Overhaul aims for faster, cheaper, better builds

The Government’s long-awaited overhaul of the ‘‘broken’’ Resource Management Act – the law that governs built environments – will aim to speed up consents, get more houses built and better protect the environment.

Environment Minister David Parker said the new laws would cut red tape, aimed to lower costs and speed up the time it took for new homes and infrastructure projects to be approved.

‘‘It needs to be faster, cheaper and better,’’ Parker said. ‘‘We will be helping local government tame their planning departments.’’

He said reform was ‘‘overdue’’. ‘‘Everyone is frustrated – environmentalists, developers, councils, farmers, home builders, and there is cross-party support for the need to replace and repeal the RMA.’’

The new plans will see a 19% reduction in costs a year, the Government claims, adding up to about $10 billion over 30 years. The Government also took aim at rules that allowed for ‘‘NIMBYism’’ – for preventing development and contributing to rapid land prices rises.

The changes include a major shift of land use and resource rules, stripping more than 100 plans down to 15 regional-level plans created by committees of local and central government, and Mā ori.

The Government did not go as far as to implement co-governance regional committees that develop the regional plans, with no restriction on the size, except to have at least six representatives, including at least two Mā ori members.

The Government anticipates the consent process will be significantly sped up. Meanwhile, new plans set clear expectations to have a housing supply that exceeds the anticipated demand, that restrictions do not lead to inflated land prices and the plan contributes to the availability of more housing, and affordable housing choices.

There will be fewer consents to process, with the weight of decision-making at early planning stages, with the hope of fewer delays at the consent stage.

Central government will have more power, with an aim to allow for more building or activities to reduce consenting cost and delays.

The new rules also give local authorities the ability to enforce stronger conditions, compliance and enforcement powers.

Mā ori will have decision-making roles at the national, regional and local levels, including a new national entity to monitor Tiriti o Waitangi performance and provide input into the national planning framework under the Natural and Built Environment Act (NBA), one of the proposed new laws.

The framework involves water and air quality, and to aid infrastructure development.

Under the RMA, there was a requirement to take Tiriti principles into account, while the reforms require people and organisation to ‘‘give effect’’ to the principles.

The NBA is set to take the bulk from the Resource Management Act, with powers to protect, restore and enhance environmental protection of areas such as estuaries and coastlines, the reduction of greenhouse gases and to protect human health.

Parker said the previous ‘‘effects-based approach’’ saw small adverse effects which accumulated into significant environmental degradation – ‘‘most notably with water quality and loss of biodiversity and top soil’’.

There will be bottom lines for environmental degradation that are not allowed to be breached.

‘‘We will be helping local government tame their planning departments.’’

David Parker

Environment Minister