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Planning Bill

Enforcement and other matters - Emergency works

277: Emergency works under Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002

You could also call this:

"Doing emergency work to keep people safe during a disaster"

If you are in a state of emergency, you can do things to keep people safe. You do not have to follow the usual rules in section 17 of this bill. You can do things to stop the emergency or make it less bad. If you do something to help in an emergency, you must tell the permit authority within 7 days. They need to know what you did. You must tell them so they know what is happening. If what you did would normally be against the rules, you must apply for planning consents. You have 60 working days to do this after you tell the permit authority. You can keep doing the activity until your application is decided. If you follow these rules, you will not get in trouble for doing something that would normally be against the rules. You are allowed to act in an emergency to keep people safe.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS1540228.

This page was last updated on 12 December 2025 — View changes

Topics:

Emergency management > Emergency responseGovernment and voting > Emergency managementEnvironment and resources > Town planning

276: Planning consents for emergency works, or

"Notifying the council about urgent repair work"

278: Reimbursement or compensation for emergency works, or

"Paying back costs or getting compensation for emergency work done by the council"

Part 6Enforcement and other matters
Emergency works

277Emergency works under Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002

If any activity is undertaken by any person exercising emergency powers during a state of emergency declared, or transition period notified, under the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002, section 17 does not apply to any activity undertaken by or on behalf of that person to remove the cause of, or minimise any actual or adverse effect of, the emergency.
If an activity is undertaken to which subsection (1) applies, the person who authorised the activity must advise the appropriate permit authority, within 7 days, that the activity has been undertaken.
If such an activity, but for this section, would contravene section 17 and the adverse effects of the activity continue, the person who authorised the activity must apply in writing to the appropriate permit authority for any necessary planning consents required in respect of the activity, within 60 working days of the notification under subsection (2).
If the application is made within the time stated in subsection (3), the activity may continue until the application for a planning consent and any appeals have been finally determined.
A person does not commit an offence under section 254(1)(a) by acting in accordance with this section.