Our latest submission
The Environment Committee is currently considering the Natural and Bill Environment Bill and the Spatial Planning Bill. Our submission highlights our concerns with this legislation and how it needs to be improved.
Resource management in a nutshell
Resource management is about making difficult choices about limited resources, including:
- How do we use these resources to promote growth, combat climate change, protect the natural environment, and plan for the future?
- When these priorities are competing, what guides our decisions?
- Who makes those decisions and what do they need to consider?
Read the Resource Management reform fact sheet for a quick, easy overview of RM
The current system and its many layers
The piece of legislation guiding this right now is the Resource Management Act, which was introduced in 1991. Under the RMA, councils set the rules for things like where you can build houses, clear vegetation, move earth, or take water from a stream. The rules are supposed to make sure development won’t harm neighbours or communities, and that our air, water, soil and ecosystems and preserved and survive for future generations.
There are a lot of layers that make up the current system:
- First, the Government issues a National Direction. This creates a consistent approach nationwide on things like freshwater management and urban development. Councils must follow the national direction in their plans.
- Second, regional councils and unitary authorities develop Regional Policy Statements. These are strategic documents that set out how regions sustainably manage natural and physical resources and provide an overview of resource management issues in a region.
- Third, there are Regional Plans that set out how natural and physical resources will be managed in a region. They set out rules and regulations for how things like soil, rivers and groundwater can be used.
- Fourth is District Plans that set out rules that people who want to use the land in that district need to comply with. District plans are a place-based expression of all the overarching plans and policies.
Taken together, these plans create a system that sets out where you can do things, what you’re allowed to do (i.e., don’t need consent for) and what you’re not allowed to do (i.e., do need consent for).
Council’s current role
Councils operate all parts of the current system, including developing the plans – with input from their communities. To get consent, people need to apply to the relevant council. Councils are responsible for making sure these conditions are met and consents are complied with – and take enforcement action where that’s not happening.
The current system is too complex and needs to change
This system has been criticised for being overly complex, slow-moving, and frustrating – for councils and communities alike. It’s a time-consuming process for plans to be developed and consents to be issued, the rules across the country are inconsistent, and the system is vulnerable to court challenge.
There is also feedback that the current system is making place-based planning harder – and the plans that are delivered have less local ownership than in the past.
We’ve heard the system hasn’t helped address New Zealand’s growth and development needs, nor has it resulted in better outcomes for our natural environment.
Essentially, there’s a widespread, shared view that change is needed. A simpler, more efficient system is needed – that both enables development and protects the environment.
The proposed new system and its differences
The Government has made in-principal decisions to shift to a regional planning model. The Resource Management Act 1991 and the current process will be repealed and replaced with three new acts:
- Natural and Built Environments Act – legislates the Natural and Built Environments Plans
- Spatial Planning Act – legislates the regional spatial strategies
- Climate Adaptation Act – this legislation isn't clear yet.
Natural and Built Environments Plan aims to simplify
Instead of each individual regional council preparing a regional policy statement and regional plans, and each individual territorial and unitary authority preparing a district plan, one Natural and Built Environments Plan will be prepared for each region. This is legislated by the Natural and Built Environments Act.
This plan will cover similar ground to existing planning documents - including resource use, allocation, and land use management. It will still give effect to the national direction (renamed the National Planning Framework).
A key difference is this will not be developed by councils, but instead by a joint planning committee. This committee will have representatives from local government and iwi. Each council might have one representative on the committee – at the most.
The committee will be supported by a secretariat and community feedback will be sought. Once plans have been drafted, an Independent Hearings Panel will consider the plans and will make recommendations on the draft, back to the committee.
Regional Spatial Strategy sets out a region’s growth
Legislated by the Spatial Planning Act, each region will also now be required to produce a Regional Spatial Strategy. This will identify how a region will grow over the next 30 years. It will identify long-term objectives for growth and land use, make sure development is coordinated and in the right place, and identify areas to be protected, among other things.
This strategy will again be developed by a joint planning committee. This joint planning committee will have representatives from local government and iwi. There’ll also be a central government representative – which is about making sure central government is across regions’ long-term goals.
This joint committee will also be supported by a secretariat and communities will provide input as the strategy is developed.
Climate Adaptation Act’s role uncertain
This legislation isn’t clear yet, although we understand it may set out a framework for managed retreat.
Current vs future system diagrams
We agree change is needed but we have concerns about the proposed new system
We agree that our current resource management system is not delivering the best outcomes for New Zealand communities.
Feedback from councils and communities says that our resource management system is complex and time-consuming. This adds costs to businesses and communities, while not necessarily providing councils with the tools to enable urban growth and protect the environment.
So, we broadly support the Government’s five objectives for the reform, which are to:
- Protect and restore the environment and its capacity to provide for the wellbeing of present and future generations.
- Better enable development within natural environmental limits.
- Give proper recognition to the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and provide greater recognition of te ao Māori and mātauranga Māori.
- Better prepare for adapting to climate change and risks from natural hazards, and better mitigate emissions contributing to climate change.
- Improve system efficiency and effectiveness and reduce complexity while retaining appropriate local democratic input.
Our areas of concern
We’re not confident the approach taken by the Government to repeal the RMA and replace it with three new pieces of legislation will meet the Government’s objectives. Our concerns are:
- Although the proposal significantly reduces the number of resource management plans in the system, it could create more complex and expensive governance and plan-making processes for communities and ratepayers.
- Could diminish the role and voice of local councils/communities in influencing and making decisions about their place, by shifting the responsibility of local plan-making from councils to joint committees.
- Councils will be responsible for funding and resourcing the development of regional spatial strategies and natural and built environment plans, despite their plan-making responsibility being removed. They’ll also have to continue fund and resource existing plan-making and consenting activities.
- It’s unclear on how joint committees’ secretariat will be supported and funded by local authorities.
- Although we're pleased to see the new system elevating the role of Iwi/Hapu in decision-making around the natural and built environment through the establishment of the New Maori Entity, this cost could fall to local councils and Iwi/Hapu.
- We support the support the introduction of the National Planning Framework - but further work is needed to help joint committees understand how to prioritise and balance the outcomes sought from Natural and Built Environments Plans and Regional Spatial Strategies.
Read our paper: Council Views on Resource Management Reform. This paper explains LGNZ’s current position on RM reform, which has been informed by member feedback.
November 2022 RM Bills and our submission outline
The Government’s resource management reform bills had their first reading on Tuesday 22 November. These bills have now been referred to the Environment Select Committee – with a deadline of 30 January 2023 for written submissions.
We've shared an outline of our submission for two reasons:
- We want to provide as much support as possible as you prepare your own submission. The outline flags issues that we think all councils will be concerned with and potentially want to submit on.
- We also genuinely want your feedback to shape our actual submission. Depending on your feedback, our draft submission could look quite different from the outline that we’re sharing today.
Please provide feedback on the outline by Friday 9 December to submission@lgnz.co.nz
Unpacking Resource Management Zoom series
This series is designed specifically for councillors by LGNZ. It’s about getting up to speed with this complex reform without being bombarded by acronyms and technical language, so that you can form your own view on this reform and what it means.
These Zoom sessions will be held monthly for the rest of 2022 and include follow up material and resources. We'll continue to post each session's recording and material here when completed. All councillors and relevant council staff are welcome.
Unpacking Resource Management #1: What it is and why it's changing
Our first Zoom covered what resource management is, how the current system works, and an overview of the proposed new system. It provided a basic understanding so that future sessions can move into critique and explore critical issues in more detail.
The session featured expert local government speakers, a panel discussion, and a Q&A.
Watch the recording (access passcode: 08921078)
A basic written overview
Want a short, simple document that explains resource management, the current system and the proposed new system?
Unpacking Resource Management #2: LGNZ’s concerns
This session took a deeper look at what the Resource Management reform is trying to achieve – and LGNZ’s perspective on whether these objectives can or will be achieved.
Our Policy and Advocacy Director Grace Hall delved into LGNZ’s concerns about the reform and options for addressing them, which we strongly encourage you to feed into. A panel discussion featuring Young Elected Members brought a range of perspectives to the objectives and concerns that Grace discussed. Then before we got into the Q&A, Ranjani Ponnuchetty, our Chief Advisor, shared our political and media advocacy.
- Watch recording (access passcode: 86281823)
- See table summarising Govt objectives and our response
- Read key points from Minister David Parker’s LGNZ conference speech on RM
- Read the Minister’s full conference speech
Unpacking Resource Management #3: The Resource Management Reform Local Government Steering Group
In this session, we explored the role of the Resource Management Reform Local Government Steering Group. The group was developed off the back of LGNZ advocacy and has been providing feedback to central government as the reform has developed.
Members of the group discussed the scope of their role, plus the impact their mahi has had so far. In addition, they flagged some things to start thinking about as we all gear up to submit on the draft bills later this year. And work that councils can start doing now to make the transition to the new system easier.
We gave a LGNZ Advocacy update, summarising the letter we recently wrote to Environment Minister David Parker about our key concerns regarding the current reform proposal and our recommendations for improvement. We’ve also shared the response from the Minister.
- Watch session (access passcode: 07163040)
- Read our full letter
- Read a summary of our letter
- Read Minister Parker’s response
Unpacking Resource Management #4: governance and decision-making arrangements
Our most recent session took a deep dive into proposed governance and decision-making arrangements, and how resource management reform potentially links with the Future for Local Government.
Our engaging speakers included Dr Stefanie Rixecker, Chief Executive, Environment Canterbury; David Langford, Chief Executive, Whanganui District Council; and Kath Ross, GM Strategy and Reform, Taituarā.
Watch the recording (access passcode: 43879505)