Adams Amy: Resource Management Reform Bill — First Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Adams Amy: Resource Management Reform Bill — First Reading 
[Sitting date: 11 December 2012. Volume:686;Page:7330. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon AMY ADAMS (Minister for the Environment) 
: 
 I move  
That the Resource Management Reform Bill be now read a first time. 
 I nominate the Local Government and Environment Committee to consider the bill. Resource management reform is a key part of the Government’s Business Growth Agenda. New Zealand needs a resource management system that enables growth provides good environmental outcomes and is capable of adapting to changing values pressures and technology. In 2008 the National-led Government initiated a two-phase programme of reform of the resource management system. Phase one of that programme resulted in the Resource Management (Simplifying and Streamlining) Amendment Act 2009 which delivered a number of improvements to the operational efficiencies of Resource Management Act processes. 
In phase two we are introducing the current bill and are also working on a cohesive package of reforms for our freshwater and resource management systems with public consultation on wider reform expected in the first half of next year. The Government’s reform package is focused on delivering a system that answers communities’ planning needs enables growth and job creation and provides strong environmental outcomes in a timely and cost-effective manner. While we are considering that broader package of reforms there are however some issues we can and must address more quickly. 
The Resource Management Reform Bill 2012 provides 6-month limits on council processing of medium-sized consents a one-off streamlined hearing process for the first Auckland Unitary Plan a choice for major regional projects to be consented directly through the Environment Court and enhanced requirements for councils to base their planning decisions on robust and thorough cost-benefit analysis. The costs uncertainties and delays of the current resource management system are affecting New Zealand jobs infrastructure and productivity and they place an unfair burden on communities. They are causing frustrations for those wanting to progress important developments including housing subdivisions industrial developments or infrastructure projects that collectively are worth hundreds of millions of dollars. It is also leaving communities with uncertainty and drawn-out battles for years on end bringing with it significant cost. This bill delivers on National’s commitment to introduce a 6-month time limit on council processing of notified consents. It will help give certainty to communities and developers by reducing the time for consents by about one-third from the current average of 9 months. 
In terms of the economics of delays a 2007 estimate put the cost per day of a hypothetical $10 million project being delayed at $2200 which for a 3-month delay could mean an additional $140000 of unnecessary cost. This is not about changing the basis on which the final decision is reached but about getting to the decision more quickly to give certainty and to lessen the cost and time impact on everyone involved. 
The bill also proposes a simpler direct referral path to the Environment Court for applicants of major regional projects should they choose that route. The threshold for these projects would be smaller than nationally significant projects but still involve major investment. Councils would be required to permit the direct referral if the application meets certain criteria unless there was a good reason not to. Exactly where the threshold should sit will be determined after a period of consultation and will be contained in regulation to ensure that it can easily be updated to keep pace with cost pressures over time. 
The bill also includes a one-off hearing process to streamline and improve the development of Auckland Council’s first Unitary Plan while ensuring that Aucklanders will have comprehensive input and are assured of a high-quality independent review of the council plan. I am concerned that under existing law Auckland Council estimates that its first Unitary Plan could take up to 10 years to become operative. No one benefits from long drawn-out and expensive processes during which time Auckland’s development stagnates in a cloud of uncertainty. Auckland’s economy is too important to New Zealand for us to wait up to a decade for the plan to be implemented. Auckland represents some of our most pressing housing affordability issues and the council needs to be able to make changes to address this issue without long delays. The Unitary Plan developed by the council after enhanced consultation will be referred to a hearings panel appointed by me and the Minister of Conservation in consultation with the council and the independent Maori Statutory Board to ensure that the consideration is properly independent. There will be the usual guidelines applied for making appointments including a high degree of local knowledge competency and understanding of tikanga Maori. The process will involve all the dispute resolution options available in the Environment Court and provide the board with wide discretion to control its processes to ensure that it is easily accessed and understood by all. 
After considering the plan and hearing public submissions the panel will deliver recommendations to the council. Those accepted will be immediately operative subject to appeals only on points of law. Aucklanders will have full appeal rights to the Environment Court for any recommendations the council does not accept. The new process also requires a publicly available independent audit of the council’s evaluation of the costs and benefits of major policy changes. Under this new process it is estimated that most if not all of the plan provisions will be operative in 3 years instead of the 10 it may otherwise have taken. 
The bill also recognises that decisions made at local and regional level can have far-reaching effects on local jobs and growth. We need to make sure that elected councillors and hearing commissioners have all the information they need to inform their decisions and that that information is public. Under this bill councils will be required to undertake more robust cost-benefit analysis under section 32 of the Act including considering how the local economy and jobs will be affected before making major decisions on policy and planning. The bill requires the analysis to be proportionate to the size of the proposal so that plans with major implications will need considerable and careful work without burdening smaller plans with undue cost and effort. 
There are a number of other issues that the bill will address. These include extending access to the emergency provisions under the Resource Management Act to all lifeline utilities and clarifying the intent of the 2009 Resource Management Act amendment that councils are not able to introduce blanket tree protection rules in their plans. The bill also makes some minor changes to how boards of inquiry make their decisions when considering nationally significant proposals and amends Environment Court procedures so that all proceedings must explicitly promote timeliness and cost-effectiveness. 
Good resource management should contribute to our future environmental and economic prosperity. This bill addresses some significant issues now while further work on water and wider resource management reforms continues. I commend the bill to the House.