[LINK] Dept Environment NSW outsource walking maps

[Richard Chirgwin]

Kim Holburn wrote:
> On 2010/Jan/15, at 5:17 PM, Stilgherrian wrote:
>
>   
>> Following Richard Chirgwin's concerns about the apparent re-grading  
>> of NSW bushwalks to make them appear easier, I did some research.  
>> The results are in a Crikey piece that is, alas, behind the paywall  
>> -- though there's a 21-day free trial if you want the whole story  
>> now. It will emerge from the paywall after 2 weeks.
>>
>> http://www.crikey.com.au/2010/01/15/bushwalking-cross-check-everything-even-official-advice/
>>
>> Long story short, the bushwalks were NOT re-rated to make them look  
>> easier. I was instead just a screw-up. Or, as the NSW Department of  
>> Environment, Climate Change and Water put it officially, a  
>> "migration error". They had been notified earlier in the week and  
>> the website was fixed yesterday. Actually pretty prompt service.
>>
>> So far the rating and descriptions of 24 of the hundreds of  
>> bushwalks in NSW have been outsources to Wildwalks. They use trained  
>> staff to apply -- and this blew me away -- Australian Standard AS  
>> 2156.1-2001 Walking Tracks Classification and Signage.
>>     
>
> Surely someone in Standards Australia has too much time on their hands.
>   
Actually, if the standard is applied consistently, it's a very good idea.

One of the many reasons that people get into trouble in the bush - 
either dying or needing rescue - is because they have a poor estimation 
of what they're attempting. If people understand that "hard" means what 
it says, they're less likely to treat a walk like a stroll and go out 
with one litre of water when they need five.

My original gripe related, in part, to the need for consistency, given 
that the Web is going to be the first source of walk information for 
many people; it therefore needs to be accurate and consistent, within 
the scope of what you can expect from a Website.

RC
> Kim
>
>