The Environment Select Committee has returned its recommendations in relation to the Natural and Built Environments Bill (NBB) and the Spatial Planning Bill (SPB), the two pieces of legislation that will replace the Resource Management Act 1991 (the Bills). The Environment Select Committee has made a number of changes to the Bills, some more controversial …
The Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) is an extensive and complicated system with an increasing media presence in climate change related topics. The most recent example being a judicial review filed 9 May 2023 by Lawyers for Climate Action against the cabinet decision made by Minister for Climate Change James Shaw on the ETS. But what …
The Climate Change Commission (CCC) has released a draft report with recommendations for New Zealand’s second emissions reduction plan, covering 2026-2030. The CCC is one of New Zealand’s key tools in monitoring and limiting climate change effects under the Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Act 2019. The CCC provides independent, expert advice to relevant …
Forestry Scrutinised by the Climate Change Commission Read More »
This article provides an update to our previous article on the National Planning Framework (NPF) dated 19 December 2022. To recap, the Natural and Built Environment Bill (NBE Bill) and the Spatial Planning Bill (SPB) are currently at the select committee stage with the intention of being passed into law in mid-2023. Recently the Ministry …
RMA Reforms: Update on the National Planning Framework Read More »
The Natural and Built Environment Bill (NBE Bill) has created a new single integrated framework called the National Planning Framework (NPF). The NPF will be the equivalent of what is currently national direction under the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) by carrying though National Policy Statements, National Environmental Standards, National Planning Standards, and some regulations …
As of 30 November 2022 the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) has been amended to require local government to ‘have regard to’ the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) and the Emissions Reduction Plan (ERP) when preparing or changing a regional policy statement or plan under the RMA. Before then, local government when developing regional policy statements …
Climate change continues to influence planning processes Read More »
The Spatial Planning Bill (SPB) is New Zealand’s first formal framework for spatial planning and requires central government, local government and Māori to work together as a regional planning committee (RPC) to develop a regional spatial strategy (RSS). As an overview, the SPB works in tandem with the Natural and Built Environment Bill (NBE Bill) …
The Natural and Built Environment Bill (NBE Bill) has introduced provisions into the NBE Bill to clarify and improve the management of contaminated land, and introduces a framework for the polluter pays principle. In the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) there are no sections that regulate contaminated land. Instead regulations for contaminated land are located …
RMA Reforms: Contaminated Land and Polluter Pays Principle Read More »
It’s just on two weeks since the new RMA was revealed with the introduction of the Natural and Built Environment Bill (NBA). An early look at consenting regimes under the NBA indicates that while some aspects are similar to the RMA, some aspects are very different. We highlight some of these differences below. Activity status …
The Natural and Built Environment Bill (NBA) heralds the end of a traditional first-in first-served approach to resource allocation, particularly in respect of freshwater. The NBA introduces three resource allocation ‘principles’ – which are sustainability, equity, and efficiency. The National Planning Framework (NPF) can give further detail on the meaning of these principles, and they …
