307Regulations

1. The Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council, make regulations for all or any of the following purposes:

2. providing for anything this Act or provisions in the Planning Act 2025 that are applied to this Act say may or must be provided for by regulations:
3. prescribing the manner or content of applications, notices, or any other documentation or information required under this Act, including service of notices:
4. requiring the payment of fees or charges in connection with—
   1. an application, notice, or request provided for under this Act:
   2. the performance or exercise of any function, power, or duty under this Act:
5. prescribing any of the following in relation to fees or charges required under paragraph (c):
   1. the fee or charge payable or the methods for calculating fees or charges:
   2. the persons liable to pay the fees or charges:
   3. the persons to whom the fees or charges must be paid:
   4. when the fees or charges must be paid:
   5. the circumstances in which the fees or charges may be refunded, remitted, or waived (wholly or partly):
6. prescribing, for the purpose of the Registrar deciding whether to waive, reduce, or postpone the payment of a fee under clause 88 of Schedule 9 of the Planning Act 2025, the criteria that the Registrar must apply to—
   1. assess a person’s ability to pay a fee; and
   2. identify proceedings that concern matters of public interest:
7. prescribing those offences under this Act (including offences prescribed under paragraph (y)) that constitute infringement offences against this Act:
8. prescribing infringement fees (which may be different fees for different offences)—
   1. not exceeding $2,000, in the case of a natural person, for an infringement offence prescribed under this subsection:
   2. not exceeding $4,000, in the case of a person other than a natural person, for an infringement offence prescribed under this subsection:
9. prescribing, in relation to infringement offences against this Act, the form and content of infringement notices and reminder notices:
10. requiring the holders of water permits, discharge permits, or coastal permits granted for any activity that would otherwise contravene section 19, to keep records for any purpose under this Act, and prescribing the nature of records, information, and returns, and the form, manner, and times in or at which they shall be kept or furnished:
11. prescribing the form and content (including conditions) of water permits and discharge permits:
12. prescribing the practice and procedure of the Environment Court and the form of proceedings, both under this Act and in relation to the exercise of any jurisdiction conferred on the court by any other Act:
13. prescribing transitional and savings provisions relating to the coming into force of this Act, which may be in addition to or in place of any of the provisions of Schedule 1:
14. prescribing exemptions from any provision of section 21, either absolutely or subject to any prescribed conditions, and either generally or specifically or in relation to particular descriptions of contaminants or to the discharge of contaminants in particular circumstances or from particular sources, or in relation to any area of land, air, or water specified in the regulations:
15. classifying activities and other functions of a national rule under subpart 3 of Part 2:
16. deeming to be included in any natural environment plan or proposed natural environment plan rules that may apply generally or specifically and that may do all or any of the following:
    1. specify, as restricted discretionary activities, discretionary activities, or prohibited activities, any activities to which section 22 applies:
    2. specify criteria to be considered in considering any application under section 130 for a coastal permit to do something that otherwise would contravene section 22 or any application under section 185 to change or cancel any condition of such a coastal permit or on a review of conditions of such a coastal permit under section 186:
17. prescribing any substance to be a harmful substance for the purposes of section 3:
18. prescribing any waste or other matter to be toxic or hazardous waste for the purposes of section 24:
19. without limiting paragraph (i), in relation to any coastal permit to do something that otherwise would contravene section 22,—
    1. requiring the holder of the coastal permit to keep records; and
    2. requiring the holder of the coastal permit to furnish to the relevant prescribed agency or local authority information and returns as to any matters in relation to any activity carried out under the coastal permit; and
    3. prescribing the nature of the records, information, and returns, and the form, manner, and times in or at which they must be kept or furnished:
20. in relation to a discharge to which section 23 applies (which regulations may describe by referring to the circumstances, quantities, components, or sources of the discharge)—
    1. prohibiting or permitting the discharge; or
    2. controlling the discharge by prescribing conditions or limitations, or by other means; or
    3. prohibiting or permitting, with or without conditions, the making of a rule; or
    4. prohibiting or permitting, with or without conditions, the granting of a natural resource permit:
21. providing for discounts on administrative charges imposed under section 229 when local authorities do not meet time limits set under this Act:
22. prescribing, for the purposes of section 227,—
    1. indicators or other matters by reference to which a local authority is required to monitor the state of the natural environment of its region or district:
    2. matters by reference to which monitoring must be carried out:
    3. standards, methods, or requirements applying to the monitoring, which may differ depending on what is being monitored:
23. requiring local authorities to provide information gathered under sections 227 and 228 to the Minister, and prescribing the content of the information to be provided and the manner in which, and time limits by which, it must be provided:
24. prescribing measures for the purpose of excluding stock from water bodies, estuaries, coastal lakes and lagoons, and the margins of those water bodies, estuaries, and coastal lakes and lagoons, including regulations that—
    1. apply generally in relation to stock or to specified kinds of stock (for example, dairy cattle):
    2. apply generally in relation to water bodies, estuaries, coastal lakes and lagoons, and their margins or to specified kinds of water bodies, estuaries, coastal lakes and lagoons, and their margins:
    3. apply different measures to different kinds of stock or to different kinds of water bodies, estuaries, coastal lakes and lagoons, and their margins:
    4. prescribe technical requirements for the purposes of the regulations (for example, the minimum height and other specifications with which any required means of exclusion must comply, such as requirements for fencing or riparian planting):
25. prescribing infringement offences for the contravention of, or non-compliance with, any regulations made under paragraph (w):
26. prescribing requirements that apply to the use of models (being simplified representations of systems, for example, farms, catchments, and regions) under this Act by—
    1. local authorities:
    2. the holders of natural resource permits:
    3. other persons:
27. prescribing infrastructure as long-lived infrastructure for the purpose of paragraph (f) of the definition of long-lived infrastructure in section 3:
28. providing methodologies to support the preparation and implementation of relief frameworks under section 111:
29. providing for anything incidental that is necessary for carrying out, or giving full effect to, this Act.

30. Regulations made under this section—

31. may apply generally; or
32. may apply or be applied from time to time by the Minister by notice,—
    1. within any specified district or region of any local authority; or
    2. within any specified part of New Zealand; or
    3. to any specified class or classes of persons.

33. No regulation may be made under any of paragraphs (o) to (r) of subsection (1) except on the recommendation of the Minister after consultation with the Minister of Transport and the Minister of Conservation.

34. The Minister must not recommend the making of any regulation under any of paragraphs (o) to (q) of subsection (1) unless, after having consulted the Minister of Transport and the Minister of Conservation, the Minister is of the opinion that—

35. it is necessary or desirable to do so for all or any of the following purposes:
    1. to implement New Zealand's obligations under any international convention, protocol, or agreement, relating to the protection of the marine environment and to which New Zealand is a party:
    2. to enable New Zealand to become a party to any international convention, protocol, or agreement relating to the protection of the marine environment:
    3. to implement such international practices or standards relating to the protection of the marine environment as may, from time to time, be recommended by the International Maritime Organization; or
36. it is not inconsistent with any such purpose to do so.

37. The Minister may amend any schedule of any regulations made under subsection (1)(p) or (q) by omitting or inserting the names or a description of waste or other matter or harmful substance to make that schedule comply with the provisions of an international convention relating to the pollution of the marine environment.

38. Regulations made under subsection (1)(s) may apply—

39. generally within New Zealand or to those areas of New Zealand specified in the regulations:
40. generally to rules or natural resource permits, or to rules or natural resource permits made by the permit authorities specified in the regulations.

41. Regulations made under subsection (1)(w) or (x) may specify—

42. that rules inconsistent with those regulations be withdrawn or amended—
    1. to the extent necessary to remove the inconsistency; and
    2. as soon as practicable after the date on which the regulations come into force; but
    3. without using any of the processes under Schedule 3 of the Planning Act 2025 for changing a plan or proposed plan; and
43. in relation to a rule made before the commencement of the regulations,—
    1. the extent to which a matter that the regulations apply to continues to have effect; or
    2. the period for which a matter that the regulations apply to continues to have effect.

44. Regulations may be made under subsection (1)(z) only on the Minister's recommendation after being satisfied that the infrastructure—

45. has an expected life span of 50 years; and
46. is suitable for a consent duration of 35 years; and
47. benefits the public.

48. If regulations specify a matter under subsection (7), the local authorities concerned must publicly notify that the rules have been withdrawn or amended not later than 5 working days after they are withdrawn or amended.

49. All regulations made under subsection (1)(l) that are still in force on the day that is 5 years after the date of commencement of this Act shall expire at the close of that day.

50. Regulations made under this section may incorporate material by reference. Section 75 applies as if its references to a national instrument were references to regulations under this section.

51. The following are secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements):

52. regulations under subsection (1):
53. a notice under subsection (2):
54. an amendment under subsection (5).