Thursday, August 19, 2010

Living on (bread and) water



So you're thinking of living permanently on your boat? Think again! You may need a larger boat just to store all the rules and regulations that govern such an innocent pursuit:

The appropriate laws are contained in the "Management of Waters and Waterside Lands Regulations—N.S.W."

The maximum amount of time you can live on board is 21 days in every 6 months. Beyond this, your vessel becomes a "moored houseboat," and there are requirements.

Firstly, you need special permission from NSW Maritime, or from the Crown.

Before it even comes down to a NSW Maritime decision, you must have two things:

1. Written permission from the landowner who owns the land you will use to access your vessel, that they approve of the use of the land for that purpose;

2.Written approval from the council of the nearest adjoining land, that they do not dissapprove of you living on board the vessel, and the standard of living therein.