Simpson Scott; Parker DavidHon SCOTT SIMPSON (National—Coromandel): Thank you Mr Chair. I want to turn to Subpart 4 of Part 11 in particular reference to emergency works". Across the nation this year we've had some horrific weather with awful impacts on land property and people's lives; my area in the beautiful Coromandel has been particularly harshly hit. So Subpart 4 provides a range of emergency works provisions where there are exclusions for work to be done when circumstances such as a civil emergency is declared work that can be done without a consent during a period of time consents for emergency work power to take preventive action or remedial action—that's quite an extensive area there.But I want to particularly refer to clause 755(3): "The person who authorised the activity must within 60 working days of the notification under subsection (2) apply in writing for the appropriate consent authority for any necessary resource consents required in respect of the activity". So it provides an opportunity for work to be done and then a retrospective consenting process to occur. There are times when some of the emergency work that needs to be done for instance a clear road on the Thames coast somewhere between Thames and Coromandel where you have a steep hillside; a narrow winding road and then the foreshore immediately adjacent. In years gone by in a less enlightened time road repair workers would simply bulldoze their way through the slip and literally push it into the tide and that's what they'd do—no consent required nothing of that nature. What's now required is that that slip be cleared that the waste be trucked to a consented waste deposit area and my concern is that sometimes that is simply not practical. I'm interested to know from the Minister whether consideration was given to maybe providing a more flexible arrangement that would allow for an activity that may be—under normal circumstances; under normal weather events; under what we would consider a "business as usual" operating situation—not acceptable but in an emergency situation is entirely acceptable; entirely practical and yes may not meet best practice but will actually mean that people's lives and their ability to communicate to travel and to just go about the day-to-day business that they need to do—particularly in an emergency situation—could be better applied for.I also want to ask the Minister specifically about a situation that a colleague of mine Nicola Grigg has raised on a number of occasions where farmers in her neck of the woods—in her Selwyn electorate—have a situation where there is a flooding area where braided rivers or streams can actually be clogged and full of debris and then the farmer has a time-limited ability to clear that away but the time limit is actually relatively short—I can't remember it and I can't at the moment see it at my fingertips. But I'm interested to know whether there was consideration by the Minister or his officials to making these rules a little less formulaic a little more practical and a little more user-friendly under the difficult and challenging situations that exist when we have a civil defence emergency having been put in place.Hon DAVID PARKER (Minister for the Environment): More good news for the member—Hon Scott Simpson: Thank you! It's getting better.Hon DAVID PARKER: Ha ha! The only time you have to apply for a resource consent is if there is a long-term adverse effect from what is done in the emergency so you can respond during the emergency and do whatever's required under the emergency management legislation but if there's an ongoing adverse effect you do effectively have to apply to either regularise it and let that adverse effect apply forever or get some other way to deal with it. In 2020 we changed that period during which if there is a long-term effect the period that you've got to apply for your resource consent was doubled from 30 working days to 60 working days because this was a real problem—60 working days is 12 weeks which is you know three months really—Hon Scott Simpson: It's about the same length as an Official Information Act request.Hon DAVID PARKER: Ha ha! So—Stuart Smith: They always ask for more time.Hon DAVID PARKER: Ha ha! That's right you always ask. So yeah I think that's the answer to that. Whether you do need a resource consent: some of these things are permitted activities for example a lot of plans throughout the country allow a lot of remedial roadworks—not all remedial roadworks—or works to the railway line and things; that's a permitted activity you don't even need a resource consent."