3.4 Survey Regulations: Demarcation and Beacon Construction

3.4 Survey Regulations: Demarcation and Beacon Construction

Source: Survey Regulations, Part III (Demarcation), regulations 10 to 23, made under the Survey Law.

The dimensions below are prescribed in imperial units in the Regulations. Quote them as drafted; the metric equivalents are given for context only.

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1. Construction of survey boundary marks (regulation 10)

Save for mining areas, and subject to modifications the Surveyor-General may authorise in special cases and under regulation 11, survey boundary marks shall be constructed as follows.

(a) At every change of direction - the Property Beacon

Concrete pillars (Property Beacons) measuring seven inches square in section, with three inches above ground and two feet three inches below, and having a metal pin or spike in the centre of the surface.

The centre pin or spike is not decorative: it defines the mathematical vertex, and it is the point to which the coordinates in your computation refer.

Marking. The Regulation distinguishes by who emplaces the pillar:

• Officer of the Survey Division - the symbol, the letters "P.B.", and an identification letter and number shall be stamped on the pillar.
• Licensed surveyor - two identification letters and a number shall be stamped. Where such pillars are later incorporated in a survey made by an officer of the Survey Division, the symbol shall be added.

The one-letter / two-letter distinction is a quick examination discriminator, and it exists so that the origin of any pillar found in the field can be read off the pillar itself.

(b) At intermediate corners in layouts - the cemetery-type pillar

Concrete pillars measuring four inches square in section, with three inches above ground and one foot three inches below, and having a metal pin or spike in the centre of the surface. These are for intermediate corners in layouts, not for changes of direction on a boundary.

(c) Inside a building

An "X" with an identification number shall be cut or painted on the outside of the building at the points at which it is intersected by the boundary. Officers of the Survey Division will use a double arrow.

(d) At an obstacle

If a beacon cannot be placed in the true position, an iron pin shall be set in concrete in the obstacle and the identification number stamped near the pin. If the obstacle is of a material in which a pin cannot be sunk and the number cannot be cut or stamped, a dot may be marked on it with the identification marks. In every such case the position of the pin or dot relative to the true position of the beacon shall be clearly shown in the field book.

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2. Large country surveys (regulation 11)

For large country surveys other than mining surveys requiring a large number of beacons, demarcation may - subject to the agreement of the person for whom the survey is undertaken - be made by hardwood pegs, angle irons and the like, capped with a circular pat of cement of at least six inches diameter bearing the regulation 10(a) identification marks. Such marks shall, after the necessary measurements have been made, be covered by a mound of earth or stones at least two feet high.

But there is a hard exception: where azimuths are observed, or connections are made to Government survey beacons or to another survey, three consecutive stations shall be marked by concrete pillars as described in regulation 10(a). The economy of pegs is permitted for the bulk of a large boundary, never for the control on which it hangs.

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3. Mining areas (regulation 12)

For areas the subject of applications under the Minerals Act, boundaries shall be demarcated by mushroom-shaped concrete pillars:

• the underground portion shall be undercut, at least six inches in diameter at the base, and sunk to a depth of eight inches;
• the upper portion shall have a diameter of ten inches and project six inches above ground;
• the upper surface shall be smooth with a hole about one quarter of an inch in diameter at the centre; and
• the letters E.P.L., M.L. or M.R. with the allotted number shall be marked on top in characters and figures not less than one inch in height, on the side adjacent to the land in question, with direction arrows drawn to indicate the course of the boundary.

Regulation 24 adds the survey rules for these areas: the surveyed boundaries shall conform as closely as possible to the positions indicated by the applicant's beacons; the surveyor's ruling as to the positions of the beacons shall be final; where the beaconed area exceeds the statutory limit by not more than twenty per cent the surveyor has entire discretion to alter beacon positions to bring the area within the limit; and where the area cannot be identified on the ground, or exceeds the area applied for by twenty per cent or more, the surveyor shall report to the Surveyor-General.

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4. Concrete, numbering and returns (regulations 13 and 14)

Regulation 13(1) - consistency of concrete. Concrete prepared for the purposes of regulations 10 to 12 shall comprise not more than five parts of sand, or sand and rubble, to one of cement. Note the form of the rule: it is a maximum leanness, expressed as an aggregate-to-cement ratio, not a three-part mix prescription.

Regulation 13(2) requires an applicant for a Survey Division survey to inform the Surveyor-General whether he intends to provide all beacons and material himself or wishes them to be supplied.

Regulation 14 - allotment of distinctive letters. The Surveyor-General shall allot the distinctive letters prefixing the consecutive numbers stamped on all property beacons emplaced by licensed surveyors. Licensed surveyors shall forward to the Surveyor-General each month a list of all the numbered beacons used by them the previous month; if no beacons have been used, a "Nil" return shall be made.

The monthly return, including the nil return, is a genuine and frequently overlooked practice obligation. It is the mechanism that keeps beacon numbers unique across a State.

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5. Timing and placing (regulations 15 to 18)

• Regulation 15 - time of demarcation. The demarcation of all boundaries shall be done prior to or simultaneously with the measurements determining their positions. You do not measure first and beacon afterwards from computed values.
• Regulation 16 - placing of beacons. Beacons shall be placed at the intersections of a boundary with important roads and streams; and on long straight lines, intermediate beacons shall be so emplaced that consecutive beacons are intervisible and not more than a quarter of a mile apart.
• Regulation 17 - proof of compliance. When a beacon is placed in accordance with computed data or in line with two beacons, proof must be shown by actual measurements recorded in the field book, and any necessary computations, that the beacon has been placed in accordance with the required conditions - except for the direct lining-in of cemetery-type beacons in regular layouts.
• Regulation 18 - where a corner site is not possible. Where, owing to interference with traffic or for any other reason, a beacon cannot be placed at a corner, a beacon shall be placed on each of the lines intersecting at the corner and as close to it as possible. And expressly: no beacon shall be placed where it would interfere with, or be inconvenient to, traffic.

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6. Lines, trees and natural boundaries (regulations 19 to 22)

• Regulation 19 - clearance. In forest or scrub country, boundary lines shall be cleared of undergrowth and trees of no economic value only, to a width of four feet.
• Regulation 20 - blazing. Trees within two feet of the line, provided their economic value is not impaired, shall be blazed on both sides in the direction of the line; trees through which the line passes shall be double blazed on each side in the direction of the line.
• Regulation 21 - railways, roads and rivers.
  • Railway reserve as boundary - the position of all tangent points shall be beaconed as accurately as possible by inspection on the ground, and the radii of the curves and the lengths of the chords shall be recorded.
  • Road as boundary - beacons at all turning points of the road; the boundary is defined by the chords joining those beacons, which shall conform with existing regulations and by-laws defining the width of roads.
  • River as boundary - beacons only at points between which the river is the boundary; they must be placed on the river bank above flood level, and the distances from the beacons to the river bank shown on the plan.
• Regulation 22 - curves. Wherever possible the adoption of curved boundaries shall be avoided, straight lines from point to point being used in lieu of curves.