310Regulations amending natural environment plans in relation to aquaculture activities and allocation processes

1. The Governor-General may, by Order in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister responsible for aquaculture,—

2. amend provisions in a natural environment plan that relate to the management of aquaculture activities in the coastal marine area; and
3. amend a natural environment plan to establish rules for the allocation of specified aquaculture-related authorisations.

4. Regulations made under subsection (1) may amend more than 1 natural environment plan at the same time, including natural environment plans that relate to different regions.

5. An amendment made under subsection (1)—

6. becomes part of the operative natural environment plan as if it had been made under Schedule 3 of the Planning Act 2025; and
7. must not be inconsistent with, and is subject to, the other provisions of this Act; and
8. may be amended—
   1. under this section; or
   2. in accordance with Schedule 3 of the Planning Act 2025; or
   3. under any other provision of this Act.

9. Regulations establishing a process for the allocation of specified aquaculture-related authorisations—

10. must provide for how allocation offers for those authorisations are to be decided; and
11. must specify the aquaculture-related authorisations (or class of authorisations) to which the process applies; and
12. may specify—
    1. that the Minister responsible for aquaculture is the decision maker for allocation offers made under the process; and
    2. the circumstances in which, and the criteria by which, the Minister must make those decisions; and
13. must specify the unit of measurement for a specified aquaculture-related resource or class of resource (for example, based on volume, meterage, or percentage); and
14. may provide for any other matter necessary for establishing or giving effect to the process.

15. If a regional council makes changes to the natural environment plan or develops a new natural environment plan, the committee may specify that the Minister responsible for aquaculture is the decision maker for allocation offers made under an allocation process, but only if—

16. the natural environment plan has been amended by regulations establishing an allocation process and specifying the matters referred to in subsection (4)(c); and
17. either—
    1. the allocation process proposed in the changes or the new natural environment plan is the same as that made under the regulations; or
    2. the Minister responsible for aquaculture agrees to the changes to the natural environment plan or the new natural environment plan before it is notified.

18. In this section and sections 311 and 312,—

    amend provisions includes—

    1. omitting provisions (whether other provisions are substituted or not):
    2. adding provisions

    aquaculture-related authorisation means the exclusive right to apply for a resource consent for an aquaculture-related resource, within the meaning of the definition of right to apply in section 204(2) and the definition of authorisation in clause 1 of Schedule 3

    aquaculture-related resource means—

    1. the occupation of space in a common marine and coastal area for aquaculture activities:
    2. the capacity of coastal water (including estuaries) to assimilate a discharge of a contaminant from an aquaculture activity:
    3. any other resource related to aquaculture identified in national standards or regulations under section 87:
    4. any other resource related to aquaculture.

19. Regulations made under this section are secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements).