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Resource Management Act 1991

Declarations, enforcement, and ancillary powers - Offences

339: Penalties

You could also call this:

“This law explains the different punishments you can get if you break the rules about looking after the environment.”

If you break the law under [section 338(1), (1A), or (1B)], you can be punished. If you’re a person, you might go to jail for up to 2 years or pay a fine of up to $300,000. If you’re not a person (like a company), you might have to pay a fine of up to $600,000.

If you keep breaking the law, you might have to pay an extra $10,000 for each day you continue to do so.

If you break the law under [section 338(2)], you might have to pay a fine of up to $10,000. If you keep breaking this law, you might have to pay an extra $1,000 for each day you continue.

If you break the law under [section 338(3)], you might have to pay a fine of up to $1,500.

The court can also make you do community work as a punishment for breaking any of these laws.

Instead of or along with fines or jail time, the court can also order other things. They can make the orders listed in [section 314]. They can also tell a consent authority to review your resource consent if your offence involved breaking the rules of that consent.

If you keep doing something that breaks these laws, or if you do it over and over, it’s treated as an ongoing offence.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM239042.

Topics:
Environment and resources > Conservation
Crime and justice > Criminal law
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338: Offences against this Act, or

“This law explains the different ways people can break the rules about looking after the environment.”

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339A: Protection against imprisonment for dumping and discharge offences involving foreign ships, or

“You can't go to jail for dumping stuff from foreign ships in the sea unless you meant to do it or were really careless and caused big problems.”

Part 12 Declarations, enforcement, and ancillary powers
Offences

339Penalties

  1. Every person who commits an offence against section 338(1), (1A), or (1B) is liable on conviction,—

  2. in the case of a natural person, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years or a fine not exceeding $300,000:
    1. in the case of a person other than a natural person, to a fine not exceeding $600,000.

      1. Every person who commits an offence against section 338(1), (1A), or (1B) is also liable on conviction, if the offence is a continuing one, to a fine not exceeding $10,000 for every day or part of a day during which the offence continues.

      2. Every person who commits an offence against section 338(2) is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000, and, if the offence is a continuing one, to a further fine not exceeding $1,000 for every day or part of a day during which the offence continues.

      3. Every person who commits an offence against section 338(3) is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $1,500.

      4. A court may sentence any person who commits an offence against this Act to a sentence of community work, and the provisions of Part 2 of the Sentencing Act 2002, with all necessary modifications, apply accordingly.

      5. If a person is convicted of an offence against section 338, the court may, instead of or in addition to imposing a fine or a term of imprisonment, make 1 or more of the following orders:

      6. the orders specified in section 314:
        1. an order requiring a consent authority to serve notice, under section 128(2), of the review of a resource consent held by the person, but only if the offence involves an act or omission that contravenes the consent.

          1. The continued existence of anything, or the intermittent repetition of any actions, contrary to any provision of this Act shall be deemed to be a continuing offence.

          Notes
          • Section 339(1): replaced, on , by section 139(1) of the Resource Management (Simplifying and Streamlining) Amendment Act 2009 (2009 No 31).
          • Section 339(1A): inserted, on , by section 139(1) of the Resource Management (Simplifying and Streamlining) Amendment Act 2009 (2009 No 31).
          • Section 339(2): amended, on , by section 413 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011 (2011 No 81).
          • Section 339(3): amended, on , by section 413 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011 (2011 No 81).
          • Section 339(4): replaced, on , by section 186 of the Sentencing Act 2002 (2002 No 9).
          • Section 339(5): replaced, on , by section 139(2) of the Resource Management (Simplifying and Streamlining) Amendment Act 2009 (2009 No 31).