The Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) sets guidelines for the use of New Zealand's natural and physical resources, in both the urban and rural environment.
Local authorities (ie, district, city and regional councils) are required to implement the RMA and oversee its day to day running. The main way we do this is by drawing up district and regional plans - documents that interpret the objectives of the RMA and translate these into actual rules and laws that apply within specific districts and regions.
Permission must be obtained to carry out activities that are restricted or controlled by the rules set out in the district plan. This is done by applying for a resource consent.
There are 2 main types of resource consent for District council's:
When
When a resource consent is needed
You must apply for resource consent when you plan to carry out activities that:
- are not permitted "as of right" in the district or regional plan or
- exceed the rules of the district or regional plan in some way.
Activities are broken up into five different levels, ranging from those that have limited environmental impact, to those with the potential to pose a major risk.
To find out whether you need to apply for resource consent, contact us to discuss your proposed activity. You will also find the rules and controls relating to specific activities by referring to the relevant section of the district plan.
If you believe that your proposed activity is permitted or can be carried out without resource consent, you may wish to apply for a certificate of compliance.
The five different levels of activity
The particular level that your proposed activity falls into will determine:
- whether or not you need to apply for a resource consent, and
- the degree of discretion that local authorities have to either restrict or permit your proposed activity.
The five different levels of activity are:
- Permitted activities
- Controlled activities
- Discretionary activities
- Non-complying activities
- Prohibited activities
Permitted activities
No resource consent is required for these activities. However, the district plan may stipulate certain standards that must be complied with for the activity to be permitted (eg noise, maximum height, building coverage and floor area controls, etc). See also Certificate of compliance
Controlled activities
A resource consent is required for these activities. The consent will be granted, but local authorities have the discretion to impose conditions to control the effects of the activity.
There are two types of controlled activities
i. Restricted controlled activities
These are activities listed in the district plan which will be considered without notification or the need to obtain written approval of affected persons (unless special circumstances exist).
ii.Controlled activities
In some circumstances, these may have characteristics which can cause adverse impacts on the surrounding environment. To avoid this, conditions can be applied relating to:
- design and external appearance of buildings and other structures
- landscape design, site layout location and design of vehicular and pedestrian access to and from the site
- carparking
- control of minor adverse effects on the environment
Discretionary activities
A resource consent is required. Local authorities assess consent applications at this level according to criteria set out in the relevant district/regional plan, and have the discretion to grant or refuse the consent.
The district plan provides for three types of discretionary activities
i. Restricted discretionary activities
These are activities listed in the district plan which will be considered without notification or the need to obtain the written approval of affected persons (unless special circumstances exist).
ii. Listed discretionary activities
Some activities, because of their scale, location, intensity, or operational characteristics require particular assessment to determine whether they are suitable.
iii. Development control modifications
The development controls in the district plan are designed to control the effect of activities on the environment and amenity of the district. In certain circumstances, the characteristics of a site may make strict compliance with development controls inappropriate. The district plan therefore provides the opportunity for these controls to be modified.
A discretionary activity must be assessed to determine if it will have any effects on the surrounding area such as traffic generation, noise, design and appearance.
Non-complying activities
A resource consent is required. Non-complying activities are activities that are not necessarily prohibited, but which:
- breach standards contained in a district/regional plan, or
- are not provided for in the plans.
Consent for these activities will only be granted if:
- any adverse environmental effects they may have is minor, or
- the activities are not contrary to the objectives and policies of the relevant plan.
Prohibited activities
Resource consent applications will not be accepted for these activities, which are those that are specified as prohibited under a district or regional plan. The only way to change the status of prohibited activities is to change the plans themselves.
Land Use consent
There are a wide range of activities we undertake in Buller which have certain legal requirements attached. To carry them out we need what is known as a consent. Essentially, a consent is approval from the Council to undertake some activity.
The rules relating to land use consents are contained within the Council’s district plan. The rules are contained within the following parts –
- Part 5 - Character areas
- Part 6 – Infrastructure, services and other activities district wide
- Part 7 - District wide rules
Land use consents are most commonly required for;
- Overhead power lines
- Advertising signs
- Vegetation clearance
- Boundary encroachments
- Mining and prospecting
- Large scale commercial activity
- New roads
- Factory farming
- Any activity that complies with the controlled or discretionary standards for the zone
- And any activity which does not comply with the standards for permitted activity in the zone
Subdivision consent
Subdivision consent is one type of resource consent provided for under the Resource Management Act 1991. Most subdivisions cannot take place in the Buller district without receiving subdivision consent from the Council, although some types of subdivisions are permitted without Council consent.
Subdivision includes freehold and leasehold land, cross leases and unit titles.
The rules relating to subdivision consents are contained within the following parts of the district plan –
- Part 5 - Character Areas
- Part 7 - District Wide Rules
Part 5 also has rules relating to what activities are permitted in the zones. Where the subdivision is for a purpose or building which is not a permitted activity, a land use consent will also be required.
How
How do I apply for a land use consent?
You (or someone representing you) will need to complete an application form and submit it to Council. There are individual application forms for power line and sign installation, all other activities require a resource consent application to be completed.
It is important to supply as much information as possible in order that the consent can be processed in the minimum time. If we need to request further information from you, this will affect when we can being processing your application.
The basic information that will be required includes;
- completed application form
- written description of the proposal (this may include how the proposal complies with the district plan provisions)
- Assessment of Environmental Effects (this should include, but not be limited to issues such as increases in traffic, effects on vegetation and visual impacts of buildings)
- location plan of the proposed activity (this should include the positions of boundaries, any features of natural or historic significance, any existing or proposed buildings, fences or landmarks, such as hills, plantation or lake)
- Written affected parties approval, such as neighbours and Transit New Zealand
- A deposit fee
- the proposal satisfies the objectives and policies of the district plan
- the environmental effects will be minor
How much will it cost and how long will it take?
A deposit must accompany all applications. If the costs of processing your application are more than this fee the additional costs will be charged.
Once Council has been supplied with sufficient information to assess the application, a decision will be made as to whether or not the application requires notification. In general, permitted and controlled subdivisions will not require notification.
To avoid notification of discretionary and non-controlled subdivisions, the written approval of all affected parties must be obtained and Council must be satisfied that;
If the application is notified, a hearing will usually be required to determine its outcome. If the decision is non-notified, the Council will endeavour to issue a decision within 20 working days.
Conditions of the consent are imposed to ensure that developments are sound from both engineering and environmental aspects and to protect other landowners or future residents.
Consent process for subdivisions
- Decide on whether you want to subdivide your land and what uses you wish to put the land to.
- Research the relevant rules in the district plan. You are likely to require subdivision consent and may require a land use consent.
- Find out whether you also need any separate consents such as a water permit, or a discharge permit. These maybe required by the West Coast Regional Council, phone (03) 768 0466.
- Decide on whether to proceed taking into account the chances of success.
- Design your subdivision taking into account any requirements in the district plan. For subdivisions involving several lots, careful consideration is required regarding roading and other services and a team approach with surveyors and other resource management consultants may be necessary.
- Prepare the subdivision consent application along with any other applications required. If the application is complicated, you may require the services of a surveyor or other resource management consultants.
- The District Council (along with the Regional Council if necessary) will normally consider all the applications at the same time and issue you with a decision. You have 3 weeks to appeal a decision if the application is declined or a condition is unacceptable to you.
- If you gain subdivision consent, you have five years in which to present a survey plan for Council’s approval. A registered surveyor must complete the survey work and prepare survey plans in accordance with the subdivision consent. The Council will examine the plans for compliance with the resource consent application and affix its common seal. After that you have three years to complete deposit of the survey plan. In order to complete deposit, you will need a certificate from the Council under Section 224 of the Act. This certificate states that all subdivision conditions have been complied with.
- The survey plan then proceeds through Land Information New Zealand Land Titles checking system in accordance with Section 224 of the Act and new certificates of title are issued.
What to include in a subdivision application
- Completed application form
- Written description of the proposal (this may include how the proposal complies with the District Plan provisions)
- Assessment of Environmental Effects (this should include, but not be limited to issues such as increases in traffic, effects on vegetation and visual impacts of buildings)
- A subdivision plan (this should include the positions of existing and proposed boundaries, any features of natural or historic significance, any existing or proposed buildings, fences or landmarks, such as hills, plantation or lakes, location of existing or proposed easements etc)
- Certificate of Title
- Written affected parties approval, such as neighbours and Transit New Zealand
- Deposit fee.
Once Council has been supplied with sufficient information to assess the application, a decision will be made as to whether or not the application requires notification. In general, permitted and controlled subdivisions will not require notification. To avoid notification of discretionary and non-controlled subdivisions, the written approval of all affected parties must be obtained and Council must be satisfied that the proposal either satisfies the objectives and policies of the District Plan, and the environmental effects will be minor. If the application is notified, a hearing will usually be required to determine its outcome. If the decision is non-notified, the Council will endeavour to issue a decision within 20 working days.
The Resource Management Act 1991 (usually called the 'RMA') is the main piece of legislation that sets out how we should manage our environment. It's based on the idea of the sustainable management of our resources.
For additional information, please contact Council's planning department on 788 9111
