
Whilst public camping facilities are classified from very basic to very high, a review of the
private provider’s facilities demonstrated they were all in the very high category. This is due
primarily to the amenities, including hot showers and flushing toilets, laundry, on-site staff,
booking capacity, barbeque and kitchen facilities, and available drinking water. Additional
facilities often included activities for children, such as playgrounds, games rooms,
swimming pool and information on activities to do in the area, whilst some also had a small
kiosk to purchase food and supplies.
There is also a high degree of difference in the resources needed to provide camping and
accommodation on public land compared with the majority of private camping and
accommodation products. As facilities on public land are often in remote locations, access
to services such as electricity, water and rubbish/sewage collection is often not
straightforward. In these cases, public sites must use expensive methods to provide the
camping and accommodation facilities. Examples of this include generating power remotely
or using a helicopter to remove rubbish and sewerage. These additional expenses may be
an explanation for different fees between public and private providers.
Table 3.6: Benchmarking select private provider's fees (prices per campsite
night)
Average per region
Yarra Valley and Dandenong
Ranges
Peak powered
Peak unpowered
$36.00
$31.00
19
$39.75
$32.00
Goldfields, Daylesford &
Macedon Ranges
$38.67
$33.17
Phillip Island
$57.50
$47.00
Great Ocean Road
$48.50
$33.50
Grampians
$35.33
$29.83
High Country
$37.57
$32.33
Gippsland
$38.00
$27.50
The Murray
$38.38
$31.00
Wilson’s Promontory
$51.67
$37.50
AVERAGE
$40.55
$31.79
Source: Select private providers’ websites, 2012 prices
An overview of Table 3.6 demonstrates that fees are, on average, higher for powered
compared to unpowered camp sites, though both have access to the same level of other
amenities and facilities. The regions with the highest fees include Phillip Island, Wilson’s
Promontory and the Great Ocean Road at $57.50, $51.67 and $48.50 for a powered site in
peak season respectively. A review of the facilities found that on average, there was no
notable difference in facilities between those providers who charged higher than average
and those who charged lower than average fees. The main difference in fees appeared to
be based on location and proximity to points of interest, for instance beach access. In some
instances, additional fees were charged for campsites with views.
3.5.3
Summary
The following table demonstrates how current fees in Victoria’s parks compare to
comparable inter-jurisdictional and private provider fees. The level of service categories
have been used to allocate campgrounds to a particular category and ensure that they are
compared on a like for like basis.
Table 3.7: Summary of fees charged by alternative providers (Peak rates,
average prices per campsite night for each category)
Service Level
Parks Victoria fees
(2013-14)
Inter-jurisdictional
average fee
(2013-14 estimate)1
Victorian private
providers average
fee (2012-13)
Very high (nonpowered or powered)
$33-$55
$50-$55
$32-41
$32
$43
NA
$22
$25
NA
High
Mid
1
Notes: Estimate based on results of benchmarking analysis inflated to 2013-14 prices using CPI.
As indicated, fees for a powered site in Victoria are consistent with fees charged in national
parks in other jurisdictions, but higher than what is charged by private providers. As
discussed earlier, this is influenced by the high levels of resources required to provide
camping in remote locations. Fees for a non-powered site are broadly consistent with what
is charged by private providers in Victoria but lower than what is charged in national parks
20
in other jurisdictions. Fees for ‘High’ and ‘Mid’ standard sites are lower in Victoria relative
to what is charged in national parks in other jurisdictions.
21
4 Financial analysis
This chapter illustrates how the cost recovery calculations were undertaken to determine
the fee levels charged for each service level offering.
4.1 Methodology
4.1.1
Determining costs
In order to determine the costs associated with camping and accommodation facilities in
parks and reserves, Parks Victoria, with assistance from Deloitte, undertook an analysis of
camping and accommodation costs in 2008. The analysis was based on data from 200708. 16
Deloitte undertook further work in 2011 (2011 study) to update and extend the 2008
figures for the period 2013-14 to 2017-18, based on CPI and other known increases in
expenses since then and projected into the future, as listed in Table 4.1. Note that some
additional information has been added for 2012-13.
Table 4.1: Assumed inflation rates from 2008-09 to 2012-13 and ongoing to
adjust 2007-08 cost baseline*
2008-09
Motor vehicle expenses
Employment expenses
5.0%
2009-10
5.0%
2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
onwards
5.0%
5.0%
N/A
5.0%
4.3%
4.3%
4.3%
3.5%
N/A
2.3%
Energy expenses
10.3%
20.3%
11.0%
8.3%
N/A
7.0%
Diesel fuel expenses
17.7%
-19.7%
7.1%
9.9%
N/A
3.4%
ISR insurance premiums
21.1%
258.8%
15.0%
15.5%
20.0%
18.0%
Motor vehicle insurance premiums
9.2%
11.0%
-3.8%
44.2%
N/A
15.0%
Public liability insurance premiums
9%
73%
22%
22%
20.7%
29.0%
Source: Deloitte (2011)
Notes: *The energy and Diesel fuel expense inflation rates were based on Australian Bureau of Statistics Consumer Price Index data
(discussed below). The other expense inflation rates were developed by Parks Victoria staff based on information from Parks Victoria
systems and suppliers where necessary to best reflect the actual and expected changes in cost. Deloitte sought a view on potential
price increases likely to arise from the carbon price and subsequently agreed with Parks Victoria some one-off cost increases for
2012/13 and 2015/16, i.e. energy fuel expenses (5%) and general expenses (1%). As the cost recovery model is calculated in real
terms (2013-14 prices), the inflation rates for 2013-14 onwards were discounted by the projected Victorian Treasurer’s rate (2.25%).
16
A review of costs was required as costs associated with camping and accommodation facilities in National
Parks managed by Parks Victoria are not easily identifiable from Parks Victoria’s financial systems and annual
reporting. This is because the financial cost centres are at the park level only, and do not delineate between
costs associated with day visitors, costs associated with general flora and fauna management and costs
associated with camping and roofed accommodation facilities. The review was a very resource intensive
exercise so has not been repeated since 2008.
22
The assumed inflation rates for 2013-14 onwards were determined as follows:
•
Motor vehicle expenses – Parks Victoria typically budget for a 4-6 per cent increase in
fleet costs per year. Fuel costs and maintenance are the main drivers of cost increases.
As such, this analysis assumes an average increase in motor vehicle expenses of 5 per
cent per annum
•
Employment expenses – Labour costs for Parks Victoria have increased over recent
years (approximately 4.3 per cent per annum from 2008 to 2010) due to salary
increases in the Parks Victoria Enterprise Bargaining Agreement (EBA) 2008. Labour
costs are expected to further increase in line with the Parks Victoria Enterprise
Bargaining Agreement (EBA) 2013. However, according to the Cost Recovery Guidelines
‘the Government’s wages policy … clearly states that EBAs must not result in reductions
in services or increases in (cost recovery) charges’. 17 Rather, such cost increases should
be funded through cost savings arising from sustainable productivity improvements or
the implementation of good management practice. As such, this analysis assumes only
a modest increase in employment expenses of 2.3 per cent per annum consistent with
the Victorian Treasurer’s rate over recent years (i.e. no increase in ‘real’ terms after
2012-13)
•
Energy expenses – Based on the average price increase of electricity over the ten years
to June 2012, the price of electricity is assumed to increase by 7.0 per cent per
annum. 18 Note that a ten year time horizon is used because price increases in recent
years, which mostly reflect the cost of network upgrades, are not likely to be as high
over the medium term
•
Diesel fuel expenses – Based on the average price increase of automotive fuel over the
five years to June 2012, the price of diesel fuel is assumed to increase by 3.4 per cent
per annum 19
•
Insurance premiums – Based on average Parks Victoria insurance premium increases
over the four-five years to June 2013, the price of ISR, motor vehicle and public liability
insurance premiums are assumed to increase by 18 per cent, 14 per cent and 29 per
cent per annum.20 According to Parks Victoria, it is reasonable to assume that these
large annual increases will continue into the future due to increasing risks associated
with fire and flood events 21
As the cost recovery model is calculated in real terms (2013-14 prices), the inflation rates
for 2013-14 onwards were discounted by the projected Victorian Treasurer’s rate (2.25%).
17
Department of Treasury and Finance (DTF), 2010, op. cit., p. 34
Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2010, Consumer Price Index, Australia, Sep 2012, Cat no. 6401.0, Table 12,
Melbourne, ABS website, accessed 6 December 2012,
http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/6401.0Sep%202012?OpenDocument
18
19
Ibid.
20
Note that the calculation of the average for ISR insurance excludes the 2009-10 increase as this is regarded as
anomalous.
21
It is important to note that the cost of insurance represents a relatively small share of the overall cost base.
As such, the estimation of the cost base is not sensitive to assumptions over future insurance premium price
increases.
23
The 2011 study also involved the inclusion of additional costs identified by Parks Victoria as
necessary to support the adoption of the proposed pricing framework and implementation
of new pricing strategies. These additional costs included:
•
Service level improvement costs that will be incurred to ensure that service levels meet
environmental, health, risk and market expectations
•
Incremental operating costs that will be
bookings/payments
•
Reform implementation costs, such as signage and visitor information
•
Additional asset maintenance costs necessary to maintain existing and improved assets
to a higher level of standard than they are currently maintained
•
Additional annual depreciation and capital asset charges
•
Capital spending on essential asset refurbishment and replacement to select
campgrounds and a new online booking system to manage customer bookings and
payments and improve compliance
incurred in light of increased
The cost estimates used for the purposes this RIS are based on those developed for the
Deloitte 2011 study.
4.1.2
Cost recovery and fee analysis
The methodology for the cost recovery analysis for this RIS was as follows:
•
Review Deloitte 2011 study report and accompanying financial model and make any
necessary changes to ensure it is up to date with DEPI’s proposed pricing approach and
requirements in the Cost Recovery Guidelines 22
•
Estimate the cost base according to average annual costs over the ten year period
2013-14 to 2022-23, including direct costs, corporate costs, depreciation costs, the
opportunity cost of capital (‘capital asset charge’ assumed to be 7 per cent) and capital
investment costs. Calculate costs separately according to Parks Victoria’s proposed
Level of Service Standard
•
Calculate fees under each of the options
•
Estimate maximum potential revenue, expected yield and expected revenue shortfall
under each option
•
Compare proposed fees with existing fees
4.1.3
Scope of analysis
The scope of the proposed fee determination is for camping and accommodation in all
parks under the Act.
Camping is also permitted in areas of public land which are governed by the Crown Land
(Reserves) Act 1978 and the Forests Act 1958, and unreserved Crown land. While it is
expected that fees for these camping grounds will also be brought into alignment with the
pricing framework and cost recovery guidelines, this will be addressed through amendment
to the relevant legislation and regulations in the future.
22
Ibid.
24
Note, however, that the analysis of costs and revenues outlined in this RIS includes the
costs of providing camping and accommodation facilities in parks/reserves governed by the
Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978 (as managed by Parks Victoria) as well as those governed
by the Act, consistent with the study undertaken by Deloitte in 2011. Given that
government’s broader objective is to charge consistent fees for camping and
accommodation across the State – that is, regardless of whether the facilities are in
parks/reserves governed by the Act, the Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978, the Forests Act
1958 or unreserved Crown Land – it was necessary to include the costs of non-National
Parks Act camping and accommodation facilities in the analysis. Including these costs as
part of this RIS avoids the need to update the pricing framework in the future when fees for
non-National Parks Act camping and accommodation are also brought into alignment with
the new arrangements. 23
Note also that the proposed fee determination does not cover privately owned or operated
caravan parks, public land managed under other Acts or any other private sector
investment in tourism infrastructure on public land. Victoria’s parks currently have a
number of private operators who run camping and leased accommodation through lease
and licence arrangements.
4.1.4
Limitations
Some limitations with the cost recovery and fee analysis are outlined as follows:
•
Due to limitations in data, the financial modelling does not reflect revenue from
proposed booking fees (see Appendix A) or fees for select overnight hiker sites, namely
Lower Glenelg NP Canoe Camp, Croajingolong Wilderness Coast Walk, Grampians, and
Great South West Walk
•
The level of visitation in 2013-14 is based on data for 2012-13 where available
(including forecast for the remainder of the year) and 2007-08 (most recent available
for some campgrounds). This is regarded as being the best available data for projecting
visitation over the next ten years. It is possible that visitation may change over that
time due to factors such as population growth. However, it is also possible that
visitation may not increase due to supply constraints. Given uncertainty on this
question, and the lack of data to form the basis for any growth assumptions, there is no
basis to assume any natural increase above these base levels. Note, however, that
visitation is assumed to increase by 1 per cent per year (non-compounding) starting
from 2013-14 to account for the planned infrastructure upgrades, which are designed
to boost visitation. The modelling assumed that these upgrades will occur progressively
over the ten year period as funds become available, rather than up-front
•
Costs associated with camping and accommodation facilities in parks/reserves
managed by Parks Victoria are not easily identifiable from Parks Victoria’s financial
systems and annual reporting. This is because the financial cost centres are at the park
level only, and do not delineate between costs associated with day visitors, costs
associated with general flora and fauna management and costs associated with
camping and roofed accommodation facilities. In light of this, Parks Victoria, with
assistance from Deloitte, undertook a detailed analysis of camping and accommodation
23
Note that the analysis of costs does not include camping and accommodation facilities managed by DEPI
(includes some facilities in parks/reserves governed by the Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978 and all facilities in
parks/reserves governed by the Forests Act 1958) as these data were not available during the preparation of
this RIS.
25
costs in 2008, which was based on data from 2007-08. Data from the 2008 analysis was
used as the basis for the cost recovery and fee analysis outlined in this RIS, but the 2008
cost data was inflated to provide cost estimates for the period 2013-14 to 2022-23. This
was based on CPI and other known increases in expenses since 2007-08. As such, the
cost information provided in this RIS may not reflect current costs
•
For camping facilities in the ‘high’, ‘mid’ and ‘basic and very basic’ service level
categories, the analysis assumes a minimum payment compliance rate of 60 per cent
reflecting the status quo and a maximum payment compliance rate of 80 per cent in
those years where an electronic payments system is assumed to be in place. These
estimates are based on advice from Parks Victoria and their accuracy has not been
verified by Deloitte. As such, the revenue yield estimates provided in this RIS may not
reflect actual yield over the period of the analysis
•
It is possible that increases in existing camping and accommodation fees, plus the
introduction of fees for campgrounds that are currently free, would result in a
reduction in visitation, particularly in relation to those facilities where demand is
already low. However, evidence from a study conducted by Deakin suggests that 81 per
cent of potential visitors would be happy to pay a reasonable fee to camp, if they knew
that the fees were based on the cost of maintaining camping facilities and that the
revenue earned would be used to maintain and improve the environment and the
camping facilities and services (see Appendix G). Given uncertainty on this question,
and the lack of data to form the basis for any demand elasticity assumptions, there is
no basis for which to quantify the potential impacts on revenue yield from camping and
accommodation facilities. However, this is discussed in qualitative terms as a potential
impact of some of the options
•
The cost base includes costs associated with customer services officers who are
necessary in the absence of an on-line customer booking and payment system. These
costs are assumed to apply throughout the entire 10 year period of analysis. It is
possible that fewer customer service officers will be required once the payment system
is implemented, which is assumed to occur half way through the ten year period (i.e.
July 2018). However, it is not clear whether this would be the case. As such, the cost
estimates for 2018-19 onwards have not been adjusted accordingly. In the instance that
costs are likely to deviate significantly to those included in the cost base outlined in this
RIS, DEPI would amend fees accordingly
•
The fees outlined in this RIS are for camping and accommodation facilities located in
parks governed by the Act. The government also intends to introduce similar fees for
camping and accommodation facilities located in parks and reserves governed by the
Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978, the Forests Act 1958 or unreserved Crown Land.
However, this will occur at a later stage. In the interim, therefore, facilities located in
parks and reserves governed under these other legislative instruments will be cheaper
and many campsites will still be free. This is likely to result in ‘leakage’ of visitation from
facilities located in parks governed by the Act to facilities located in these other parks
and reserves. In the absence of any information with which to predict the likely degree
of visitation leakage, this has not been factored into the analysis for this RIS
26
4.2 Delivery costs
The total cost of delivering the camping and accommodation product within Victoria’s
national and other parks is estimated to be $17.8 million per annum. Currently only $6.5
million is collected in revenue from user fees and charges at 24 parks out the 133 parks
providing camping. There is a high level of fee evasion/non-compliance of payment of fees
at the majority of sites The estimated shortfall of $11.3 million is not sustainable.
4.2.1
Direct costs
More than 80% of the costs incurred managing the camping and accommodation product
within Victoria’s national and other parks are the on-ground cost of delivery. The largest
proportion of direct costs are associated with the provision of staff. Park rangers,
information officers and field services officers play a key role in delivering camping and
accommodation.
At high service sites, regular ranger patrols are undertaken on weekends; overnight through
peak holiday periods.
4.2.2
Corporate costs
4.2.3
Servicing requirements
Less than 7% of the total expenditure managing the camping and accommodation product
is corporate overheads. These costs include staff directly involved in the delivery of
camping and accommodation through bookings, support and general maintenance.
Booking staff manage more than 47,000 booking and financial transactions for camping and
accommodation products.
The provision of camping and accommodation services and facilities improves the amenity
of the site and minimises environmental impacts. Facilities and services include:
• Provision of treated potable water
• Provision of sewer/septic toilets, sullage pits, RV dump points, laundry facilities,
baby change facilities.
• Provision of waste refuse and recycling, litter management services, cleaning
services
• Provision of facilities for people with limited mobility
• Campground access roads, trails, walking tracks, car and bus parking
• Signage, visitor interpretative centres, campground maps, pre visit brochures and
information
• Picnic shelters and tables, children’s playgrounds, firewood, camp fire and BBQ
facilities, horse yards, public telephones
• Environmental management (pest plant and animal control), asset maintenance
services, natural and cultural resource protection, management of tree risk
Remote service delivery
Many camping and accommodation sites are in remote locations and not connected to
town grid utility services such as power, water, gas or sewerage services. As a result, major
infrastructure services are needed to support these sites. These include remote power
27
generation (for example Tidal River, Gabo Island, and Wilsons Promontory Lightstation),
and water supply and treatment and waste water treatment services (for example Tidal
River and Lake Catani campground in Mount Buffalo National Park).
4.2.4
Demand:
Demand for camping is generally seasonal and with high occupancies correlating with the
main holiday periods of Christmas, Easter, Labour Day and Melbourne Cup Day.
Outside of the holiday seasons, high occupancy rates are also experienced on weekends
during November, February and March. Camping annual occupancies vary between 1530% at its most popular locations, Lake Eildon National Park, Lower Glenelg National Park,
Mount Buffalo National Park, Wilsons Promontory National Park, and Cape Conran Coastal
Park.
Accommodation occupancies vary with high annual occupancies at Tidal River (Wilsons
Promontory National Park) and Cape Conran 60%-90% with higher occupancies during the
off peak season when compared to camping.
4.2.5
Managing demand:
Parks Victoria operates a ballot system to allocate campsites in four of the highest demand
parks: Wilsons Promontory National Park, Croajingolong National Park, Great Otway
National Park and Cape Conran Coastal Park. These systems ensure equity and access for all
people who wish to stay at these high demand locations where demand exceeds supply
over the peak holiday periods.
Accommodation ballots are undertaken at Wilsons Promontory National Park and Cape
Conran Coastal Park where demand far exceeds supply.
4.3 Current usage
4.3.1
Visitor profile
A study conducted by Deakin University in collaboration with Parks Victoria found that the
sample group of current visitors could be divided into four general clusters. These clusters
are described as the following groups:
•
Regular ‘Prom’ camper: this group frequents Wilsons Promontory, usually sleeping in a
large tent or in roofed accommodation. This group would be happy to pay a reasonable
fee to camp, if they knew that the fees were based on the cost of maintaining camping
facilities and would consider camping more frequently if camping facilities were
upgraded
•
Older campers: are a group of pensioners and retirees who are generally on lower
incomes but enjoy camping as it is thought of as a healthy activity. This group of
campers feel that tax payers who do not use camping grounds in State and National
parks should have to subsidise camping holidays for those that do. They are generally
happy with the current camping facilities and do not compare prices between public
and privately operated camping grounds
28
•
Middle class camping families: are wealthier than older campers and usually camp in
groups of 3-6 people in large or medium sized tents. This group feels that some services
and facilities in camping ground should be subsidised because State and National Parks
are community goods. This group also strongly agrees with the need to charge camping
fees to reinvest in camping ground and would not reduce the number of times they
went camping if fees were introduced
•
Confirmed wilderness campers: enjoy camping in small or medium sized tents but are
not prepared to pay very much to do so. They feel that camping should be subsidised
because State and National Parks are community goods and that it is important to
retain some free camping grounds
The following graphs demonstrate some visitor profile trends found in the study.
Chart 4.1 Number of separate trips to Victoria’s Parks (last three years)
Source: Deakin University, 2010, Research report for Parks Victoria: Camping and Accommodation Product &
Pricing, Figure 4.2.2
29
Chart 4.2 Usual camping accommodation
Chart 4.3 Location of last Victorian camping visit
The study found the following visitor attitudes towards camping in national parks.
30
Table 4.2 Camping and Accommodation important visitor attributes/attitudes:
Most important
attributes
Attitudes towards
fees
Suggested areas for
improvement
• Litter management
• The overall camping
experience
• A ranger available in
an emergency
• The actual campsite
• Well marked
walking tracks with
signs giving
directions.
• Camping at a
location that is
unique
• Reasonable campers
should pay-user
pays
• Fees could escalate
in proportion to
facilities provided
• Strong support
towards fees being
used for to upgrade
and maintain
facilities &
environmental
protection of areas
close to camp sites
• The number of visits
would not be
reduced if fees were
increased or
introduced
• Provision of showers
& toilets
• Cleanliness of
facilities
• Safety
• Better
communication
• Better cooking
facilities & fireplaces
• Provision of more
cabins and a higher
level of facilities
• Refurbishment of
park facilities to
attract more
campers
4.3.2
Importance of
camping holiday
attributes &
motivation
• Inexpensive holiday
• To relax with family
& friends
• To get away from
the city
• To experience a
unique part of the
country
• To provide a back to
nature experience
Visitation
Information on visitation levels for camping and roofed accommodation facilities managed
by Parks Victoria is provided in Table 4.3. The level of visitation is based on data for 2012-13
where available (including forecast for the remainder of the year) and 2007-08 (most recent
available for some campgrounds).
As indicated, campsite visitation is largely dominated by campsites in the Basic & Very Basic
service level category, whereas roofed accommodation visitation is dominated by
accommodation in the ‘Cabins’ and ‘Lightstations’ categories. Note that these figures
reflect estimates of actual visitation so include patrons that may not have paid the required
fee. The figures also reflect visitation for current non-fees-for-service facilities.
Visitation is assumed to increase by 1 per cent per year (non-compounding) starting from
2013-14, and assuming the base visitation is consistent with the figures in Table 4.3. This is
to account for the fact that the infrastructure repairs and replacements will occur slowly
over the ten year period, rather than up-front.
31
Table 4.3: Visitation by service level category
Room/Campsite Nights
Camping facilities
Very High
53,738
High
31,545
Mid
40,858
Basic & Very Basic
567,819
Special
41,484
Roofed accommodation facilities
Group Lodges
1,170
Huts
2,194
Cabins
8,081
Wilderness Retreats
1,556
Lightstation
4,677
Source: DEPI
Notes: These figures reflect estimates of actual visitation so include patrons that may not have paid the
required fee. The figures also reflect visitation for current non-fees-for-service facilities. The level of visitation in
is based on data for 2012-13 where available (including forecast for the remainder of the year) and 2007-08
(most recent available for some campgrounds).
Current costs
4.3.3
Figures on the estimated cost of providing camping and accommodation facilities in parks
and reserves managed by Parks Victoria in 2011-12 are provided in Table 4.4. A description
of the types of costs included in each of the cost categories is provided in Table 4.5.
As indicated, the total cost is estimated to be $12.3 million ($9.7 million for camping
facilities and $2.6 million for roofed accommodation facilities). Key drivers of the overall
cost of camping facilities are direct costs associated with ‘Basic & Very Basic’ standard
campsites (due to the large number of sites) and ‘Very High’ standard campsites (due to
high visitation and a relatively high standard of service provided).
Table 4.4: Estimated cost of camping and accommodation facilities in parks and
reserves managed by Parks Victoria (2011-12, $million)1
Number of
campgrounds
Direct Costs
Corporate
Costs
Depreciation
Capital Asset
Charge
Total
Very High
1
$1.56
$0.14
$0.09
$0.17
$1.96
High
13
$0.52
$0.09
$0.03
$0.04
$0.67
Mid
80
$0.90
$0.16
$0.02
$0.03
$1.10
Basic & Very Basic
521
$4.19
$0.29
$0.14
$0.28
$4.90
Special
65
$0.95
$0.07
$0.01
$0.02
$1.06
$8.11
$0.75
$0.29
$0.54
$9.69
Camping facilities
Total
32
Group Lodges
-7
$0.61
$0.04
$0.03
$0.08
$0.76
Huts
-9
$0.22
$0.04
$0.01
$0.01
$0.28
Cabins
-26
$0.72
$0.04
$0.07
$0.10
$0.94
Wilderness Retreats
-14
$0.19
$0.01
$0.04
$0.05
$0.28
Lightstation
-5
$0.27
$0.01
$0.02
$0.06
$0.36
$2.01
$0.14
$0.17
$0.30
$2.63
$10.12
$0.89
$0.46
$0.85
$12.32
Total
Grand total
Source: Deloitte, 2011, Parks Victoria: Camping and Accommodation Product Review – Update and extension of supplementary financial modelling
for five years from 2013/14 to 2017/18; and accompanying Excel model.
1
Notes: These figures are estimates based on historic data from 2007-08. It is not possible to determine the costs of camping and roofed
accommodation facilities on a regular basis as the cost centres in the financial reporting framework do not delineate between costs associated
with day visitors, costs associated with general flora and fauna management and costs associated with camping and roofed accommodation
facilities (i.e. cost centres are at the park level only). Parks Victoria, with assistance from Deloitte, undertook an analysis of camping and
accommodation costs in 2008, which was based on data from 2007-08. This was a very resource intensive exercise so has not been repeated since
2008. However, Deloitte undertook a study in 2011 to update and extend the 2008 figures for 2013-14 to 2017-18, based on CPI and other known
increases in costs since then and projected into the future. The cost estimates outlined in this table are based on the figures generated through
that exercise.
Table 4.5: Description of costs
Cost category
Direct Costs
Description
Base costs such as labour, lease expenses, water, energy,
telecommunications and motor vehicle expenses and plant and
equipment expenses
Recurrent costs such as cleaning, administration, camp maintenance,
emergency management, advertising and marketing, revegetation
management, roads, rubbish, signage, park maintenance, visitor facility
maintenance, toilet maintenance, tracks and trail maintenance (partial
allocation to campers), transport services, visitor laundry, security and
rd
brochures, and commissions to 3 party distribution channels
Corporate Costs
Allocation of Commercial Services Division, general IT, public liability
insurance, web access, 131963 Hotline, camping brochures, regional
office costs, insurance premiums (ISR and vehicles), IT support calls,
Summer Ranger Program, Camp Host Program
Depreciation
Annual depreciation charge which assumes a 30 year useful life for
camping and accommodation assets based on advice from Parks
Victoria
Capital Asset Charge
7 per cent of the value of camping and accommodation assets
Source: Deloitte, 2011, including related Excel model
4.3.4
Current revenues
Figures on the revenue from camping and accommodation facilities in parks and reserves
managed by Parks Victoria are provided in Table 4.6 for the three years to 2011-12. The
total revenue from these facilities in 2011-12 was around $4.2 million, down from $4.4
million the year earlier due to the impact of severe floods. Around 58 per cent of the
revenue in 2011-12 was earned from the camping product and the majority of the rest was
earned from the accommodation product. Revenue from the various Wilsons Promontory
product offerings accounted for 63 per cent of the total.
33
Table 4.6: Revenue from camping and accommodation facilities managed by
Parks Victoria (2009-10 to 2011-12)
2009-10
2010-11
2011-12
$1,608,038
$1,326,740
$1,381,394
$168,569
$201,450
$177,241
Mount Buffalo National Park
$85,666
$83,320
$83,022
Grampians NP
$41,350
$70,330
$94,307
Great Otway NP (Western)
$3,913
$9,830
$9,295
Gippsland Lakes CP
$4,904
$10,740
$6,465
Buchan Caves Reserve
$72,020
$65,960
$71,538
Croajingolong National Park, Peachtree Reserve
$13,524
$19,500
$20,054
$112,993
$113,920
$114,997
Lake Eldon National Park
$75,534
$151,910
$143,666
Mount Arapiles-Tooan SP
$38,149
$37,070
$22,810
$0
$34,420
$83,152
$18,260
$25,510
$24,505
$9,519
$14,470
$6,768
$46,360
$48,860
$53,775
Camping products
Wilsons Promontory National Park
Cape Conan CP
Lower Glenelg NP, Mt Eccles, Discovery Bay
Cathedral Range State Park
Hattah Kulkyne NP
Wyperfeld NP
Upper Yarra Reservoir
Little Desert NP
$0
$0
$26,349
The Lakes National Park
$16,705
$17,560
$12,950
Plenty Gorge Parklands
$8,270
$12,310
$11,099
Ewing Morass W.R/Orbost
$4,440
$9,120
$7,271
Yarra Valley Parklands
$1,440
$14,540
$14,215
$0
$10,900
$14,668
$3,380
$11,000
$12,914
$0
$500
$12,637
$2,333,034
$2,289,960
$2,405,093
Great Ocean Walk
$98,570
$99,230
$161,249
Total
$98,570
$99,230
$161,249
Wilsons Prom
$170,562
$127,230
$127,326
Cape Conran
$63,926
$56,520
$62,973
Buchan Caves
$24,800
$27,570
$28,171
$259,288
$211,320
$218,470
$1,816,284
$1,550,380
$1,119,285
$209,231
$212,400
$205,990
Buchan Caves Reserve
$22,840
$23,380
$25,350
Gabo Island
$22,630
$27,890
$22,439
$1,507
$1,370
$1,329
Kinglake NP
Brisbane Ranges NP
Other
Total
Walking Product
Wilderness Retreats
Total
Accommodation product
Cape Conan CP
Murray Sunset NP
34
Plenty Gorge
$0
$0
$0
Total
$2,072,492
$1,815,420
$1,374,394
Grand Total
$4,763,384
$4,415,930
$4,159,206
4.3.5
Current level of cost recovery
As outlined above, the cost to Parks Victoria of the camping and accommodation facilities in
parks and reserves under its management was estimated at $12.3 million in 2011-12. In the
same year, the revenue earned from these facilities was $4.2 million, whereas in the
previous year it was $4.4 million. Assuming costs were much the same in the previous year,
this suggests that the current overall level of cost recovery is around 35 per cent.
For camping facilities, total costs were around $9.5 million in 2011-12, whereas revenues
were $2.6 million, suggesting that the current level of cost recovery for camping facilities is
around 27 per cent.
For accommodation facilities, total costs were around $2.7 million in 2011-12, whereas
revenues were $1.6 million in 2011-12 and $2.0 million in 2010-11, suggesting that the level
of cost recovery for accommodation facilities is around 60-75 per cent. It is important to
note, however, that the analysis outlined in Chapter 7 suggests that, based on current
scheduled accommodation fees for 2013-14 (which are higher than 2011-12 scheduled
fees) and projected costs, the estimated revenue from the 2013-14 fees will be sufficient to
recover the costs of accommodation facilities.
4.4 Forecast cost base
Figures on the average annual cost of camping and accommodation facilities managed by
Parks Victoria over the ten year period 2013-14 to 2022-23 are provided in Table 4.7. As
indicated, the total annual average cost is $14.6 million for camping facilities and $3.2
million for roofed accommodation facilities. This gives a total cost base of $17.8 million per
annum over the next ten years.
Table 4.7: Ten Year Average annual cost of camping and accommodation
facilities managed by Parks Victoria ($ million)1
Number
of campgrounds
Direct
Costs
Corporate Depreciation
Costs
Capital
Asset
Charge
New
Capital
Spend
Total
Very High
1
$2.04
$0.23
$0.11
$0.17
$0.02
$2.58
High
13
$0.79
$0.15
$0.06
$0.06
$0.11
$1.18
Mid
80
$1.44
$0.20
$0.05
$0.06
$0.12
$1.87
Basic & Very
Basic
521
$5.17
$1.00
$0.44
$0.39
$0.56
$7.57
Special
65
$1.22
$0.09
$0.03
$0.03
$0.02
$1.40
$10.67
$1.67
$0.70
$0.71
$0.84
$14.59
Camping facilities
Total
35
Group Lodges
-7
$0.67
$0.05
$0.03
$0.07
$0.00
$0.81
Huts
-9
$0.27
$0.08
$0.01
$0.01
$0.00
$0.37
Cabins
-26
$0.96
$0.06
$0.07
$0.10
$0.00
$1.20
Wilderness
Retreats
-14
$0.27
$0.01
$0.04
$0.05
$0.00
$0.37
Lightstation
-5
$0.34
$0.02
$0.03
$0.06
$0.00
$0.45
Total
$2.51
$0.22
$0.17
$0.29
$0.01
$3.19
Grand total
$13.18
$1.89
$0.87
$1.00
$0.85
$17.78
1
Notes: Reflects the average annual cost of providing camping and accommodation facilities in parks and reserves managed by Parks
Victoria over the ten year period 2013-14 to 2022-23. Figures are expressed in 2013-14 prices.
These costs are higher than those listed above for 2011-12 for a number of reasons as
follows:
•
Projected ‘real’ increases in prices (i.e. above inflation) relevant for certain cost items
such as energy (due to network upgrades and the price on carbon), vehicle fuel and
insurance premiums
•
Service level improvement costs that will be incurred to ensure that service levels meet
environmental, health and risk standards, and become consistent with revised pricing
framework, including additional site/facility maintenance, additional cleaning of
facilities, asset maintenance, site orientation and protection works
•
Incremental operating costs that will be incurred in light of increased
bookings/payments, including compliance, vehicles, uniforms, telephone and on-line
bookings, third party commissions and camping guides
•
Reform implementation costs such as new signage, a camping information campaign
and changes to meet environmental, health and risk standards
•
Additional asset maintenance costs, which covers the cost of maintaining existing
assets Additional annual depreciation charge which assumes a 30 year useful life for
upgrades to camping and accommodation assets and a five year useful life for the new
online booking system
•
Additional capital asset charge of 7 per cent of the value of camping and
accommodation assets and the new online booking system
•
Capital spending of $5 million for repairs and replacements for select campgrounds
(Cape Conran Coastal Park, Gippsland Lakes Coastal Park, Great Otways National Park
and Murray River Parks) over a ten year period, and $3.5 million for a new online
booking system to manage customer bookings and payments. This capital expenditure
is to be funded from increased fee revenue over the ten year period 2013-14 to 202223 and will occur incrementally over that period as revenue accrues to Parks Victoria
4.5 Efficiency of costs
The efficiency of costs is discussed separately for camping and accommodation below.
36
4.5.1
Camping facilities
Detailed figures on the estimated cost of providing camping facilities in parks and reserves
managed by Parks Victoria for the 2013-14 financial year are provided in Appendix A. The
table provided gives an indication of the different types of costs included in the analysis. As
indicated, key drivers of the cost of providing camping facilities are labour, motor vehicle
expenses, track maintenance, general recurrent costs, commissions to third parties,
compliance, additional signage, information campaign, additional camping guides,
additional maintenance, upfront implementation costs, general corporate costs, customer
service costs, depreciation and the capital asset charge.
A summary of the cost estimates for the 2013-14 year is provided in Table 4.8, separately
for facilities in each of the different service categories. In general, costs are largely driven
by base costs (such as labour, utilities, vehicles and track maintenance) and recurrent costs
(such as general administration, cleaning and camp maintenance). However, for the ‘Mid’
and ‘Basic & Very Basic’ facilities, the cost estimates also include significant incremental
operating costs projected to be incurred in light of increased bookings and payments for
these facilities. This includes the costs of compliance, vehicles, booking services,
commissions to third parties, signage, camping guides, maintenance (to bring facilities up to
a fee-for-service standard) and upfront implementation expenses (e.g. costs associated
with the marketing campaign and changes to meet environmental, health and risk
standards). For the ‘Basic & Very Basic’ facilities, overhead costs are also relatively high due
to additional customer service and corporate costs.
Costs per campground are highest for facilities in the ‘Very High’ category due to the higher
standard of service and the relatively high number of sites in the Tidal River campground.
Costs per campground are lowest for facilities in the ‘Mid’ category due to the lower
standard of service. Counter to what one would expect, costs per campground are not
lowest for facilities in the Basic & Very Basic category due to the fact that these
campgrounds tend to cover a much larger, more dispersed, area and have a larger number
of sites per campground (e.g. Murray River Parks).
Table 4.8: Summary of the estimated cost of providing camping facilities in
parks/reserves managed by Parks Victoria (2013-14)
Very High
High
Mid
Basic &
Very
Basic
Special
Total
% total
Total cost
Base costs
$1.13
$0.24
$0.40
$1.19
$0.74
$3.70
30%
Recurrent costs
$0.43
$0.24
$0.41
$0.16
$0.18
$1.42
11%
Incremental costs
$0.17
$0.09
$0.37
$3.49
$0.14
$4.27
34%
Overheads
$0.14
$0.07
$0.15
$1.27
$0.07
$1.71
14%
Depreciation and capital
asset charge
$0.26
$0.06
$0.05
$0.65
$0.04
$1.05
8%
Other costs
$0.00
$0.08
$0.15
$0.01
$0.04
$0.28
2%
1
11
113
337
71
533
Number of campgrounds
37
Cost per campground
Base costs
$1,129,307
$21,427
$3,577
$3,530
$10,382
Recurrent costs
$428,246
$21,682
$3,670
$461
$2,535
Incremental costs
$172,792
$8,090
$3,310
$10,359
$1,959
General overheads
$144,681
$6,722
$1,324
$3,777
$920
Other overheads
$257,852
$5,708
$411
$1,917
$536
$1,339
$7,144
$1,304
$41
$513
$2,134,217
$70,772
$13,596
$20,084
$16,845
Other costs
Total
As indicated in Chapter 7, in order for Parks Victoria to fully recover all of the projected
costs of providing camping facilities in parks/reserves under its management (not
accounting for lost revenues from a lack of payment compliance), fees must be set at a
level higher than the average of what is charged for similar facilities on public land in other
jurisdictions (referred to as the ‘market’ rate). In particular, most fees must be set at
around 20 per cent higher (50 per cent higher for facilities in the ‘Mid’ category) in order to
fully recover costs. This suggests that the level of costs of providing camping facilities in
Victoria is high relative to the average of other jurisdictions. However, it is not clear
whether the camping fees charged in other jurisdictions are set so as to fully recover all
costs and, therefore, whether this is the most appropriate benchmark for efficient costs of
providing camping facilities. Note that it is difficult to compare costs of providing facilities in
the ‘Basic & Very Basic’ category as many jurisdictions do not charge fees for this type of
service.
4.5.2
Accommodation facilities
As indicated in Chapter 7, it would be possible for Parks Victoria to fully recover all of the
projected costs of providing camping facilities in parks and reserves under its management
if it were to charge fees consistent with the rate charged by private providers and public
providers in other states (i.e. the ‘market’ rate). Using the ‘market’ rate as a benchmark for
efficient costs of providing roofed accommodation facilities, this suggests that the costs of
providing these facilities in Victoria are reasonably efficient.
38
5 Framework for options analysis
This chapter introduces the framework for the analysis of options available to Parks Victoria
in regards to revising the fee schedule for camping product in national parks managed by
Parks Victoria.
5.1 The pricing framework
The DEPI pricing framework provides a process for developing pricing structures compliant
with government cost recovery policy in the public land context. The details of the pricing
framework are outlined in Appendix B.
5.2 Approach for assessing the options
Consistent with standard practice, options for the fees are assessed using multi criteria
analysis (MCA). This allows for objectives other than efficiency (such as equity) to be
assessed as part of the options analysis 24.
Box 5.1: Multi criteria analysis
MCA refers to a range of techniques to assess policy options against decision criteria. MCA
enables options to be compared in a way that utilises quantitative and qualitative evidence
fully. The approach enables the inclusion of a wider range of criteria — including social and
environmental considerations for example — than used in a typical financial analysis. In
addition, the approach is transparent — necessarily subjective judgements and
assumptions made to determine options and criteria, and to assign scores and weights are
made explicitly. The preferences of the decision maker reflected in these judgements and
assumptions can be readily changed in a sensitivity analysis or to incorporate more robust
indicators of community preferences.
5.2.1
Criteria
Consistent with the objectives of encouraging the use of national and state parks while
delivering increased revenue from camping and accommodation facilities and services, the
following criteria will be used to assess the options:
•
24
Efficiency: Assesses the degree to which the option is consistent with the efficiency
objective of cost recovery. Includes consideration of:
• The level of cost recovery
• Whether the fees send the right signals to the public regarding the resources used
to provide camping and accommodation facilities in national parks
Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission, 2011, Multi-criteria analysis (MCA) Guidance note
39
•
Equity: Assesses the degree to which the option is consistent with the equity objective
of cost recovery. This criterion includes consideration of horizontal equity which in this
case is interpreted in two key ways:
• The degree to which the fees are aligned to services of a like quality. When fees
do not accurately reflect the level of service provided, the degree of horizontal
equity is low
• The degree to which the fees reflect the user pays principle. When fees are set at
a level that requires a significant taxpayer subsidy, the degree of horizontal equity
is low
•
Effectiveness: Assesses the degree to which the option addresses other cost recovery
issues. Includes consideration of:
• Compliance and implementation issues (e.g. the fee structure is cost effective,
simple, easy to implement and reduces levels of evasion etc.)
• Consistency with other policy objectives – importantly those around encouraging
the use of parks and reserves for all community members
In analysing the effectiveness of an option, the data gathered through the Deakin
research report for Parks Victoria will be used as a basis to predict compliance and the
level of visitor drop off if fees were increased. This data is provided in detail in
Appendix D.
5.2.2
Weightings
In alignment with Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission’s MCA Guidelines,
weightings have been determined for each criterion to reflect their relative importance.
The weights allocated to each assessment criterion are outlined in Table 5.1 below.
Efficiency is weighted more heavily reflecting the importance of achieving cost recovery
and a sustainable funding approach for Parks Victoria.
Table 5.1 Weighting of assessment criteria
5.2.3
Criteria
Weighting
Efficiency
40 per cent
Equity
30 per cent
Effectiveness
30 per cent
Scale
The criterion rating scale has a range of –10 to +10, where a score of zero represents no
change from the base case.
The scale is outlined in Table 5.2 below.
40
Table 5.2: MCA scale
Score
-10
-5
0
+5
+10
Description
Much worse than the base case
Somewhat worse than the base case
No change from the base case
Somewhat better than the base case
Much better than the base case
5.3 Identified options
The options assessed in this RIS are outlined as follows:
•
Current Fees (Base Case): Current fees for camping and accommodation facilities and
services provided in national and state parks.
•
Option 1: Fees are based on achieving full cost recovery with the assumption of 100%
compliance, and set according to the level of service of the facility provided. Fees
between different service levels differ due to the different costs per visitation night
(i.e. no cross subsidies between different service levels or accommodation types)
•
Option 2: Fees are based on rates charged by private operators (for accommodation
only) or public providers in other jurisdictions (for both camping and
accommodation). These are referred to as market rates
•
Option 3: Fees are based on improved revenue yield for camping and
accommodation facilities and services. All fees achieve improved revenue generation,
reflect differences in quality between the levels of service and are mindful of market
rates. Roofed accommodation fees were also set in consideration of scarcity rents
(Preferred Option)
Cost recovery as a policy position was chosen for Option 1 to address the identified revenue
shortfall in providing camping and roofed accommodation in parks. Cost recovery was
chosen as it is encouraged in the Cost Recovery Guidelines. As this option was not expected
to sufficiently reflect differences in quality, a market option (Option 2) was also included in
the analysis. The market option was chosen as it was thought to reflect differences in
quality better than the cost recovery option. The market price is important as users of
roofed accommodation and campgrounds in the higher level of service are likely to
consider alternative options provided by the private sector, and also to other campers who
may consider camping on public land in other states, particular New South Wales and South
Australia. A market approach using the benchmarking of similar offerings was also
considered less arbitrary than other pricing options that could have been chosen.
A mixed approach was also included as an option as it was expected that it may also
balance the government’s objective of introducing a user pays principle to generate
sufficient revenue from camping and accommodation in parks while reflecting differences
in quality and minimizing potential changes to visitation levels in response to pricing. Other
options such as a fixed subsidy below cost recovery or a voluntary system were not chosen
41
due to their expected failure to meet the government’s objective and/or difficulties in
enforcement.
In addition, three key aspects were considered, as follows:
•
The degree to which the overall level fees reflects full cost recovery (referred to as full
revenue yield recovery in the context of suboptimal payment compliance)
•
The degree to which relativities in fees reflect relativities in cost and/or quality
between different levels of service
•
The degree to which the structure of fees is consistent across the State
These aspects are discussed below.
5.3.1
Degree to which fees reflect full revenue yield recovery
Option 1 achieves full revenue yield recovery, Option 2 achieves less than full revenue yield
recovery and Option 3 achieves greater than full revenue yield recovery for
accommodation. Under all of these options, the costs of non-payment compliance are not
covered (i.e. those that pay the necessary fees are not subsidising those that don’t). The
concept of full revenue yield recovery is discussed in more detail at the beginning of
Chapter 6.
The fees proposed under Option 3 which exceed cost recovery levels in some cases were
set by Parks Victoria to align with DEPI’s pricing framework for public land which states
that, under certain circumstances, it is possible for the Government to set prices at a level
that is higher than cost recovery. In particular, Principle 2 of the policy states that scarcity
rent, Where there is excess demand for a good or service, due to scarcity or a restriction on
supply, prices should capture private benefits that exceed cost recovery.
Scarcity rents – along with considerations over quality differences and consumer
willingness to pay – were considered when setting fees across the 16 different roofed
accommodation products. Where this principle was deemed relevant by Parks Victoria, fees
for roofed accommodation were set at a level higher than the theoretical level of cost
recovery.
5.3.2
Degree to which relativities in fees reflect cost and/or quality
differences
Under Option 1, relativities in fees reflect relativities in average cost per visitor night, i.e.
fees are set so that cross subsidies between visitors who demand differing levels of service
or products are minimised. Although this approach appears reasonable, fees are set
according to average costs per visitor night, rather than marginal costs per visitor night. As
such, for campsites with relatively low levels of visitation throughout much of the year,
campers utilising these sites would be required to cover the costs of maintaining the sites
throughout much of the year when they are mostly vacant.
Under Option 2, relativities in fees are based on those implied by ‘market’ rates. Market
rates were developed by Deloitte as an input to a camping and accommodation product
analysis for Parks Victoria in 2010 and have been indexed by inflation for the purposes of
this RIS. For the camping product, the ‘market’ rates were based on benchmarks for similar
42
products around Australia, with a focus solely on camping facilities offered by the public
sector. 25 For the accommodation product, the ‘market’ rates were also based on
benchmarks for similar products around Australia, but the benchmarking included both
public and private sector providers. All rates applied in the analysis were reviewed by Parks
Victoria. It is not possible to determine whether relativities in the ‘market’ rates reflect
relativities in the cost of providing these facilities by private providers and public providers
in other jurisdictions.
Under Option 3, relativities in fees reflect relativities in quality between different camping
and accommodation products and, to some degree, the existence of scarcity issues. This
was based on quality differences, what the market is willing to pay and the existence of
scarcity issues.
Although Options 2 and 3 may be inconsistent with cost recovery principles as they imply a
level of cross subsidisation between visitors who demand differing levels of service or
products, it was thought appropriate to develop alternative approaches to Option 1 given
the risk under that option of campers cross subsidising the cost of maintaining these sites
for much of the year when they are vacant.
5.3.3
Degree to which the structure of fees is consistent across the
State
Across all the options outlined above, the fees are based on a pricing structure developed
by DEPI and Parks Victoria. This is outlined below, separately for camping and roofed
accommodation.
Pricing structure for camping
Under the proposed pricing structure, permits will be required for camping at all sites which
have a level of service categorised as ‘Very High’, ‘High’, ‘Mid’, ‘Basic and Very Basic’ or
‘Special’. The fees will be standardised across all campsites with the same category of
service level. These permits will be charged on a nightly basis, mostly per site.
A number of individual (or ‘Special’) fees will be charged for unique location specific
characteristics or product offerings such as the Great Ocean Walk. This includes fees for
overnight hiker permits.
Off-peak rates will apply for most permit camping sites. Peak period rates will apply from
the Melbourne Cup Weekend to the last Sunday in April inclusive, and also for the
September school holidays.
For some ‘Basic and Very Basic’ service level sites, it is proposed to implement a camping
pass in the future. The camping pass is proposed to apply on a per vehicle basis (dependent
on type) with passes linked to vehicle registration to ensure that single passes are not
shared among users. A camping pass will be required where there is not a defined campsite
that attracts rates consistent with the ‘Mid’ or higher service categories. Camping passes
25
The inter-jurisdictional prices for camping in national parks was deemed a more appropriate point of
comparison than Victorian private providers, whose camping product offerings are quite different.
43
will be obtainable from the Parks Victoria website, phone service and other channels.
Camping passes will apply for different time periods, as follows:
•
Overnight camping pass
•
7 Day camping pass
•
Monthly camping pass
•
Annual camping pass
Pricing structure for roofed accommodation
Roofed accommodation will continue to be charged on a per room per night basis and
individual fees will apply based on the unique characteristics of roofed accommodation
products across the different parks and reserves.
The fees for most accommodation products will vary depending on the season, where three
distinct seasons will apply: peak season, shoulder season and off-peak season.
44
6 Assessment of regulatory
options
This chapter provides the multi-criteria analysis of each regulatory option using the
framework established in Chapter Five.
The following section provides an overview of the base case and how the current fee
structure meets the criteria outlined in Chapter 5. Each of the options is then assessed
against the base case, with scores allocated to reflect whether the criterion is met to a
higher or lower standard under each option.
Before outlining the regulatory options considered in this RIS, a few points should be
considered:
•
For campsites classified in the ‘high’, ‘mid’ and ‘basic and very basic’ service level
categories, it is not cost-effective for park Parks Victoria to provide the facilities
and/or resources necessary to collect payments in every instance that campers
choose to use these facilities. This is due to the geographically dispersed nature of
these facilities and the irregular attendance patterns throughout much of the year.
As such, not all campers comply with the requirement to pay a fee when using these
facilities. This results in revenue yield being lower than maximum potential revenue.
Advice from Parks Victoria is that payment compliance for current fee-for-service
campsites (other than those in the ‘very high’ category) is approximately 60 per cent,
and that this could be increased to 80 per cent if a payments system (Online Booking
System) and other measures were put in place 26
•
In light of the fact that revenue yield from campsites in the ‘high’, ‘mid’ and ‘basic
and very basic’ categories is generally lower than it would be if 100 per cent payment
compliance was achieved, it is not possible to achieve full cost recovery unless fees
are increased to a point where campers that comply with payment requirements are
subsidising those that do not comply with these requirements. Therefore, 100 per
cent cost recovery is not regarded as appropriate on the grounds of horizontal
equity. As such, the objective under many of the options is 100 per cent revenue yield
recovery, rather than 100 per cent cost recovery
•
The cost recovery and fee analysis conducted for this RIS categorises costs and
visitation according to Parks Victoria’s Level of Service Standard for camping, and
accommodation type for roofed accommodation. The analysis also estimates fees (or
cost per visitation night) separately for each of these categories. It is important to
note that the approach to charging fees will ultimately involve a number of separate
fee amounts for different products in some of these categories, namely: ‘high’
26
The cost recovery analysis conducted for this RIS assumes that the level of payment compliance for campsites
classified in the ‘high’, ‘mid’ and ‘basic and very basic’ service level categories is 60 per cent in year 1, increasing
to 64 per cent in year five due to improved marketing and information activities, and then jumping to 80 per
cent in year 6 and onwards when the Online Booking System is assumed to be in place. For roofed
accommodation and campsites classed in the ‘very high’ category, 100 per cent payment compliance is
assumed.
45
(powered and non-powered sites), ‘basic and very basic’ campsites (a system of
camping passes are proposed), ‘special’ campsites (unique fees for different products
will apply) and roofed accommodation (unique fees for different products within the
different accommodation types will apply). However, for ease of comparison
between the options, average fees are provided for the products in these categories,
noting that the preferred option will include a more detailed outline of specific fees
for products within each of these categories. Note also that fees under the preferred
option will include charges for extra people/vehicles, school groups and to cover
booking costs etc. A longer list of detailed fees is provided in Appendix G for the
preferred option
•
The cost base used in the cost recovery analysis includes a number of expenses that
are additional to expenses currently incurred by Parks Victoria. These additional
expenses have been identified by Parks Victoria as necessary to support the adoption
of a new pricing framework/strategy and include service level improvement costs,
incremental operating costs, reform implementation costs, additional asset
maintenance costs and capital spending for repairs and replacements. It is assumed
that these costs would be incurred gradually over the ten year period. In reality,
these additional expenses may vary depending on the option that is ultimately
implemented (i.e. it will not be possible to fund these costs under those options
where fees are set at a level lower than full revenue yield recovery). However, for
ease of comparison between the options, the financial analysis assumes that the
same cost base will apply under all options, including the scenario that reflects the
current fees
•
The cost base does not include some costs that may be incurred by similar operators
in the private sector, such as land tax and municipal rates, as these are not applicable
to public land. These costs are difficult to quantify for public land and relevant only
for the high and very high camping categories which may have comparable offerings
in the private sector. However, these only comprise a small percentage of the total
sites covered by the RIS.
•
The cost base and revenue estimates outlined in this RIS include costs and visitation
associated with parks and reserves managed by Parks Victoria that are not governed
by the Act. Including these costs as part of this RIS avoids the need to update the
pricing framework in the future when fees for non-National Parks Act camping and
accommodation are also brought into alignment with the new arrangements
6.1 The base case
The base case represents a continuation of the current fee structure for camping and
accommodation fees in Victoria’s parks. In this case, Parks Victoria would continue to
operate at a level far below cost recovery, with camping costs subsidised by Victorian
taxpayers. The base case pricing structure is described in more detail in Chapter 2.
The table below outlines the fees published for 2013-14 under the current pricing structure.
46
Table 6.1: Current 2013-14 fees (average fee per night for each category)1
Service level and
accommodation type
Peak fee
Off peak fee
$55
$49
Very high (non-pwrd) (per site)
$33
$30
High (per site)
$32
$29
Mid (per site)
$22
$19
$0
$0
$14
$13
$557
$501
$89
$80
Cabins (per cabin)
$195
$176
Wilderness retreat (per dwelling)
$245
$245
Lightstation (per dwelling)
$133
$121
Basic and very basic (per vehicle)
Special (per site)
Group lodges (per lodge)
Huts (per hut)
Source: Parks Victoria Fee Schedule 2012
1
Notes: The analysis expresses average fees (or cost per visitation night) separately for each service level and
accommodation type. It is important to note, that the approach to charging fees will ultimately involve a
number of separate fee amounts for different products in some of these categories, namely: ‘basic and very
basic’ campsites (a system of camping passes are proposed), special campsites (unique fees for different
products will apply) and roofed accommodation (unique fees for different products within the different
accommodation types will apply). However, for ease of comparison between the options, average fees are
provided for the products in these categories, noting that the preferred option will include a more detailed
outline of specific fees for products within each of these categories.
Efficiency
6.1.2
Under the base case, camping and accommodation services are estimated to cost Parks
Victoria $17.8 million per annum on average over the period 2013-14 to 2022-23. The
funding impact of such the base case pricing approach is an $11.3 million per annum
shortfall. This approach is inconsistent with the principles of cost recovery.
In order to maintain financial viability Parks Victoria would need to make up this funding
shortfall either through increased Government funding, resulting in the subsidisation of
camping and accommodation service users by non-users, or they would be required to
reduce the provision of camping and accommodation services. Increased dependence on
Government grants or lessees would concentrate Parks Victoria’s revenue sources and
would likely lead to decreased predictability in funding.
The following table outlines the financial analysis conducted on the base case.
Table 6.2: Financial analysis of the base case (current fees annual average over
ten years, 2013-14 prices)
Value
Total cost
1
Max potential revenue
Estimated yield
Shortfall per annum
$17,784,597
$7,253,358
$6,539,745
$11,244,852
47
1
Notes: The cost base used in the cost recovery analysis includes a number of expenses that are additional to
expenses currently incurred by Parks Victoria. These additional expenses have been identified by Parks Victoria
as necessary to support the adoption of a new pricing framework/strategy. In reality, these additional expenses
may vary depending on the option that is ultimately implemented (i.e. it will not be possible to fund these costs
under those options where fees are set at a level lower than full cost recovery). However, for ease of
comparison between the options, the financial analysis assumes that the same cost base will apply under all
options, including the base case.
6.1.3
Equity
The current fee levels do not reflect the costs associated with providing camping and
accommodation services overall, which is counter to the user pays principle. Moreover, the
relativities in fees do not reflect cost differences between the different service level
categories, nor do they reflect differences in quality. As a result, there is a low degree of
compliance under the base case with the principle of horizontal equity.
6.1.4
Effectiveness
There are currently difficulties inherent in the enforcement of camping fee payments. The
‘reasonable opportunity to pay’ clause means that in some cases, enforcement is more
expensive than the revenue that specific sites may receive. In these cases, an honesty
system or free camping is currently provided by Parks Victoria. The non-compliance rates
under the current system are expected to be quite high considering the small number of
sites that actually require payment.
By offering camping options that are free of charge, the Government is supporting the easy
access of parks to all Victorians. This is broadly aligned with the government objectives of
encouraging use of Victoria’s parks and reserves. However, while the fees under this option
would be considerably less than under other proposed options (hence making camping and
accommodation services more financially accessible to visitors), it is considered that with
such low fee revenue, there is a risk that service levels could not be maintained and that
damage to the environment might also occur. This would result in a decline in accessibility
over time, and hence a misalignment with the Government’s policy objectives in the longterm.
6.1.5
Score
The base case is allocated a score of zero against each criterion. This allows for the analysis
of all other options against the base case, where a negative score will indicate a situation
worse than the base case and a positive score will indicate a situation better than the base
case.
Table 6.3: Scoring of the base case
Criteria
Weighting
Score
Efficiency
40 per cent
0
Equity
30 per cent
0
Effectiveness
30 per cent
0
Total
0
48
6.2 Option 1
Under this option, fees are based on full revenue yield recovery and set according to service
level, where relativities in fees between different service levels are based on relativities in
cost per visitation night (i.e. no cross subsidies between different service levels or
accommodation types). The fees were not adjusted further.
The table below outlines the fees under Option 1.
Table 6.4: Option 1 fees (average fee per night for each category)1
Service level
Peak fee
Off peak fee
$45
$40
$49
$44
High (per site)
$38
$34
Mid (per site)
$46
$42
$13
$13
Special (per site)
$34
$31
$729
$656
Huts (per hut)
$175
$157
Cabins (per cabin)
$155
$140
$241
$216
$97
$87
1
Notes: The analysis expresses fees (or cost per visitation night) separately for each service level and
6.2.1
Efficiency
By setting the fee level on the basis of full revenue yield recovery Option 1 meets the
efficiency criterion at a higher level than the base case.
As demonstrated in Table 6.5 below, the maximum potential revenue received over the
next ten years under this option equates to the total costs of providing camping and
accommodation facilities. In this situation, Parks Victoria would increase their revenue level
but would still require a small amount of subsidisation from central Government due to the
estimated level of non-compliance. Parks Victoria would be able to deliver camping and
accommodation product largely independently of government funding. The fees charged
between the different products would accurately reflect the costs associated with providing
the different products.
49
The following table provides an overview of the financial estimates of this option.
Table 6.5: Financial analysis of Option 1 (annual average over ten years, 2013-14
prices)
Value
Total cost
$17,784,597
$17,784,597
Estimated yield
$14,730,889
Shortfall
$3,053,708
As full revenue yield recovery will be achieved and costs of different products would be
accurately reflected in the fees, this option is deemed to be far better than the base case in
terms of efficiency. However, revenue could be improved further under this option if the
customer payment system was implemented at the outset (i.e. July 2013), rather than half
way through the ten year period (i.e. July 2018) as is assumed under all three options. As
such, this option is regarded as far better than the base case with a score of +7 for
efficiency.
6.2.2
Equity
Under Option 1, each fee fully reflects the costs associated with providing camping or
accommodation at that particular service level. This minimises the level of crosssubsidisation between service levels.
However, a key limitation of this approach is that the fees for the ‘Mid’, ‘High’ and ‘Very
High’ standard campsites are much the same regardless of the fact that the level of service
is different between each. This is counter to what one would generally expect (i.e. that
campgrounds with a higher level of service should be priced at a higher rate).
This difficulty arises because these prices are set according to average costs per campsite
night and the fact that the majority of costs are fixed. For the ‘Very High’ standard
campground (Tidal River Wilson’s Promontory), visitation is relatively high such that its full
capacity is utilised for most of the year. In contrast, despite there being many more
campgrounds in the ‘Mid’ category (77 in total), visitation is lower such that the full
capacity is not utilised for most of the year. So even though the costs are higher for the
‘Very High’ standard campground, these costs can be spread over a larger number of
campers due to the high utilisation. On the other hand, costs are lower for the ‘High’ and
‘Mid’ standard campgrounds, but these are less well utilised. The end result is that the costs
per campsite night will work out to be much the same despite the differing levels of service.
Key issues with pricing ‘Mid’, ‘High’ and ‘Very High’ standard campsites at the same rate are
as follows:
•
Fees for the ‘Mid’ and ‘High’ standard campsites would be set above the marginal costs
that visitors to these sites give rise to (i.e. under such a situation, visitors would be
covering the cost of fixed expenses that are incurred throughout much of the year
when the campground is mostly empty), thus giving rise to equity concerns
50
•
Fees for the ‘Very High’ standard campsites would be set at a level such that no
premium would be paid by visitors to reflect the higher level of service provided and
scarcity of campsites in this category, thus giving rise to a significant increase in excess
demand for these sites and further equity concerns (particularly equity between
campers who visit sites of a lower service level relative to those that visit sites of a
higher service level)
While the fees under this option accurately reflect the costs associated with different
camping and accommodation products, the fees are inconsistent with broader horizontal
equity principles for the reasons outlined above. As such, this option is regarded as worse
than the base case with a score of -3 for equity.
6.2.3
Effectiveness
The increased fee levels of Option 1 may result in a reduced level of visitation which is
counter to the Government’s objective of encouraging the use of parks. The Deakin
research suggests that 53 per cent of potential visitors would consider visiting an
alternative destination if a fee was introduced to a campsite that is currently free. 27
However, 81 per cent of potential visitors also stated they would be happy to pay a
reasonable fee to camp, if they knew that the fees were based on the cost of maintaining
camping facilities and that the revenue earned would be used to maintain and improve the
environment and the camping facilities and services. As some of the fees in Option 1 are
higher than ‘market’ rates, particularly for ‘high’ and ‘mid’ level sites, it is predicted that the
fees would be deemed ‘unreasonable’ by some visitors. This would be exacerbated by the
fact that under a ‘no cross subsidy’ fee structure, the fees charged do not align with the
service level provided. Any form of reduced visitation as a result of the fee increase would
be counter the Government objective of increasing visitors to parks and reserves (see
discussion of limitations in Chapter 1).
Enforcement is also made more difficult with the introduction of fees for all campsites in
Option 1. Currently only a small number of campsites attract fees, and therefore
enforcement can be easily localised to those campsites. The introduction of fees for basic
and very basic campsites will result in a large amount of campsites, often remote
campsites, for which fees have never been collected before.
However, while the fees under the base case are considerably less than under Option 1
(hence making camping and accommodation services more financially accessible to
visitors), it is considered that, with such low fee revenue, there is a risk that service levels
could not be maintained. This would result in a decline in accessibility over time, and hence
a misalignment with the Government’s policy objectives in the long-term. In this regard,
Option 1 offers a more effective long term situation than the base case. This argument only
holds, however, if visitation remains high enough to sustain heightened revenue levels.
In sum, the increased revenue received under Option 1 will increase the sustainability of
camping product provision in the long term. However, fees based on pure revenue yield
recovery levels results in a situation where fees are significantly higher than market rates
for ‘high’ and ‘mid’ level sites and prices are not strongly aligned to the service level
provided. In this context, it is predicted that visitors will find the fees charged for campsites
27
51
‘unreasonable’ which will result in reduced visitation and reduced compliance levels. This
compromises the long term sustainability of the camping product provision and is a
situation deemed worse than the base case. As such, this option is regarded as far worse
than the base case with a score of -10 for effectiveness.
Summary
6.2.4
The following table provides a summary of MCA scores under Option 1.
Table 6.6: Scoring of Option 1
Criteria
Weighting
Score
Efficiency
40 per cent
+7
Equity
30 per cent
-3
Effectiveness
30 per cent
-10
Total
-1.1
6.3 Option 2
Under this option, fees are based on average ‘market’ rates and set according to service
level. For the camping product, the ‘market’ rates are based on benchmarks for similar
products around Australia, with a focus on camping facilities offered by the public sector.
This is because there are few comparable camping experiences offered by the private
sector in Victoria for the lower service levels, whereas similar camping experiences are
offered on public land in other states, particularly New South Wales and South Australia.
For the accommodation product, the ‘market’ rates are also based on benchmarks for
similar products in Victoria and around Australia, but the benchmarking includes both
public and private sector providers as comparable experiences are offered in both sectors.
Service level
Peak fee
Off peak fee
$55
$50
$50
$45
High (per site)
$42
$38
Mid (per site)
$25
$23
$13
$13
Special (per site)
$15
$13
$516
$465
Huts (per hut)
$125
$113
Cabins (per cabin)
$197
$177
$247
$222
$119
$108
52
1
6.3.1
Efficiency
next ten years under this option is $1.3 million less than the total costs of providing
camping and accommodation facilities. In this situation, Parks Victoria would increase their
revenue level but would still require subsidisation from central Government due to fees
being set at a level lower than revenue yield recovery and also due to the estimated level of
non-compliance.
Table 6.8: Financial analysis of Option 2 (annual average over ten years, 2013-14
prices)
Value
Total cost
$17,784,597
$16,454,673
Estimated yield
$13,603,472
Shortfall
$4,181,124
Despite the fact that full revenue yield recovery is not achieved under this option, the level
of revenue is still well above the level under the base case. As such, this option is deemed
to be far better than the base case in terms of efficiency, but rates slightly lower than
Option 1 and Option 3 which achieve higher revenue levels. Moreover, revenue could be
improved further under this option if the customer payment system was implemented at
the outset (i.e. July 2013), rather than half way through the ten year period (i.e. July 2018)
as is assumed under all three options. As such, this option is regarded as better than the
base case with a score of +6 for efficiency.
6.3.2
Equity
Under Option 2, relativities between fees for different service levels are based on
relativities implied by ‘market’ rates. As these relativities are not based on differences in
costs, these fees result in a certain degree of cross-subsidisation between different camping
and accommodation products. This gives rise to horizontal equity concerns.
Setting fees according to market rates resolves the issue that cost recovery pricing does not
adequately reflect differences in the level of services offered. The resulting fees for ‘Mid’
and ‘High’ standard campsites better approximate the level that does not reflect full fixed
costs and the resulting fees for ‘Very High’ standard campsites better approximate the
premium necessary to capture scarcity and the higher standard of service of these sites.
53
As the horizontal equity issues prevalent in Option 1 are somewhat resolved in Option 2,
this option is regarded as being more equitable relative to Option 1. It is also regarded as
being more equitable than the base case as the level of cost recovery is much higher which
gives rise to a lower taxpayer subsidy. However, equity could be improved further by
addressing vertical equity considerations, such as through the introduction of concessions
for students and other low income groups.
Overall, this option is regarded as better than the base case with a score of +5 for equity.
6.3.3
Effectiveness
As with the other options, enforcement remains difficult with the introduction of fees for all
campsites. The increased fee levels may also result in a reduced level of visitation, although
the evidence isn’t clear on this (as discussed above).
However, it is considered that with such low fee revenue under the base case, there is a risk
that service levels could not be maintained. This would result in a decline in accessibility
over time, and hence a misalignment with the Government’s policy objectives in the longterm. In this regard, Option 2 offers a more effective and sustainable long term situation
relative to the base case.
Under this option, prices paid would be broadly consistent with many visitors’ expectations
of relativities between different camping and roofed accommodation fees as they are
based on ‘market’ rates. Therefore, relative to Option 1, fees under this option will be more
reasonable and less likely to result in reduced visitation and reduced compliance levels.
Relative to the base case, this option would be more effective at raising additional revenue
through increased fees, but would still be associated with a number of implementation and
compliance issues, particularly given that the customer payment system would not be
implemented until half way through the ten year period (i.e. July 2018) as is assumed under
all three options.
Overall, this option is regarded as better than the base case with a score of +3 for
effectiveness.
6.3.4
Summary
Criteria
Weighting
Score
Efficiency
40 per cent
+6
Equity
30 per cent
+5
Effectiveness
30 per cent
+3
Total
4.8
54
6.4 Option 3
Under this option, fees are based on full revenue yield recovery for camping and higher
than full revenue yield recovery for accommodation, and then adjusted considering market
pricing and differences in quality between the various camping and roofed accommodation
products. In developing the fees, the existence of scarcity issues were also considered (as
discussed in Chapter 5) and to avoid potential negative impacts on private operators. Table
6.10 explains how each category was adjusted in option 3.
Service level
Peak
fee
Off peak
fee
Adjusted to:
$66
$59
Reflect differences in quality and
scarcity
$59
$53
scarcity
High (per site)
$50
$45
scarcity
Mid (per site)
$38
$34
Above market but below cost recovery
to avoid reduced visitation
Basic and very basic (per
vehicle)
$13
$13
-
Special (per site)
$18
$18
Above market and below cost
recovery avoid reduced visitation
$648
$547
Huts (per hut)
$131
$111
Cabins (per cabin)
$236
$202
To reflect differences in quality and
scarcity
Wilderness retreat (per
dwelling)
$245
$245
Above cost recovery and similar to
market to address scarcity and
impacts on private operators
$135
$122
To reflect differences in quality and
scarcity
1
accommodation type. It is important to note, that the approach to charging fees will ultimately involve a number
of separate fee amounts for different products in some of these categories, namely: ‘basic and very basic’
campsites (a system of camping passes are proposed), special campsites (unique fees for different products will
apply) and roofed accommodation (unique fees for different products within the different accommodation types
will apply). However, for ease of comparison between the options, average fees are provided for the products in
these categories, noting that the preferred option will include a more detailed outline of specific fees for products
within each of these categories.
55
6.4.1
Efficiency
next ten years under this option is $0.6 million more than the total costs of providing
camping and accommodation facilities. In this situation, Parks Victoria would increase their
revenue to a level above full revenue yield recovery but would still require subsidisation
from central Government due to the estimated level of non-compliance.
Table 6.11: Financial analysis of Option 3 (annual average over ten years, 201314 prices)
Value
Total cost
$17,784,597
$18,351,408
Estimated yield
$15,282,614
Shortfall
$2,501,983
Given that the level of revenue collected under this option is above full revenue yield
recovery it is deemed to be far better than the base case in terms of efficiency. It also rates
slightly better than Options 1 and 2 where revenue is somewhat lower. However, revenue
could be improved further under this option if the customer payment system was
implemented at the outset (i.e. July 2013), rather than half way through the ten year period
(i.e. July 2018) as is assumed under all three options.
efficiency.
6.4.2
Equity
Under Option 3 relativities between fees for different service levels are based on relativities
in quality. As these relativities are not based on differences in costs, these fees result in a
certain degree of cross-subsidisation between different camping and accommodation
products. This gives rise to horizontal equity concerns.
However, as discussed above, setting fees on the basis of cost relativities between different
camping products is also associated with horizontal equity concerns because visitors of
‘Mid’ and ‘High’ standard campsites would be covering the cost of fixed expenses that are
incurred throughout much of the year when the campground is mostly empty and visitors
of ‘Very High’ standard campsites would not be paying a premium to reflect the higher level
of service provided and scarcity of campsites in this category.
Setting fees according to quality resolves these issues as the resulting fees for ‘Mid’ and
‘High’ standard campsites better approximate the level that does not reflect full fixed costs
and the resulting fees for ‘Very High’ standard campsites better approximate the premium
necessary to capture scarcity and the higher standard of service of these sites.
56
As the horizontal equity issues prevalent in Option 1 are somewhat resolved in Option 2,
this option is regarded as being more equitable relative to Option 1. It is also regarded as
being more equitable than the base case as the level of cost recovery is much higher which
gives rise to a lower taxpayer subsidy. In addition, it is regarded as being more equitable
than Option 2 as fees are most accurately aligned with differences in quality under this
option. However, equity could be improved further by addressing vertical equity
considerations, such as through the introduction of concessions for students and other low
income groups.
Overall, this option is regarded as better than the base case with a score of +8 for equity.
6.4.3
Effectiveness
As with the other options, enforcement is made more difficult with the introduction of fees
for all campsites and there is a risk ofreduced levels of visitation However, it is considered
that with such low fee revenue under the base case, there is a risk that service levels could
not be maintained. This would result in a decline in accessibility over time, and hence a
misalignment with the Government’s policy objectives in the long-term. In this regard,
Option 3 offers a more effective and sustainable long term situation relative to the base
case.
Under this option, prices paid would be broadly consistent with many visitors’ expectations
of relativities between different camping and roofed accommodation fees as they are
based on differences in quality. Therefore, relative to Option 1, fees under this option will
be more reasonable and less likely to result in reduced visitation and reduced compliance
levels. This option is not regarded as being more effective relative to Option 2.
Relative to the base case, this option would be more effective at raising additional revenue
through increased fees, but would still be associated with a number of implementation and
compliance issues.
effectiveness.
6.4.4
Summary
Criteria
Weighting
Score
Efficiency
40 per cent
+8
Equity
30 per cent
+8
Effectiveness
30 per cent
+3
Total
6.5
57
7 The preferred option
7.1 Determining the preferred option
The following table provides a summary of the results of the MCA across the three options.
Table 7.1: Summary of MCA results
Criteria
Weighting
Option 1
Option 2
Option 3
Efficiency
40 per cent
+7
+6
+8
Equity
30 per cent
-3
+5
+8
Effectiveness
30 per cent
-10
+3
+3
Weighted total
100 per cent
-1.1
4.8
6.5
As indicated in Table 7.1, Option 1 achieves a score that indicates it is worse than the base
case. This is primarily driven by equity and effectiveness implications. While this option
significantly increases the estimated revenue, the misalignment between fees charged and
service level received causes a reduction in horizontal equity. This equity issue is directly
linked to effectiveness implications as users are anticipated to find the format of fees under
Option 1 unreasonable and this could reduce visitation and compliance. Any reduction in
visitation is at odds with the Government’s objective of encouraging the use of national and
state parks.
Options 2 and 3 both receive scores indicating that they are better than the base case. As
with Option 1, these options significantly increase the estimated revenue received for the
provision of camping and accommodation products and, therefore, provide a more
sustainable funding approach relative to the base case. In particular, revenue is highest
under Option 3 so it achieves the highest score.
Options 2 and 3 both significantly increase horizontal equity relative to the base case as the
level of fees is more in line with the user pays principle (i.e. taxpayer subsidies are
significantly reduced). In addition, fees are better aligned with differences in quality
Effectiveness is also increased to some degree, but this is not clear cut. On the one hand, it
could be argued that these two options rate worse than the base case as increasing existing
fees and introducing new ones for sites that are currently free, may reduce visitation and
therefore be at odds with the Government’s objective of encouraging the use of national
and state parks. Moreover, enforcement is made more difficult under these options as the
collection of fees is required across all campsites rather than just a select few as under the
base case.
On the other hand, it is foreseeable that, under the base case, camping facilities would
become degraded resulting in a situation that is counter Government’s objective of
encouraging the use of national and state parks, particularly if some campgrounds need to
be closed for health and/or safety reasons. Under Options 2 and 3, this would not occur as
the necessary funds would be available for upkeep and improvement of facilities. In
addition, payment compliance issues would be addressed over the longer term through
58
implementation of the customer booking system, which is assumed to occur half way
through the ten year period (i.e. July 2018) under all three options.
On balance, Option 3 scores the highest as the fees achieve the highest level of revenue
(i.e. it best addresses the efficiency criterion) and most accurately reflect differences in
quality (i.e. it best addresses the equity criterion). As such, Option 3 is the preferred option.
7.2 Fees and financial implications
Fees (peak rates only) and financial impacts under the preferred option are outlined in
Table 7.2. This table also provides a comparison with current fees (2013-14 scheduled) and
‘market’ rates (Option 2). A detailed outline of the proposed fee structure is provided in
Appendix G.
Table 7.2: Proposed fees (peak rates)1
Base case
(current)
Camping
Fees
Financials ($m)
Total
Financials ($m)
Option 3
(proposed)
$55
$33
$32
$22
$0
$14
$55
$50
$42
$25
$13
$15
$66
$59
$50
$38
$13
$18
$3.4
-$11.2
$10.3
-$4.3
$11.5
-$3.1
$557
$89
$195
$245
$133
$516
$125
$197
$247
$119
$648
$131
$236
$245
$135
$3.2
$0.0
$3.3
$0.1
$3.8
$0.6
$6.5
-$11.3
$13.6
-$4.2
$15.3
-$2.5
Very High (pwrd)
Very High (non-pwrd)
High
Mid
Basic & Very Basic
Special
Accommodation
Fees
Group Lodges
Huts
Cabins
Wilderness Retreats
Lightstation
Financials ($m)
Option 2
(‘market’)
1
Notes: The cost base and revenue estimates outlined in this RIS include costs and visitation associated with parks and reserves
managed by Parks Victoria that are not governed by the National Parks Act 1975. Including these as part of this RIS avoids the need
to update the pricing framework in the future when fees for non-National Parks Act camping and accommodation are also brought
into alignment with the new arrangements.
As indicated, the proposed fees for camping facilities represent a significant increase across
all areas, particularly campgrounds in the ‘Very high (non-powered)’, ‘High’ and ‘Mid’
service level categories. Moreover, fees are being introduced for campgrounds in the ‘Basic
and very basic’ service level category, for which fees do not current apply. These fees are
59
also higher than what is charged by the ‘market’, particularly for campgrounds in the ‘High’
category.
The estimated revenue yield from camping facilities under the proposed fees is $11.5
million, in comparison to the revenue yield under the current fees, which is estimated at
$3.4 million. This represents an increase of over 240 per cent. When accounting for the
assumed levels of payment compliance (which vary depending on the year in question), the
estimated budget shortfall under the proposed camping fees is $3.1 million.
The estimated revenue yield from accommodation facilities under the proposed fees is $3.8
million. When accounting for the assumed levels of payment compliance (which is 100 per
cent for roofed accommodation), the estimated budget surplus under the proposed
accommodation fees is $0.6 million. This indicates that the fees under the preferred option
more than cover the estimated costs of roofed accommodation (as discussed above).
Overall, the estimated revenue yield from camping and accommodation facilities under the
proposed fees is $15.3 million, significantly higher than the revenue yield under the current
fees, which is estimated at $6.5 million. This represents an increase of over 130 per cent.
When accounting for the assumed levels of payment compliance, the estimated budget
shortfall under the proposed camping and accommodation fees is $2.5 million.
Annual revenues (including net present value) under the proposed fees are provided in
Table 7.3. These revenue streams are calculated in real terms, so do not include the effects
of nominal price inflation.
As indicated, estimated revenue yield from the proposed camping and accommodation fees
increases in real terms from $13.5 million in 2013-14 to $16.9 million in 2022-23, with a net
present value of $126 million assuming a real discount rate of 3.5 per cent.
Table 7.3: Estimated annual revenue yield under preferred option ($ million)1
Year
Revenue yield
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19
2019-20
2020-21
2021-22
2022-23
$13.5
$13.7
$13.9
$14.2
$14.4
$16.3
$16.5
$16.6
$16.8
$16.9
1
Notes: The cost base and revenue estimates outlined in this RIS include costs and visitation associated with
parks and reserves managed by Parks Victoria that are not governed by the National Parks Act 1975. Including
these as part of this RIS avoids the need to update the pricing framework in the future when fees for nonNational Parks Act camping and accommodation are also brought into alignment with the new arrangements.
It is important to note that the fees outlined in this RIS are for the year 2013-14. Fees in
subsequent years would be higher. In particular, the Minister has the authority to increase
fees on an annual basis in accordance with the Treasurer’s rate without undertaking
60
another RIS. Increases higher than the Treasurer’s rate which are needed to ensure fees are
consistent with general price inflation and continue to achieve full revenue yield recovery
would require the Treasurer’s approval.
61
8 Statements on compliance
8.1 Impacts on small business
It is Victorian Government policy to specifically consider the impact of proposed
amendments to legislative proposals on small business in RISs. Where the costs of
compliance with regulations comprise a significant proportion of business costs, small
business may be affected disproportionately by such costs compared to large businesses.
However, in this case, the proposed determination primarily imposes costs on individual
visitors rather than on businesses. The businesses likely to be affected by the proposed fees
are private providers of camping grounds and some licence tour operators who utilise
camping and accommodation in parks.
8.2 Competition assessment
It is Victorian Government policy that legislation which restricts competition will not be
passed unless it can be demonstrated that:
•
The benefits of the restriction, as a whole, outweighs the costs
•
The objectives of the legislation can only be achieved by restricting competition
In order to assess whether the proposed pricing structure will restrict competition, and if
so, if the above principles have been met, the following ‘competition test’ has been applied.
Table 8.1: Impacts of new camping pricing structures on competition
Question
Assessment
Is the proposed measure likely to affect the market structure of the
affected sector(s) – i.e. will it reduce the number of participants in the
market, or increase the size of incumbent firms?
No
Will it be more difficult for new firms or individuals to enter the industry
after the imposition of the proposed measure?
No
Will the costs/benefits associated with the proposed measure affect some
firms or individuals substantially more than others (e.g. small firms, parttime participants in occupations etc.)?
No
Will the proposed measure restrict the ability of businesses to choose the
price, quality, range or location of their products?
No
Will the proposed measure lead to higher ongoing costs for new entrants
that existing firms do not have to meet?
No
Is the ability or incentive to innovate or develop new products or services
likely to be affected by the proposed measure?
No
As mentioned earlier, the increased costs of camping fee impacts primarily on individual
consumers of camping product. By bringing the cost of publically provided camping into
alignment with market prices, the level of competition is expected to increase.
62
8.3 Implementation
DEPI has acknowledged that the implementation of the proposed pricing structure will
require the revenue raised from camping and accommodation services to be reinvested in
the camping and accommodation services.
To achieve a cost effective implementation of the pricing strategy, DEPI is proposing to
introduce a new and streamlined booking and payment process. A single booking and
payment system is proposed to apply to public land that covers both Parks Victoria and
DEPI managed area. Mechanisms to distribute funding between the two agencies will be
developed.
The analysis conducted for this RIS assumes that the Online Booking System will be funded
through increased fee revenue on the basis that the necessary capital to fund these costs
upfront is not available, i.e. the Online Booking System is to be funded through saved
revenue over the first five years, and therefore implemented in year six. The analysis
includes an adjustment to expected revenue yield to account for improved payment
compliance relative to the current level (80 per cent in year 6 and onwards when the Online
Booking System is assumed to be in place).
8.4 Enforcement
Division 2 of Part 9 of the National Park Regulations 2013 specifies that a person must not
occupy an occupation site (building, camping place or other facility for which a permit
under section 21(1)(a) of the Act may be issued) without a permit. The Regulations provide
for a 10 penalty unit offence for this provision.
Resourcing limitations for Parks Victoria means that it is not always possible for rangers to
be present at each site. As a result, many sites are operated on the basis of an honesty
system. This is estimated to result in some degree of non-compliance.
The analysis conducted for this RIS includes an adjustment to expected revenue yield to
account for improved payment compliance relative to the current level (60 per cent
according to Parks Victoria) as a result of marketing campaign over the period and
implementation of the Commercial Business System. The level of payment compliance is
assumed to be 60 per cent in year 1, increasing to 64 per cent in year five and then jumping
to 80 per cent in year 6 and onwards when the Online System is assumed to be in place.
8.5 Evaluation strategy
DEPI and Parks Victoria will evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed changes to camping
and accommodation fees by monitoring:
• Revenue collection,
• Visitation statistics
63
• Enforcement data
The National Parks Act Annual Report, which provides an annual update on the workings of
the Act, as well as the Parks Victoria Annual Report, will be used to report on aspects of the
proposed changes.
64
9 Consultation
9.1 Consultation undertaken to-date
In 2009 Deakin University was engaged to conduct a research report for Parks Victoria. The
purpose of the project was to conduct qualitative and quantitative research of visitors and
potential visitors to parks managed by Parks Victoria from metropolitan and regional
Victoria. The research included community expectations and perceptions on the quality;
price; demand; user charges; and the concept of camping product as a public good.
The research included conducting two focus groups with current and lapsed/potential
campers and a quantitative survey with 488 valid responses from both parks visitors and
non-visitors.
Box 9.1: Deakin University Camping and Accommodation Product and Pricing Research
Report – Key Insights
Facilities and services
A high level of satisfaction with the camping product was evident.
Campers are generally very satisfied with the services and facilities that are provided.
It is important that Parks Victoria recognise and address the critical improvements
suggested by respondents. These relate to toilets, cleanliness, safety, communication and
cooking facilities.
It is also important that Parks Victoria consider strategies to increase the satisfaction of
campers with regard to litter management, conservation programs and a ranger available in
an emergency.
Future pricing strategy
It was regarded by respondents as being quite reasonable that campers should pay to use
camping facilities, in a form of users pay system.
There was strong support for fees being used to maintain and upgrade facilities and
services and for environmental protection and support of the areas close to the camp sites.
Within the community there is good support for the proposition that fees be introduced
wherever Parks Victoria are supplying management services and that these charges should
reflect the level of facilities and services provided at the particular campsite, in accordance
with those suggested in this study.
Price points for camping at parks with differentiated facilities have been developed as part
of this study.
65
It is important that PV rectify the inconsistent pricing that is currently instituted in relation
to the camping services and facilities offered.
The study identified that there was a perceived community good component related to
camping which provides a variety of community benefits. In turn this translated into
support for tax payers subsidizing some costs associated with camping.
9.2 Further Consultation
It is anticipated that the proposed changes will generate significant interest from peak
bodies and user groups. The RIS process will provide a mechanism for further consultation
on the proposed changes. DEPI welcomes comments and feedback on the proposed
changes and any impacts on the community.
The DEPI website will provide basic information about the proposed reform and
instructions for how to make a submission. Links to this page will also be provided on the
Parks Victoria and Tourism Victoria websites. An email address will be established for all
enquires relating to the proposed reform. There will also be notices on how to make a
submission published in the Government Gazette and major newspapers. Submissions must
be received by 5pm on 22 November 2013.
66
References
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Product & Pricing.
Deloitte, 2011, Parks Victoria: Camping and Accommodation Product Review – Update and
extension of supplementary financial modelling for five years from 2013/14 to
2017/18.
Department of Human Services, 2011, State concessions and hardship programs 2010-2011,
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http://www.dhs.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0013/701320/state_concessions_
and_hardship_programs_2010_11.pdf, accessed 29 October 2012.
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Parks SA, 2012, Camping in South Australia’s National Parks, available at
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http://download.audit.vic.gov.au/files/240210_Concessions_full_report.pdf,
accessed 29 October 2012.
Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission, 2011, Multi-criteria analysis (MCA)
Guidance note, available at
http://www.vcec.vic.gov.au/CA256EAF001C7B21/WebObj/Guidancenote-multicriteriaanalysis-PDF/$File/Guidance%20note%20-%20multi-criteria%20analysis%20%20PDF.pdf, accessed 25 October 2012.
Victorian Government, 2011, 2011 Victorian Families Statement: Starting the discussion on
what matters to families, available at
http://www.premier.vic.gov.au/images/stories/documents/mediareleases/2011/Fa
milies-Statement-pdf-document.pdf, accessed 29 October 2012.
2013 Camping Fees References
Tasmania:
http://www.tams.act.gov.au/parks
recreation/recreational_activities/camping_in_the_act/namadgi_national_park
NSW:
http://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/Stay and http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/
South Australia:
http://www.environment.sa.gov.au/parks/Visiting/Camping_accommodation
Western Australia:
http://www.dec.wa.gov.au/campgrounds/brochures.html
Queensland:
http://www.nprsr.qld.gov.au/experiences/camping/camping_fees.html
Tasmania:
http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/?base=412
Northern Territory:
http://www.parksandwildlife.nt.gov.au/parks/parkfees
68
Appendix A- Detailed costings
Detailed figures on the estimated cost of providing camping facilities in parks and reserves
managed by Parks Victoria for the 2013-14 financial year are provided in Table A.1.
Note that estimated total cost of camping facilities in 2013-14 ($12.4 million) differs from
the estimated cost base for camping (see Table 4.7 in the body of the report) as the cost
base represents average costs over ten years. In particular, the cost base includes
additional costs that occur in later years including real price inflation (i.e. above CPI price
increases), upgrades to camping facilities (assumed to commence in 2014-15), and the
depreciation and capital asset charge applicable to the upgraded facilities.
Table A.1: Estimated costs of camping facilities in national parks and reserves operated by
Parks Victoria (2013-14)
Very High
High
Mid
Basic &
Very Basic
Special
Total
$842,711
$153,289
$367,244
$973,258
$532,818
$2,869,320
Lease Expenses
$13,374
$44
$0
$0
$2,439
$15,857
Water
$61,207
$0
$0
$0
$0
$61,207
Energy
$50,023
$12,890
$0
$0
$0
$62,913
Plant and equipment
expenses
$42,757
$17,792
$4,475
$0
$7,837
$72,861
Telephone
$15,682
$5,496
$815
$0
$2,866
$24,859
Vehicle expenses
$62,148
$23,498
$31,161
$216,185
$39,980
$372,972
Track Maintenance
$41,405
$2,731
$0
$0
$151,154
$195,290
Contractors
$0
$13,291
$297
$0
$0
$13,588
Insurance
$0
$2,518
$99
$0
$0
$2,617
General Expenses
$0
$4,143
$164
$0
$0
$4,307
$1,129,307
$235,692
$404,255
$1,189,443
$737,094
$3,695,791
$26,772
$22,159
$4,664
$0
$4,882
$58,477
$152,639
$0
$0
$0
$0
$152,639
$32,548
$0
$0
$0
$0
$32,548
$5,446
$16
$0
$0
$885
$6,347
$15,548
$0
$0
$0
$0
$15,548
$3,448
$15
$0
$0
$827
$4,290
Base costs
Labour
Total
Recurrent costs
Cleaning
Admin
Camp Main
Customer Service
Emergency Management
II&E
Marine Protection Area
Marketing
Outstation Management
Revegetation Management
$0
$59
$0
$0
$3,283
$3,342
$2,929
$52
$0
$0
$2,877
$5,858
$0
$310
$0
$0
$17,154
$17,464
$3,052
$9
$0
$0
$496
$3,557
69
Roads
$17,948
$53
$0
$0
$2,915
$20,916
Rubbish
$53,890
$6,470
$0
$0
$0
$60,360
San & Sharps
$5,441
$0
$0
$0
$0
$5,441
Security
$0
$2,460
$0
$0
$0
$2,460
Signage
$2,391
$50
$0
$0
$2,740
$5,181
$50,518
$0
$0
$0
$0
$50,518
Visitor Expenses
$6,979
$124
$0
$0
$6,855
$13,958
Toilet Maintenance
$5,719
$0
$0
$0
$0
$5,719
$0
$22,653
$668
$0
$0
$23,321
Track maintenance
$6,387
$1,573
$961
$0
$7,320
$16,241
Transport Services
$14,423
$42
$0
$0
$2,343
$16,808
Tree Main, surgery and risk
management
$8,292
$2,386
$0
$0
$5,430
$16,108
Visitor Facility Maintenance
$0
$14,948
$10,136
$0
$0
$25,084
Visitor Laundry
$2,903
$0
$0
$0
$0
$2,903
Security
$9,809
$3
$0
$0
$161
$9,973
Track Maintenance
$1,164
$78
$0
$0
$4,301
$5,543
Camping Fees Support
$0
$470
$313
$0
$0
$783
Camping Fees
Administration
$0
$10,656
$7,104
$0
$0
$17,760
General recurrent costs
$0
$153,912
$390,844
$155,387
$117,547
$817,690
$428,246
$238,498
$414,690
$155,387
$180,016
$1,416,837
$29,739
$0
$0
$0
$0
$29,739
Booking service costs –
online
$0
$1,278
$7,005
$99,818
$2,000
$110,101
Booking service costs –
telephone
$0
$1,597
$7,540
$59,891
$2,476
$71,504
$39,490
$12,459
$17,312
$234,196
$9,344
$312,801
Additional fee collection
costs
$0
$21,242
$0
$0
$0
$21,242
Additional Compliance costs
$0
$0
$121,435
$956,804
$0
$1,078,239
Vehicle costs
$0
$0
$11,386
$132,582
$0
$143,968
Signage
$0
$0
$34,318
$418,687
$1,725
$454,730
Awareness campaign
$0
$4,210
$34,370
$139,256
$12,495
$190,331
Training and uniforms
$0
$0
$6,000
$52,966
$0
$58,966
Camping pass production
and printing
$0
$0
$0
$15,473
$0
$15,473
Camping guides
$0
$7,636
$57,872
$154,729
$22,486
$242,723
Communications plan
development
$0
$1,527
$11,574
$77,365
$4,497
$94,963
Park Maintenance
General maintenance and
materials
Total
Incremental operating costs
Service improvement costs
Commissions to third
parties
70
Legal costs
$0
$0
$0
$62,783
$0
$62,783
Additional Maintenance
$55,879
$21,065
$35,170
$570,005
$45,352
$727,471
Upfront implementation
costs
$47,684
$17,975
$30,012
$516,280
$38,700
$650,651
$172,792
$88,989
$373,994
$3,490,835
$139,075
$4,265,685
Visitor Experiences Division
$32,491
$23,857
$135,806
$445,091
$46,995
$684,240
General IT
$55,020
$11,171
$2,017
$0
$8,954
$77,162
Public Liability Insurance
$2,399
$511
$140
$0
$391
$3,441
Web
$1,068
$217
$39
$0
$173
$1,497
131963 Hotline
$2,250
$479
$132
$0
$367
$3,228
Camping brochures
$2,971
$633
$174
$0
$484
$4,262
$22,216
$4,732
$1,300
$0
$3,620
$31,868
$2,692
$2,351
$488
$0
$444
$5,975
$180
$303
$145
$0
$30
$658
$4,577
$61
$21
$0
$743
$5,402
$16,716
$17,081
$5,414
$0
$2,715
$41,926
Total
General overheads
Regional Costs
Insurance premium - ISR
Insurance premium –
Vehicles
IT support calls
Summer Ranger Program
Camp Host Program
$2,101
$11,232
$3,894
$0
$363
$17,590
131963 Hotline (Bookings)
$0
$1,309
$0
$0
$9
$1,318
Customer service costs
(incl. head office)
$0
$0
$0
$827,809
$0
$827,809
$144,681
$73,937
$149,570
$1,272,900
$65,288
$1,706,376
$87,258
$29,091
$14,912
$216,291
$13,781
$361,333
$170,594
$33,694
$31,501
$429,703
$24,293
$689,785
Total
$257,852
$62,785
$46,413
$645,994
$38,074
$1,051,118
Total
$1,339
$78,587
$147,383
$13,662
$36,445
$277,416
$1,731,684
$641,766
$1,340,322
$4,849,327
$1,092,630
$9,655,729
Total
Other overheads
Depreciation
Capital asset charge
Costs of PV managed
Reserves
Summary
Total direct costs
Total indirect costs
Grand total
$402,533
$136,722
$195,983
$1,918,894
$103,362
$2,757,494
$2,134,217
$778,488
$1,536,305
$6,768,221
$1,195,992
$12,413,223
71
Appendix B - Pricing framework
The DEPI pricing framework provides a process for developing pricing structures compliant
with government cost recovery policy in the public land context. The three stages of this
process are:
•
Stage One: Establish costs
•
Stage Two: Decide how to recover costs
•
Stage Three: Implement costs
Figure B.1: DEPI’s pricing framework for public land
Source: DEPI 2012
72
The following section demonstrates how the options for the proposed camping fees have
been developed in this RIS using the framework. The options, discussed later in this
chapter, were established in alignment with the following considerations.
Establish costs
There are four major undertakings in the process of establishing costs under the pricing
framework. These are explored below.
Define the activity
The activities undertaken by Parks Victoria which need to be accounted for in the cost
recovery process are those which are directly related to the provision of camping product in
Victoria’s national and state parks. This includes the facilities and services used specifically
for camping (i.e. campsite establishment, upgrades and maintenance, shower/toilet blocks,
ranger checks, fee collection and booking systems).
Activities associated with national park facilities and services that are not directly
associated with the provision of camping, such as maintenance of walking tracks, vehicle
entry or wildlife protection, are excluded from the pricing of camping fees.
Define the costs
The costs which need to be recovered through the camping fee pricing structure are those
which are directly attributable to the provision of facilities and services used specifically for
camping.
These costs are described in detail in Section 4.3.3. Major costs include direct costs,
corporate costs, depreciation and capital asset charges.
Decide methodology
For a detailed description of the methodology, please refer to Section 4.1.
Collect cost data
For a detailed description of the methodology, please refer to Section 4.1.
Decide how to set prices
There are several Government principles which underpin the decision making process for
setting prices in alignment with the DEPI pricing framework. This section explores these
underlying principles while focussing on three major decision points:
•
Who should pay for Government provided goods/services?
•
How much should be paid – when is it appropriate to charge below/above full cost
recovery?
•
How should costs be recovered – what method of recovering costs is appropriate?
73
Who should pay for the product?
In alignment with the Government’s principle of cost recovery outlined in Section 2.3.1, the
cost of providing camping facilities and services in Victoria’s national and state parks should
be borne by those who use these services.
Under this user-pays system, the costs of providing the camping product will be recovered
through the fees charged for the services. Ideally, the different service levels of camping
product provided (ie ‘very high’, ‘high’, ‘mid’ etc) will be reflected in their pricing so that
users will pay an appropriate price for each service level. This will ensure there is no crosssubsidisation across product offerings.
How much should the product be?
In alignment with the pricing framework, there are three additional principles which should
be considered when deciding what prices should be applied to the camping fee pricing
structure. These are:
•
Scarcity rent
•
Competitive neutrality
•
Policy Outcomes
Scarcity rent
The principle of scarcity rent states that where scarcity or a restriction on supply causes
excess demand for a good or service, prices should capture private benefits that exceed
cost recovery.
To capitalise on scarcity rent opportunities, peak and off peak prices will be applied. Fees
outlined in Chapter 6 are based on a ten per cent spread between peak and off peak prices
based on the spread applied to the majority of fees listed in the current fee schedule.
DEPI has indicated that ‘special fees’ will be charged for unique location specific
characteristics. These ‘special fees’ grant individual parks a degree of flexibility in allowing
additional fees to be applied in situations of excess demand, utilising available scarcity
rents. In these situations, the campsites would be operating above full cost recovery levels.
Competitive neutrality
The principle of competitive neutrality states that where the Government is providing a
good or service in competition with private providers (or potential competition) prices may
be set above direct cost recovery to compensate for public sector advantages. Essentially,
this means applying ‘fully cost reflective’ pricing, considering factors such as:
•
The value of the land itself
•
The opportunity cost of any other capital
•
The corporate services that Parks Victoria and DEPI have access to
•
Any relevant taxes and charges.
74
As the Government has rarely had to pay any land value costs for the camp sites, it should
be considered whether the camping fees should be set at a rate above full cost recovery in
order to fully reflect costs and remain competitively neutral.
Policy outcomes
Ideally, cost recovery arrangements should be consistent with overarching Government
policy objectives. Under this framework, the greater educational, health, environmental
and economic benefits of camping in Victoria’s national and state parks should be
considered. These wider benefits have not been quantified in this analysis are understood
as tangible positive impacts generated by the provision of camping and accommodation
facilities in Victoria’s national parks.
The Government promotes the accessibility and affordability of parks, encouraging
increased use of park facilities by the public. In alignment with health and community
development objectives, the Government may wish to subsidise camping fees. In addition,
it could be argued that visitation to parks in regional areas provides a boost to regional
economies. Reflecting with regional development strategies, the Government may wish to
subsidise camping fees in specific regions. However, the level of subsidy provided should
demonstrate a value proposition when compared against an alternative method of
achieving the same policy objective.
The policy objectives relating to increasing visitation to Victoria’s national and state parks
must be balanced against the Government’s commitment to achieving cost recovery. Any
situation which results in reduced park visitation over the longer term will not be aligned to
broader policy objectives.
How should payment be collected?
Deciding in what form and under what method costs are recovered can influence the level
of cost recovery achieved. Under the pricing framework, there are three principle
considerations. These are:
•
Pricing structures should be legal and cost effective
•
Pricing structures should be simple and transparent
•
Allocation methods should enhance transparency, fairness and efficiency
75
Legal and cost effective
In principle, the costs of administering the camping fees should be as cost effective as
possible. In addition the pricing structure must always be legal. As the introduction of
camping fees across Victoria’s national and state parks will require a ministerial
determination, which will also include revised terms and conditions, it is possible to
introduce new legal requirements in the payment methods of camping fees.
A range of options for the payment of fees, and influences on efficiency is provided below:
Table B.2: Methods of collecting payment
Collection method
Online payment
connected to booking
confirmation
Description
Campsites must be pre-booked and paid
online. Rangers conduct random checks at
camp sites for compliance.
Roofed accommodation is most commonly
booked through online avenues.
Efficiency impacts
Medium level of
compliance.
Difficulties for spontaneous
or manual payments (less
relevant with rise of
smartphones)
Low costs of fee collection
Supplementary phone
contact where appropriate
Purchase from a PV
office, customer
service centre or
designated provider.
Users purchase a permit prior to camping,
Rangers conduct random checks at sited for
compliance purposes.
Honesty box
Honesty box provided at each campsite
with receipts to be attached to
tents/vehicles. Random ranger checks to
see if permits have been obtained.
Lower level of compliance
Lower costs of fee
collection
Some risk of theft and
vandalism
Difficulty collecting fees on
a regular basis from remote
locations
Ranger collection
Ranger collects fees from each tent each
night.
Higher level of compliance
Higher costs of fee
collection
Difficulty collecting fees on
a regular basis from remote
locations
Security risk for staff
collection fees
Other popular methods of booking campsites include phone bookings, booking at the park
entrance and written applications. The cost effectiveness of each of these options needs to
be considered. It is expected that the revenue generated by basic and very basic campsites
would not be high enough to warrant constant ranger supervision. In these cases, payment
collection models such as phone bookings may be a more cost effective option, despite
76
lower expected compliance levels. It will be possible to utilise a range of payment options
over the parks and reserves.
Simple and transparent
The pricing framework states that those using the public land estate should have a clear
understanding as to what, when and how prices are charged. However, simplicity can
sometimes compromise equity. It is important that the pricing structure is easy to
understand, but also important that the pricing structure is equitable.
In this case, some options in relation to pricing structures are established below, with
simplicity and effectiveness outcomes estimated for each option.
Table B.3: Pricing structure options
Option
Description
Level of
simplicity
Level of equity
Option 1: Straight
camping fee
A single camping fee charged for
all camp grounds regardless of
service level
High
Low
Option 2:
Camping fee by
service level
A straight camping fee for each
service level i.e ‘very high’, ‘high’,
‘mid’ and ‘basic and very basic’
Medium
Medium
Option 3:
Camping fee by
service level with
additional
provisions
There is a single camping fee for
each service level, with fee
differences for peak/off peak
camping, and special service
offerings
Medium
High
Allocation methods
As detailed in the above discussion on scarcity rent, the supply of some high demand
camping products can be limited. In these cases, how this limited supply is allocated can
impact on the overall benefits available to society through the provision of camping
facilities and services.
Ballot systems are currently used in some parks and reserves to ensure equitable allocation
over periods of excess demand. Other parks operate on a ‘first in, first served’ basis. Parks
which use ballot systems often reflect the higher administrative costs associated with this
process into the prices charged for peak period camping and accommodation.
Implementation
The pricing framework is concerned with three key questions in the implementation phase
of the pricing schedule. These are as follows:
•
Will targeted concessions be applied
•
How will stakeholder consultation be conducted
•
What is the review process for the cost recovery arrangements?
77
Targeted concessions
The camping fee pricing structure needs to consider whether specific groups in society will
face access barriers as a result of the proposed fees. If this is the case, targeted concessions
may be employed.
DEPI currently has no concession policy for camping and accommodation on public land. As
prices are charged per site, as opposed to on a per person basis, it would be difficult to
determine whether a specific site purchase is eligible for concession pricing.
DEPI is currently considering concession pricing options and this may impact camping and
accommodation fees in the future.
Consultation
Extensive consultation with past visitors and potential visitors regarding potential fee
increases to Victorian camping product was undertaken by Deakin University for the Parks
Victoria ‘Camping and Accommodation Product and Pricing Research’ study 28. Over the
course of this research, two focus groups were conducted:
•
One focus group (visitors) comprised of five males and five females who had been
camping at a Parks Victoria campsite within the last three years
•
One focus group (non-visitors) comprised of four males and five females who were
either lapsed campers (had not been camping at a Parks Victoria campsite within the
last three years) or had never camped at a Parks Victoria campsite but would consider
doing so
These focus groups were designed to allow a detailed exploration of the perceptions of
campers, lapsed campers and potential campers of aspects relating to the camping product,
including the importance of various facilities and services, as well as pricing matters.
In addition to the focus groups, an on-line survey which received 488 valid responses was
also conducted. From these responses, two sub samples of respondents were obtained:
•
116 individuals who had not camped in any of Parks Victoria’s parks over the last three
years but who would consider camping
•
372 respondents who had camped at Parks Victoria parks within the last three years
The survey asked respondents a selection of classificatory and behavioural questions
relating to various demographic questions and camping experience. Following this,
respondents were asked to rate a series of scaled questions relating to the importance and
satisfaction of the facilities and services associated with camping, as well as attitudes
towards pricing matters.
See Chapter Nine for further detail on the consultation undertaken to date and the post RIS
consultation strategy.
28
78
Review
Parks Victoria will closely monitor expenditure on camping and campgrounds, including
projects to increase service levels and upgrade locations. While endeavouring to keep
prices stable and in line with market expectations, Parks Victoria may seek to increase
camping fees above the Treasurer’s rate each year or every few years, in order to achieve
cost recovery.
79
Appendix C - Level of Service
Information on the relevant level of service category for different campgrounds under the
National Parks Act is provided in Table C.1.
Table C.1: Level of service categories for campgrounds under the National Parks Act
Park name
Camping area
Proposed Level of
Service category
Alpine National Park
All camping areas including dispersed camping
Camping Pass
Alpine National Park
Overnight walking
Special Fee
Barmah National Park
Camping Pass
Baw Baw National Park
Camping Pass
Baw Baw National Park
Overnight walking
Special Fee
Black Range State Park
Camping Pass
Brisbane Ranges National Park
All camping areas
Mid
Broken Boosey State Park
All camping areas
Basic/Very Basic Permit
Bunyip State Park
All camping areas
Burrowa - Pine Mountain National Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Cape Conran Coastal Park
Banksia Bluff Campground
High
Cape Conran Coastal Park
All other camping areas
Cape Liptrap Coastal Park
Bear Gully
Mid
Cape Liptrap Coastal Park
Castlemaine Diggings National Heritage Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Cathedral Range State Park
All camping areas
Mid
Chiltern-Mt Pilot National Park
Camping Pass
Cobboboonee National Park
All camping areas
Special Fee
Croajingolong National Park
Shipwreck Creek
Mid
Wingan Inlet
Mid
Special Fee
Dergholm State Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Discovery Bay Coastal Park
Lake Monibeong
Mid
Swan Lake Public Camp
Mid
Special Fee
Enfield State Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Errinundra National Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
French Island National Park
Fairhaven
Mid
Gippsland Lakes Coastal Park
Bunga Arm
Mid
Gippsland Lakes Coastal Park
Mid
Grampians National Park
Bomjinna Campground
Mid
Boreang Campground
Mid
Borough Huts Campground
Mid
Buandik
Mid
First Wannon Remote Campground
Jimmy Creek Campground
High
Plantation Campground
High
Smiths Mill Campground
High
Stapylton Campground
High
Strachans Campground
Mid
80
Troopers Creek Campground
Mid
Wannan Crossing Campground
Mid
Dispersed bush camping
Overnight walking
Special Fee
Great Otway National Park (East section)
Allenvale
Mid
Big Hill Camping Area
Mid
Cora Lynn
Hammond Road
Mid
Herberts (Wymbooliel Camp)
Jamieson
Sharps Camping Area
Wye River Camping Area
Great Otway National Park (West section)
Aire Crossing
Mid
Aire River (east &west)
Mid
Blanket Bay
Mid
Fork Paddocks
Great Ocean Walk
Special Fee
Johanna Beach
Mid
Lake Elizabeth
Mid
Parker Hill
Mid
Redwoods
Mid
Greater Bendigo National Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Gunbower National Park
Camping Pass
Hattah - Kulkyne National Park
Lake Hattah
Mid
Lake Mournpall
Mid
Camping Pass
Heathcote - Graytown National Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Kinglake National Park
The Gums Camp
Mid
Kings Billabong WR
Camping Pass
Kooyoora State Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Lake Albacutya Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Lake Eildon National Park
Candlebark
High
Devil Cove
High
Lakeside
High
Blue Gum Flat
Brooks Cutting Camping Area
Coopers Point Camping Area
Jerusalem Creek Camping Area 1-8
Mid
Mountaineer Creek Camping Area
O'Toole Flat
Taylors Creek Camping Area
Langi Ghiran State Park
Langi Ghiran Picnic and Camping Area
Camping Pass
Leaghur State Park
South of Lake Meran
Camping Pass
Lerderderg State Park
O'Briens Crossing
Mid
Shaws Lake
Mid
Upper Chadwick
Little Desert National Park
Ackle Bend Campground
Mid
Broughtons Waterhole
Horseshoe Bend Campground
Mid
Kiata Campground
Mid
Mallee Walkers Camp
Yellowgums Walkers Camp
81
Lower Glenelg National Park
Battersbys
Mid
Bowds
Special Fee
Forest Camp North
Mid
Forest Camp South
Mid
Georges Rest
Special Fee
Hutchessons
Mid
Lasletts
Special Fee
McLennans Punt
Mid
Moleside
Special Fee
Moleside Canoe Camp
Special Fee
Murrells
Special Fee
Patterson Canoe Camp
Special Fee
Patterson Walkers Camp
Special Fee
Pines Landing
Special Fee
Post and Rail
Special Fee
Pritchards
Mid
Red Gum Landing
Mid
Simsons
Special Fee
Skipworth Springs
Special Fee
Wild Dog Bend
Mid
Wilson Hall
Mid
Mitchell River National Park
Camping Pass
Moondarra State Park
Seninis Visitor & Camping Area
Camping Pass
Mornington Peninsula National Park
Lightwood Camp
Mount Arapiles - Tooan State Park
Centenary Park
Special Fee
Mount Buangor State Park
All camping areas
Mid
Lake Catani Camping Ground (Summer & Winter)
High
Mount Mcleod Camping Area
Special Fee
Rocky Creek Camping Area
Special Fee
Mount Eccles National Park
Mt Eccles
High
Mount Granya State Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Mount Lawson State Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Mount Samaria State Park
All camping areas
Mid
Murray - Kulkyne Park
Camping Pass
Murray - Sunset National Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Nooramunga Marine & Coastal Park
All camping areas
Nyah-Vinifera Park
Camping Pass
Paddys Ranges State Park
Camping Area (adjacent to Karri Track)
Camping Pass
Snowy River National Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Kara Kara National Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Terrick Terrick State Park
Mt Terrick Terrick
Camping Pass
Emu Bight
Mid
Rotamah Island
Mid
Warby-Ovens National Park
All camping areas
Camping Pass
Barry Creek
Special Fee
Five Mile Beach
Special Fee
Halfway Hut
Special Fee
Johnny Souey Cove
Special Fee
Little Waterloo Bay
Special Fee
Lower Barry Creek
Special Fee
Oberon Bay
Special Fee
Refuge Cove Boaters Camp
Special Fee
82
Refuge Cove Hikers Camp
Special Fee
Roaring Meg
Special Fee
Sealers Cove
Special Fee
Stockyard Camp
High
Tidal River / Norman Bay
Very High
Tin Mine Cove Boaters Camp
Special Fee
Tin Mine Cove Hikers Camp
Special Fee
Wyperfeld National Park
Round Swamp
Wyperfeld National Park
Mid
83
Appendix D - Visitor attitudes
towards camping
The following table demonstrates visitor attitudes towards camping as found in the Deakin
report conducted for Parks Victoria.
Table D. 1: Community attitudes towards camping
Strongly
disagree
Strongly
agree
% agree
I have gone camping in the past because it is a
relatively cheap and affordable holiday
5%
32%
78%
I have gone camping in the past because it is a break
from my usual routine
4%
32%
80%
I think of camping as a healthy activity
1%
34%
86%
Even if some camping fees were to increase I think
some services and facilities in camping grounds
should be provided free of charge
1%
42%
87%
Some services and facilities in camping ground should
be subsidised because State and National Parks are
community goods
1%
37%
81%
Tax payers that do not use camping ground in state
and National parks should not have to subsidise
camping holidays for those that do
21%
14%
37%
I would be unhappy to subsidize camping facilities
that I do not use or receive any benefit from
18%
16%
42%
If camping facilities were upgraded I would consider
going camping more often
8%
14%
55%
Before going camping I compare prices between
public and privately operated camping ground in
order to decide in which camping ground we will stay
18%
14%
46%
Camping fees should be increased to reflect the cost
of delivering and maintaining camping facilities and
services
12%
9%
44%
It is important to charge camping gees to maintain,
reinvest and improve camp grounds
5%
16%
66%
It is important to retain some free camping grounds
2%
41%
83%
I am not concerned about the fact that sites that are
currently free may have a camping fee introduced
15%
13%
43%
If a camping fee were to be introduced to sites that
are currently free I would consider visiting another
destination
8%
17%
53%
I would be happy to pay a reasonable fee to camp, if I
knew that the fees were based on the cost of
maintaining camping facilities
3%
32%
81%
84
If camping fees were to be introduced to areas that
are currently free to camp in, I would reduce the
number of times that I would go camping.
12%
13%
45%
Existing Parks Victoria’s camping grounds are tired
and in need of upgrading and refurbishment
4%
11%
55%
I would consider visiting Parks Victoria’s camping
grounds if there were more cabins, safari tents or onsite vans
18%
14%
47%
I have gone camping in the past because it allows me
to get close to nature
4%
27%
73%
Going camping allows me to be with my friends or my
relatives
4%
28%
76%
I would take the risk of being fined and not pay for the
camping fee
40%
5%
19%
Pricing, Table A-14.
85
Victorian Parks Camping and Accommodation RIS
Appendix E - Benchmarking
Table E.1: Benchmarking of private provider prices (select, prices per campsite night)
Region & provider
Low season
Powered
Non powered
Mid -season
Powered
Non powered
Peak season
Powered
Non powered
Yarra Valley & Dandenong
Warburton Caravan Park
$24.00
$20.00
$30.00
$26.00
Healesville Tourist Park
$38.00
$32.00
$42.00
$36.00
Average for region
$31.00
$26.00
$36.00
$31.00
Rosebud, Rye & Sorrento foreshore camping
(council run)
$30.00
$25.00
$45.00
$40.00
Dromana Tourist Park
$30.00
Kangerong Holiday Park
$27.00
$35.00
$45.00
$24.00
$42.00
Western Port Caravan Park
Average for region
$29.00
$24.50
$35.00
$26.00
$21.00
$30.00
$27.00
$24.00
$39.75
$32.00
$42.00
$32.00
$36.00
$31.00
$38.00
$34.00
$47.00
$47.00
$29.00
$23.00
Goldfields, Daylesford & Macedon Ranges
Jubilee Lake Holiday Park
$21.00
Castlemaine Caravan Park
Gold Nugget Tourist Park
$33.00
$29.00
Windmill Holiday Park
$34.00
$34.00
Shady Acres Caravan Park
$26.00
$20.00
$43.00
$43.00
86
Central City Caravan Park
$34.00
$29.00
$40.00
$32.00
$40.00
$32.00
Average for region
$30.60
$26.60
$37.67
$32.00
$38.67
$33.17
A Maze n Things Holiday Park
$28.00
$28.00
$35.00
$35.00
$48.00
$48.00
Cowes Caravan and Camping Park
$35.00
Amaroo Holiday Park*
$40.00
Phillip Island Caravan Park*
$32.00
$27.00
Average for region
$33.75
$27.50
Southcombe Caravan Park
$37.00
$34.00
Skenes Creek Beachfront Park (3 adults)
$27.00
$22.00
Bimbi Park
$25.00
$20.00
Cumberland River Holiday Park
$27.00
River Vu Caravan Park, Nelson
$23.00
Kywong Caravan Park
$25.00
Philip Island
$37.00
$52.00
$80.00
$50.00
$46.00
$57.50
$47.00
$43.00
$38.00
$65.00
$55.00
$40.00
$35.00
$60.00
$12.00
$16.00
$23.00
$16.00
$20.00
$32.00
$25.00
$36.00
$35.00
Great Ocean Road
$30.00
$37.00
$25.00
$12.00
Big 4 Anglesea Holiday Park
$45.00
Marengo Holiday Park
$28.00
$24.00
$30.00
$24.00
$58.00
$40.00
Surfside Holiday park
$39.00
$54.00
$47.00
Torquay Foreshore Caravan Park
$31.00
Average for region
$29.11
$22.67
$32.33
$20.33
$48.50
$33.50
Grampians Paradise camping and caravan Parkland
$30.00
$25.00
$35.00
$30.00
$40.00
$35.00
Halls Gap Caravan Park
$34.00
$27.00
$38.00
$32.00
Halls Gap Lakeside Tourist Park
$28.00
$22.00
$37.00
$28.00
$65.00
Grampians
$30.00
$25.00
87
Grampians Gardens Tourist Park
$28.00
$25.00
Emu Holiday Park
$26.00
Acacia Caravan Park
Average for region
$32.00
$28.00
$35.00
$30.00
$24.00
$30.00
$28.00
$29.00
$26.00
$32.00
$26.00
$29.17
$24.83
$32.33
$27.67
$35.33
$29.83
Bright Holiday Park
$35.00
$30.00
$42.00
$36.00
$50.00
$45.00
Mansfield Holiday Park
$28.00
$25.00
$32.00
$28.00
$35.00
$32.00
Rutherglen Caravan and Tourist park
$29.00
$22.00
$33.00
$26.00
Yackandandah Holiday Park
$30.00
Mt Beauty Holiday Centre & Caravan Park
$27.00
$22.00
High Country Holiday Park
$30.00
$26.00
Omeo Caravan Park
$30.00
$28.00
Jamieson Caravan Park
$30.00
$25.00
Average for region
$29.88
$25.43
Lakes Entrance Tourist Park
$25.00
$22.00
Eagle Point Caravan Park
$14.00
$10.00
Inverloch Surfside Caravan Park
$35.00
Loch Sport Holiday Park
$35.00
$29.00
$42.00
$33.00
Woodside Beach Caravan Park
$30.00
$20.00
$35.00
$28.00
Mallacoota Foreshore Caravan Park (council)
$20.00
$14.00
$26.00
$20.00
$35.00
$29.00
Cann River Rainforest Caravan Park (council)
$20.00
$10.00
$20.00
$10.00
$20.00
$10.00
Average for region
$25.57
$17.50
$28.25
$15.33
$38.00
$27.50
High Country
$35.00
$33.00
$35.50
$40.00
$28.00
$30.67
$38.00
$33.00
$32.00
$28.00
$35.00
$30.00
$37.57
$32.33
$48.00
$43.00
$31.00
$22.00
Gippsland
$22.00
$16.00
$45.00
$55.00
88
The Murray
Murray River Holiday Park
$30.00
$48.00
Echuca Holiday Park
$29.00
$25.00
Victoria Lake Holiday Park
$30.00
$27.00
Cohuna Waterfront Holiday Park
$28.00
$24.00
Big 4 Riverside Swan Hill
$36.00
$31.00
River Road Caravan Park
$23.00
Strayleaves Caravan Park
$25.00
Moama Riverside Holiday and Tourist Park
$30.00
Average for region
$28.88
$35.00
$33.00
$32.00
$29.00
$25.00
$48.00
$44.00
$35.00
$30.00
$39.00
$35.00
$40.00
$31.00
$30.00
$15.00
$25.00
$15.00
$42.00
$24.40
$31.00
$30.50
$38.38
$31.00
Wilson's Promontory
Toora Tourist Park
$25.00
$35.00
Waratah Bay Caravan Park
$30.00
$25.00
Yanakie Caravan Park
$25.00
$20.00
Average for region
$26.67
$22.50
$32.50
Average across sample
$29.15
$23.81
$32.59
$30.00
$60.00
$25.00
$60*
$50*
$35.00
$25.00
$25.00
$51.67
$37.50
$26.57
$40.55
$31.79
Source: Provider websites, accessed 2 November, 2012.
Notes: *Price is inclusive of four people
89
Appendix F - The proposed
determination
National Parks Act 1975
DETERMINATION UNDER SECTION 21(2) FOR FEES AND CHARGES FOR
OCCUPYING CAMPING PLACES AND BUILDINGS
I, Ryan Smith MP, Minister for Environment and Climate Change, under
section 21(2) of the National Parks Act 1975 determine that—
(1) the following fees and charges are payable for permits granted under
section 21(1)(a) of the National Parks Act 1975—
(a) for permits to occupy camping places during the peak season, the fees
specified in Schedule 1;
(b) for permits to occupy special camping places in the parks specified in
Schedule 2, the fees and charges specified for those parks in Schedule
2;
(c) for overnight hiker permits to occupy camping places, the fees and
charges specified in Schedule 3;
(d) for permits to occupy a roofed building, the fees and charges specified
in Schedule 4; and
(2) despite clause (1)—
(a) a 10 per cent discount applies to the fees and charges specified in
Schedule 1 for permits to occupy camping places the period
commencing on 1 May and ending on 31 October in each year except
for the period between school terms 3 and 4;
(b) the following are the non refundable fees and charges for the
cancellation, alteration or reduction in duration of stay or occupants—
i. 30 days’ or more notice, 50% of the applicable fees per night;
ii. less than 30 days’ notice, 100% of the applicable fees per
night;
iii. school groups—
1 to 6 days’ notice, 50% of the applicable fees per
night;
7 to 30 days’ notice, 25% of the applicable fees per
night, and
90
greater than 30 days’ notice, 20% of the applicable fees
per night; and
(3) in this determination—
fee unit has the same meaning as in section 4 of the Monetary Units
Act 2004 as if this determination were an Act or a statutory rule;
off peak season means—
(a) for Schedules 1, 2 and 3, the period commencing 1 May and
finishing on 31 October in each year except for the period between
school terms 3 and 4;
(b) for Schedule 4, the period commencing 1 May and finishing on 31
August in each year except for the period between school terms 2
and 3;
peak season means—
(a) for Schedules 1, 2 and 3, the following periods—
(i) commencing on 1 November and finishing on 30 April in each
year;
(ii) between school terms 3 and 4 in each year;
(b) for Schedule 4, the period between the end of school term 4 and
school term 1 in the following year;
shoulder season means the period commencing 1 September and
finishing on 30 April in addition to the period between school
terms 2 and 3 and school terms 2 and 3 and 4 but does not include
peak season;
special camping places means the sites specified in Schedule 2.
Dated
RYAN SMITH
Minister for Environment and Climate Change
91
SCHEDULE 1
Camping fees peak season (fee units per night)
Category
Very
High
(Non
powered)
Very
High
(Powered)
High
(Non
powered)
High
(Powered)
Mid
Basic or
Very
Basic
Site up Site up
to 8
to 6
persons persons
Per
person
School
groups
site up
to 6
persons
School
groups
per
person
Additional
vehicle
4.61
-
-
4.15
0.69
0.72
Booking
fee ballot/
booked
period,
per site
0.79
5.13
-
-
-
-
0.72
0.79
-
3.79
-
3.41
0.69
0.72
0.79
-
4.21
-
3.79
0.76
0.72
0.79
-
2.94
1.50
1.47
0.76
2.65
-
0.53
-
0.72
-
0.79
-
SCHEDULE 2
Fees for special camping places year round (fee units per night)
Category
Lower Glenelg NP (Canoe Camp)
Mt Arapiles-Tooan SP
School
groups
per
person
Per
person
0.70
-
Boat /
Canoe /
Kayak
per
person
0.79
-
0.39
-
Booking
administration
(per booking)
Individuals
0.79
Groups
1.17
-
92
SCHEDULE 3
Fees for overnight hiker permits year round (fee units per night)
Category
Per
person
School
groups
per
person
Site 1-3
persons
Group
exclusive
Group site
1-3
Booking
administration (per
booking)
Alpine NP
(Falls to
Hotham
Alpine
Crossing)
Great Otway
NP
(Great Ocean
Walk)
Wilsons
Promontory
NP, Mt
Buffalo NP
-
-
2.34
16.82
2.10
Individuals
0.79
Groups
1.17
0.97
0.88
-
-
-
0.79
0.70
-
-
-
Individuals
0.79
Groups
1.17
Individuals
0.79
Groups
1.17
Croajingolong
NP
(Wilderness
Coast Walk),
Grampians
NP
Alpine NP,
Baw Baw NP,
Cobboboonee
NP,
Discovery
Bay CP,
Lower
Glenelg NP
(Great South
West Walk)
93
SCHEDULE 4
Fees for roofed accommodation (fee units per night)
Category
Peak Shoulder
season season
Off
peak
season
Booking fee ballot/ booked
period per
accommodation
Administration
fee – applies to
phone assisted
amendments
and changes to
bookings
6 Bed Cabins
Wilsons Promontory NP
23.70
18.96
17.34
0.79
1.56
4 Bed Huts
10.34
8.26
7.44
0.79
1.56
6 Bed Huts
15.75
12.59
11.33
0.79
1.56
12 Bed Lodges
38.59
30.87
27.79
0.79
1.56
24 Bed Lodge
77.70
62.16
55.94
0.79
1.56
30 Bed Lodge
97.13
77.90
69.94
0.79
1.56
Lightstation - Standard Plus
10.42
-
9.38
-
1.56
Lightstation - Standard
8.83
-
7.05
-
1.56
Wilderness Retreat - (Single
or twin share, with ensuites)
23.56
-
23.56
-
1.56
8 Bed Cabins
17.51
0.79
1.56
17 Bed Lodge
58.89
47.11
42.41
0.79
1.56
Wilderness (Single or twin
share, no ensuites)
14.14
-
14.14
0.79
1.56
-
1.56
14 Bed Shearers Quarters
29.14
Cape Conran CP
14.00
12.61
Murray-Sunset NP
-
NOTES
(1) The National Parks Act 1975 and its regulations must be observed and complied
with by the permit holder and any person accompanying the permit holder within a
Park.
(2) A permit is not transferable to another person.
(3) A permit is not valid until full payment is made.
(4) Failure to comply with a permit, the National Parks Act 1975 or its regulations may
result in any or all of the following occurring: the non-refundable cancellation of
your permit; an offence being committed, or a request to leave the park.
(5) School term dates are available on www.education.vic.gov.au.
94
Appendix G- Proposed fee structure
Detailed schedules of fees under the preferred option are provided below for permit camping, the camping pass system, special camping, overnight
hiker permit camping and roofed accommodation. Note that the final fee schedules will also express fees in terms of fee units. A fee unit is a fixed
quantum of dollars and cents that reflects one unit. This quantum changes each year with the Treasurer’s rate of inflation.
Table G.1: Proposed fees for permit camping (2013-14 peak rates)
Category
Site up to 8
persons
Very High - Non powered
Very High - Powered
Site up to 6
persons
Per person
School groups site
up to 6 persons
School groups per
person
Additional vehicle
$59.20
$53.30
$8.90
$9.20
$65.90
N/A
N/A
$9.20
High - Non powered
$48.70
$43.80
$8.80
$9.20
High - Powered
$54.10
$48.70
$9.70
$9.20
Mid
$37.80
$18.90
$34.00
$6.80
$9.20
$19.30
$9.70
N/A
N/A
N/A
Basic & Very Basic
1
Notes: Peak period rates apply from the Melbourne Cup Weekend to the last Sunday in April inclusive, and also for the September school holidays. A 10 per cent discount applies
during off-peak periods. For all parks conducting a ballot or expression of interest process for camping; a $10 ballot fee per campsite will apply for all successful applicants.
Table G.2: Proposed fees for camping pass (2013-14 rates)
Category
Per Vehicle/Boat
Small bus
Large bus
Motorcycle
Hiker/Cyclists
Additional vehicle
Annual
$121.70
$347.70
$608.50
$43.50
$43.50
TBD
Monthly
$81.10
$231.70
$405.50
$29.00
$29.00
TBD
7 Day
$46.40
$132.60
$232.00
$16.60
$16.60
N/A
Overnight
$17.40
$49.70
$87.00
$6.20
$6.20
N/A
95
Table G.3: Proposed fees for special camping sites (2013-14 rates)
Exclusive
School groups
site up to 6
persons
School Groups
per person
Site 1-4
persons
Per person
Boat / Canoe /
Kayak per
person
Booking
administration
(per booking)
Lower Glenelg NP Canoe
Camp
N/A
N/A
$9.00
N/A
N/A
$10.00
Individuals $10.00
Groups $15.00
Mt Arapiles- Tooan SP
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
$5.00
N/A
N/A
Plenty Gorge Parklands
Nioka Bush camp
$360 ($420 with
kitchen & hall)
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Yarra Valley Parklands
$315.00
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Category
Table G.4: Proposed fees for overnight hiker permits (2013-14 rates)
Category
Overnight
adult
Per person
School groups
per person
Site 1-3
persons
Group
exclusive
Group site 1-3
Booking
administration
(per booking)
Falls to Hotham Alpine
Crossing, Great Ocean
Walk
N/A
N/A
N/A
$30.00
$216.00
$27.00
Individuals $10.00
Groups $15.00
Wilsons Promontory NP,
Mt Buffalo NP
N/A
$12.50
$11.30
N/A
N/A
N/A
Individuals $10.00
Groups $15.00
96
Croajingolong National
Park (Wilderness Coast
Walk), Grampians
National Park, Alpine
National Park, Baw Baw
National Park,
Cobboboonee National
Park, Discovery Bay
Coastal Park, Lower
Glenelg National Park
(Great South West Walk)
N/A
$10.00
$9.00
N/A
N/A
N/A
Individuals $10.00
Groups $15.00
Table G.5: Proposed fees for roofed accommodation (2013-14 rates per accommodation)
Category
Peak season
Shoulder
season
Off peak
season
Extra person
Booking fee ballot/booked
period
34 Bed Bunkhouse - Plenty Gorge Nioka
Bush camp
$510.00
6 Bed Cabins - Wilsons Prom
$304.30
$243.40
$222.70
$10.00
$20
8 Bed Cabins - Cape Conran
$224.80
$179.80
$161.90
$10.00
$20
5 Bed Cabin - Buchan Caves
$95.60
N/A
$86.10
4 Bed Huts - Wilsons Prom
$132.70
$106.10
$95.50
$10.00
$20
6 Bed Huts - Wilsons Prom
$202.20
$161.70
$145.50
$10.00
$20
12 Bed Lodges - Wilsons Prom
$495.50
$396.40
$356.80
$10.00
$20
24 Bed Lodge - Wilsons Prom
$997.70
$798.10
$718.30
$10.00
$20
30 Bed Lodge - Wilsons Prom
$1,247.20
$997.70
$898.00
$10.00
$20
$756.10
$604.90
$544.50
$10.00
$20
Lightstation - Wilsons Prom Standard Plus
133.80
N/A
$120.50
$20
Lightstation - Wilsons Prom Standard
100.50
N/A
$90.50
$20
Lightstation - Gabo Island
$350.00
N/A
$315.00
$20
14 Bed Shearers Quarters - Murray Sunset
$374.10
17 Bed Lodge - Cape Conran
$510.00
Administration
fee – applies to
phone assisted b
$20
$20
$20
97
Wilderness Retreat - Wilsons Prom (Sole
use or twin share, with ensuites)
$302.50
N/A
$302.50
$24.20
Wilderness Retreat - Cape Conran &
Buchan Caves (Sole use or twin share, no
ensuites)
$181.50
N/A
$181.50
$21.80
$20
$10.00
$20
98
Accessibility
If you would like to receive this publication in an
accessible format, such as large print or audio,
please telephone 03 9651 5111 or
email scb@dpc.vic.gov.au
DSE 8302

victorian national parks camping and accommodation fees

Transcription

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