Insights

The Fast Track Approvals Bill is one of the most controversial legislative proposals in New Zealand for some time. The Bill aims to deliver infrastructure and development projects that will have significant regional and national economic benefits. But can these benefits be delivered without unacceptable costs to the environment?

The extent to which the proposed end use of water (rather than just the effects on the environment of extracting the water) can be considered when granting consent has been a hotly contested issue in resource management law for some time. 

The National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity (NPSIB) came into effect from 4 August 2023. It provides national direction on how to identify and protect significant indigenous biodiversity.

The Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) requires councils to monitor the state of the environment, planning policies and processes, and resource consents issued under the RMA, and to take appropriate action to enforce the requirements of the RMA where necessary.

The government has announced that the RMA will be repealed and replaced by the end of the current Parliamentary term.  The RMA governs how business that use or affect our land, air, water or natural or coastal resources can operate.  What emerges from the upcoming law reform process will shape how many businesses operate, and also how New Zealanders live, work, and play for many decades.  If you want to engage effectively in the upcoming process, then it is important to get ready now.