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Resource Management Act 1991

Standards, policy statements, and plans - Miscellaneous matters

82: Disputes

You could also call this:

“When people disagree about rules for protecting water and land, a special court can help fix the problem.”

This section explains what happens when there are disagreements about certain environmental policies and plans. If there’s a conflict between different types of plans or if a plan doesn’t follow national guidelines, someone in charge can ask the Environment Court to solve the problem.

The court can look at three types of disputes:

  1. When a water conservation order doesn’t match a regional policy or plan
  2. When a regional policy or plan doesn’t match a district plan on something important to the region
  3. When a regional policy or plan doesn’t follow national policies or standards

If the court finds that there really is a problem, they can tell the people in charge of the policy or plan to fix it. They’ll need to use a special process called Schedule 1 to make the change.

For national policies or standards, the court can order changes using section 55 or section 58I.

Sometimes, if the problem is very small and doesn’t change the main idea of the policy or plan, the court might decide not to order any changes.

When they talk about “giving effect” to a policy, it means following the instructions in section 55(2) for policies or section 58I(2) for national planning standards.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM233824.

Topics:
Environment and resources > Conservation
Environment and resources > Town planning
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“What to do when people disagree about changes to important rules”

Part 5 Standards, policy statements, and plans
Miscellaneous matters

82Disputes

  1. Subsection (2) applies if there is a dispute about—

  2. whether there is an inconsistency between a water conservation order and a regional policy statement or a plan; or
    1. whether there is an inconsistency between a regional policy statement or a regional plan and a district plan (including any rules of a plan) on a matter of regional significance; or
      1. whether a regional policy statement or a plan gives effect to a national policy statement or New Zealand coastal policy statement or a national planning standard.

        1. A Minister or local authority responsible for a relevant national policy statement, New Zealand coastal policy statement, a national planning standard, policy statement, plan, or order may refer a dispute to the Environment Court for a decision resolving the matter.

        2. If a dispute about whether there is an inconsistency described in subsection (1)(a) or (b) is referred to the court, and the court considers that there is an inconsistency, the court must order the authority responsible for the policy statement or plan to remove the inconsistency by initiating a change to the policy statement or plan using the process in Schedule 1.

        3. If a dispute about whether a regional policy statement or a plan gives effect to a national policy statement or New Zealand coastal policy statement or a national planning standard is referred to the court, and the court considers that the policy statement or plan does not give effect to the other policy statement or a national planning standard, the court must order the authority responsible for the policy statement or plan to amend it in accordance with section 55 or 58I.

        4. However, the court does not need to make an order under subsection (3) or (4) if it considers that the inconsistency, or failure to give effect to the other policy statement or a national planning standard, is of minor significance that does not affect the general intent and purpose of the policy statement, national planning standard, plan, or water conservation order concerned.

        5. To avoid doubt, giving effect to a policy statement includes giving effect to it by complying with a direction described in section 55(2), and giving effect to the national planning standard includes giving effect to it by complying with section 58I(2).

        Notes
        • Section 82: replaced, on , by section 36 of the Resource Management Amendment Act 2003 (2003 No 23).
        • Section 82(1)(c): amended, on , by section 67(1) of the Resource Legislation Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 15).
        • Section 82(2): amended, on , by section 67(2) of the Resource Legislation Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 15).
        • Section 82(3): replaced, on , by section 67 of the Resource Management (Simplifying and Streamlining) Amendment Act 2009 (2009 No 31).
        • Section 82(4): inserted, on , by section 67 of the Resource Management (Simplifying and Streamlining) Amendment Act 2009 (2009 No 31).
        • Section 82(4): amended, on , by section 67(3) of the Resource Legislation Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 15).
        • Section 82(4): amended, on , by section 67(4) of the Resource Legislation Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 15).
        • Section 82(4): amended, on , by section 67(5) of the Resource Legislation Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 15).
        • Section 82(5): inserted, on , by section 67 of the Resource Management (Simplifying and Streamlining) Amendment Act 2009 (2009 No 31).
        • Section 82(5): amended, on , by section 67(6) of the Resource Legislation Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 15).
        • Section 82(5): amended, on , by section 67(7) of the Resource Legislation Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 15).
        • Section 82(6): inserted, on , by section 67 of the Resource Management (Simplifying and Streamlining) Amendment Act 2009 (2009 No 31).
        • Section 82(6): amended, on , by section 67(8) of the Resource Legislation Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 15).