Agenda of Regional Planning Committee - Wednesday, 13 March 2024

Meeting of the Regional Planning Committee

Date: 13 March 2024

Time: 1.00pm

Venue:

Council Chamber

Hawke's Bay Regional Council

159 Dalton Street

NAPIER

Agenda

Item Title Page

1. Welcome/ Karakia/ Housekeeping/ Apologies

2. Conflict of interest declarations

3. Chair's Co-governance Statement

4. Confirmation of Minutes of the Regional Planning Committee meeting held on 16 August 2023

5. Call for minor items not on the Agenda

Information or Performance Monitoring

6. New Government's intentions for Resource Management-related reforms 5

7. Regional Policy Statement project update 19

8. February 2024 Policy Projects update 23

9. February 2024 Statutory Advocacy update 27

10. Discussion of minor items not on the Agenda

Parking

There will be named parking spaces for tangata whenua members in the HBRC car park – entry off Vautier Street.

Regional Planning Committee Members

Name	Represents
Tania Hopmans (Co-chair)	Maungaharuru-Tangitu Trust
Tania Eden	Mana Ahuriri Trust
Karauna Brown /Mana Hazel	Te Kopere o te Iwi Hineuru
Laura-Margaret Kele	Tamatea Pōkai Whenua
Nicky Kirikiri	Te Toi Kura o Waikaremoana
Michelle McIlroy	Tātau Tātau o Te Wairoa
Mike Mohi	Ngati Tuwharetoa Hapu Forum
Theresa Thornton	Ngati Pahauwera Development & Tiaki Trusts
vacant	Tamatea Pōkai Whenua
Hinewai Ormsby (Co-chair)	Hawke’s Bay Regional Council
Thompson Hokianga (Deputy Co-chair)	Hawke’s Bay Regional Council
Will Foley	Hawke’s Bay Regional Council
Xan Harding	Hawke’s Bay Regional Council
Charles Lambert	Hawke’s Bay Regional Council
Jock Mackintosh	Hawke’s Bay Regional Council
Di Roadley	Hawke’s Bay Regional Council
Martin Williams	Hawke’s Bay Regional Council
Jerf van Beek	Hawke’s Bay Regional Council

Total number of members = 18

Quorum and Voting Entitlements Under the Current Terms of Reference

Quorum (clause (i))

The Quorum for the Regional Planning Committee is 75% of the members of the Committee

At the present time, the quorum is 14 members (physically present in the room).

Voting Entitlement (clause (j))

Best endeavours will be made to achieve decisions on a consensus basis, or failing consensus, the agreement of 80% of the Committee members present and voting will be required. Where voting is required all members of the Committee have full speaking rights and voting entitlements.

Number of Committee members present Number required for 80% support

18 14

17 14

16 13

15 12

14 11

Hawke’s Bay Regional Council

Regional Planning Committee

13 March 2024

Subject: New Government's intentions for Resource Management-related reforms

Reason for report

1. This report outlines a range of the Government’s intentions that relate to resource management policy and planning. This report deliberately does not comment further or speculate on the merits of the Government’s intentions.

Background

2. The new Coalition Government is underpinned by coalition party agreements.^{^[1]} Shortly after formation, the coalition government unveiled its ‘100-day Plan’ outlining 49 key actions it intended to be delivered in its first 100 days.

3. Many of the new Government’s intentions are outlined in its 100-day plan and coalition agreements. Until fuller proposals are announced, there are limited details available that can be used to inform any potential impacts on HBRC’s current and future work programmes.

Discussion

4. The new Government was sworn in on 27 November 2023 and signed coalition agreements were publicly released on 24 November. The following points relating to natural resource management have been drawn from the coalition agreements and the ‘100-day Plan.’^{^[2]}

Natural resource management

5. Repeal the Natural and Built Environment Act and Spatial Planning Act and introduce a fast-track consenting regime. *

6. Repeal the Natural and Built Environment Act 2023 and Spatial Planning Act 2023 by Christmas. *

7. Amend the Resource Management Act 1991 to:

7.1. Make it easier to consent new infrastructure including renewable energy, allow farmers to farm, get more houses built, and enhance primary sector including fish and aquaculture, forestry, pastoral, horticulture and mining.

7.2. Streamline the plan preparation process in Schedule 1 of the RMA.

7.3. Simplify the planning system and related statutes including the Public Works Act and the Reserves Act.

7.4. The Parties commit to establish a fast-track one-stop-shop consenting and permitting process for regional and national projects of significance. The process will include a referral by Ministers for suitable projects. A Bill to introduce this process and make other essential statutory amendments will have its first reading as part of the government’s 100-day plan. *

8. Replace the Resource Management Act 1991 with new resource management laws premised on the enjoyment of property rights as a guiding principle.

9. Replace the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2020 to allow district councils more flexibility in how they meet environmental limits and seek advice on how to exempt councils from obligations under the NPSFM2020 as soon as practicable.

10. Replace the NPSFM2020 to rebalance te mana o te wai to better reflect the interest of all water users.

11. Commence an urgent review into the implementation of the National Policy Statement on Indigenous Biodiversity before any implementation.

12. Begin to cease implementation of new Significant Natural Areas and seek advice on operation of the areas.*

13. Improve Farm Environment Plans so they are cost-effective and pragmatic for farmers.

14. Support Farm Environment Plans administered by regional councils and targeted at a catchment level.

15. Adopt standardised farm level reporting.

16. Cut red tape and regulatory blocks on irrigation, water storage, managed aquifer recharge and flood protection schemes.

17. Amend the National Environmental Standards for Plantation Forestry (NES-PF)^{^[3]} regulations to place a duty upon harvesters to contain and remove post-harvest slash.

18. Deliver longer durations for marine farming permits and remove regulations that impede the productivity and enormous potential of the seafood sector.

19. Liberalise genetic engineering laws while ensuring strong protections for human health and the environment.

Government’s resource management reform work programme

Phase One – Repeal of Natural and Built Environment Act and Spatial Planning Act

20. The Government is moving ahead with its work programme to reform New Zealand’s resource management laws. The Minister for Regulatory Reform Hon Chris Bishop wrote to councils in December 2023 outlining that work programme. A copy of the full letter is in Attachment 3.

21. Phase one was completed last year with the repeal of the Spatial Planning Act and Natural and Built Environment Act (NBEA). The Resource Management Act 1991 was reinstated while the fast-track consenting provisions of the NBEA were also retained in the interim.

Phase Two – Fast-track consenting Bill

22. Phase two involves the development of a new permanent ‘fast-track’ consenting framework. Cabinet has indicated the new fast-track regime will include^{^[4]}:

22.1. a new fast-track consenting process contained in a standalone Act with its own purpose statement focused on economic development

22.2. a priority for regionally and nationally significant infrastructure and development projects

22.3. a process for projects to be referred by ministers to the fast-track process if they meet appropriate criteria

22.4. projects referred to the fast-track consenting process will go to an Expert Panel, which will assess the applications and apply any necessary conditions to ensure adverse effects of the project are managed

22.5. limited scope for the Expert Panel to decline a project once it has been referred

22.6. a list of specified projects included in the legislation that will be first to be referred to an Expert Panel

22.7. a ‘one-stop-shop’ process for approvals under a range of legislation - not only RMA resource consents (e.g. Conservation Act and Wildlife Act).

23. The Government has committed to upholding Treaty of Waitangi settlements as part of the new fast-track regime.

24. Councils would not be the consenting authority for fast-track proposals, but could be applicants for projects if they have eligible projects. Until the Bill is fully unveiled, details are not currently known about opportunities and/or implications for Hawke’s Bay and Hawke’s Bay Regional Council.

25. A Bill is expected to be introduced to Parliament by 7 March 2024 and then referred to a select committee for consideration. Following that, there will be an opportunity for any person to make a submission on that Bill. Timing and length of the submission period is unknown.

Phase three – Resource Management Act reform

26. Phase three of the Government’s resource management reform work programme involves the development of replacement resource management laws “based on the enjoyment of property rights.” Development of the new RMA framework will take place over the next 24 months, with a Bill expected to be introduced in late 2026.

27. Hon Chris Bishop, Minister Responsible for RMA Reform wrote^{^[5]} to all councils on 13 December 2023 stating:

“The Government is committed to honouring the undertakings made by the Crown through Treaty of Waitangi settlements and other arrangements. Treaty settlement arrangements reached between iwi and the Crown will be protected through the repeal and any future resource management reform processes.”

28. It is understood that similar commitments have also been made directly to settled iwi groups in both writing and verbally. Both coalition agreements include similar commitments to uphold existing Treaty settlements. There is however no publicly available information on how that commitment will be given effect in the proposed fast-track consenting bill, or other legislation, or how the rights and interests of iwi groups who have not yet settled will be protected.

National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management (NPS-FM)

29. On 31 January 2024, Hon Chris Bishop sent another letter^{^[6]} to all councils stating:

“In my 13 December 2023 letter, I advised we will review and replace the NPS-FM in this parliamentary term. This will be done through the RMA process for developing and amending national direction. This will take time, so we have extended the statutory deadline for councils to notify freshwater planning instruments to implement the NPS-FM by three years.[^{^[7]}]

In the interim we intend to progress changes to how the hierarchy of obligations contained in Te Mana o te Wai provisions of the NPS-FM apply to consent applications and consent decisions. Our intention is that these changes will be made through a separate RMA amendment bill [in 2024].”

30. Further details on precisely what this involves are yet to be made public. Council’s senior planning and regulatory staff continue to have an active role in how the regional government collective (Te Uru Kahika) may have an influence on the shape of these proposals as and when the relevant Ministers approve public release of further details.

31. It is anticipated that our tāngata whenua partners (including appointed tāngata whenua members of the Regional Planning Committee) plus representatives of a wide range of tāngata whenua groups will also maintain a very close interest in how this progresses.

Decision-making process

32. Staff have assessed the requirements of the Local Government Act 2002 in relation to this item and have concluded that, as this report is for information only, the decision-making provisions do not apply.

Recommendation

That the Regional Planning Committee receives and notes the New Government's intentions for Resource Management-related reforms staff report.

Authored by:

Gavin Ide

Principal Advisor Strategic Planning

Approved by:

Katrina Brunton

Group Manager Policy & Regulation

Attachment/s

1 ⇩	Summary of Government intentions from Coalition Agreements and 100 day plan
2 ⇩	MfE Fast-track consenting proposals information sheet Feb 2024
3 ⇩	13 December 2023 Letter from Hon Chris Bishop
4 ⇩	31 January 2024 Letter from Hon Chris Bishop

Hawke’s Bay Regional Council

Regional Planning Committee

13 March 2024

Subject: Regional Policy Statement project update

Reason for Report

1. This item updates the Regional Planning Committee on progress with the Kotahi Plan project and seeks endorsement from the Committee to develop a refreshed Regional Policy Statement as Phase One of Kotahi Plan development.

Executive Summary

2. The environmental challenges and pressures across our region continue, regardless of changes to governments, timeframes, or policy. HBRC is continuing to take a strategic approach to identifying and managing these issues through continued development of the Kotahi Plan.

3. Taking into account the impacts of Cyclone Gabrielle we recommend the RPC agree to a two-stage approach to developing the Kotahi Plan.

4. Phase one will focus on developing a new Regional Policy Statement, identifying significant regional environmental issues, alongside objectives and policies for the sustainable management of natural and physical resources in the region. This also includes identifying the visions and values of communities, including tāngata whenua, across the region and therefore it makes sense to prioritise this aspect of the plan first.

5. Phase two will be the development of the Regional Resource Management Plan establishing the rules for both permitted activities and activities requiring resource consent.

6. Once completed the RPS and RRMP will combine to form the Kotahi Plan.

7. Our current Regional Policy Statement is outdated and due for review, whilst also being required to meet the new National Planning Standards by December 2024.

Background

8. Prior to Cyclone Gabrielle the intention for the Kotahi Plan was to develop one plan that combined the Regional Policy Statement, Regional Resource Management Plan and Coastal Environment Plan. The National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management (2020) required the freshwater components of the Kotahi Plan to be notified by December 2024.

9. The Regional Council’s policy planning work programme was disrupted by Cyclone Gabrielle and subsequent actions to support the region’s response and recovery from that devastating weather event. Post Cyclone Gabrielle, the previous Government agreed, via Order in Council, to provide Hawke’s Bay Regional Council with a three-year extension to the December 2024 deadline.

10. As described in other reports being presented to the Regional Planning Committee’s 13^th March meeting, the new coalition government has already passed legislation repealing the Spatial Planning Act and the Natural and Built Environment Act. That legislation also featured an amendment granting a three-year extension for all regions to implement the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management (NPSFM) in new regional freshwater plans. Meanwhile, the Government has signaled its intention to replace the NPSFM within this Parliamentary term, along with progressing a number of other resource-management related policy reforms.

Proposed 2 Stage Approach

11. As a result of the recent changes and further proposed legislative changes, extension of deadlines and the impact of recovery work, we are recommending further work on the Kotahi Plan be progressed in two stages. The first part will focus on the preparation and development of a draft Regional Policy Statement, followed by the draft Regional Resource Management Plan. The phasing of the project into two parts also allows for the flexibility to respond to changes in national direction where required.

Phase One – Regional Policy Statement

12. Regional policy statements guide resource management within a region by identifying key strategic environmental issues, including community and tāngata whenua visions and values. It is mandatory under the RMA for each region to have an RPS.^{^[8]} The purpose of the RPS is to outline objectives and policies for the sustainable management of natural and physical resources in the region, including considerations for environmental, economic, social, and cultural factors.

13. Regional policy statements are overarching documents that identify the most significant environmental issues in the region and provide direction to regional plans, district plans, other resource management plans and consents on how these issues should be managed.

Role of the Regional Policy Statement

14. The regional policy statement identifies regionally significant environmental issues and then outlines through objectives how these issues will be dealt with at a high level. Policies in an RPS will specify how those objectives will be achieved. An RPS is also required to set out methods to implement the policies and achieve the stated objectives. The methods and rules (to feature in regional plans) will set out a series of actions that the Council and its partners will undertake and/or that resource consents must comply with. This pathway is shown in the diagram below.

15. It should be noted that a Regional Policy Statement cannot include rules, rather it sets up the framework for a management approach. Associated rules are included in the Regional Resource Management Plan. The RPS can direct other councils within the region to deal with the management of certain topics or issues within their own plans and all regional and district plans under the RMA must give effect to the RPS and cannot be inconsistent.

16. The National Planning Standards (prescribing the form and style of RMA planning documents) require the following prescribed topics and domain chapters to be included in our Regional Policy Statement:

16.1. Air

16.2. Coastal Environment

16.3. Climate Change (new)

16.4. Ecosystems and Indigenous Biodiversity (new)

16.5. Energy, Infrastructure and Transport

16.6. Hazards and Risks

16.7. Integrated Management

16.8. Urban Form and Development.

17. The National Planning Standards also require the RPS to include specific chapters on:

17.1. Tangata whenua/mana whenua, and

17.2. Resource management issues of significance to iwi authorities in the region.

18. The current operative Hawke’s Bay Regional Policy Statement is incorporated into the Hawke’s Bay Regional Resource Management Plan (RRMP). The RRMP was publicly notified in 2000 and became operative in August 2006. Several changes and amendments have been made since during the life of the Regional Policy Statement. Nonetheless, large parts of the document have not been updated, despite s.79 of the RMA requiring both the Regional Policy Statement and Regional Plan to be reviewed at least every 10 years.

19. The Regional Policy Statement is also currently required to be consistent with the National Planning Standards 2019 by November 2024 (Standard 17.2). Rather than attempting to update the existing outdated RPS to align with the National Planning Standards form and style requirements, we recommend the RPC agree to develop a new RPS that meets the required standard as part of the Kotahi Plan process.

20. Other territorial local authorities across the Hawke’s Bay region have also expressed their desire for an updated Regional Policy Statement to provide strategic direction where it is currently considered to be lacking, particularly on issues such as Climate Change, Natural Hazards and Risk, Transport, and Biodiversity. The territorial local authorities are seeking improved regional guidance via the Regional Policy Statement to assist them in responding effectively to these issues.

Phase Two

21. The proposed second phase would include the development of a draft Regional Resource Management Plan. This plan would outline policies, rules and regulations regarding the use of natural and physical resources within the region.

22. The purpose of Regional Resource Management Plan is to manage activities that may have an impact on the environment, including land use, water management, air quality, and coastal management and would include provisions applying within the coastal marine area (like those in the operative Regional Coastal Environment Plan).

23. Once the Regional Resource Management Plan is completed through this second phase it would be able to be combined with the Regional Policy Statement to form the Kotahi Plan.

Current Activities

24. At present, the Policy Team is in the process of conducting a literature review, undertaking a desktop assessment of the issues for RPS topics, reviewing previous engagement (including recovery engagement) and engaging resources to provide a solid platform for drafting a new Regional Policy Statement as phase one of the Kotahi Project.

25. The Policy Team is also currently engaging with tāngata whenua to identify their visions and values for the environment. This work will be vital to informing the tāngata whenua chapters and provisions.

Recommendation

That the Regional Planning Committee:

1. Receives and considers the Regional Policy Statement project update staff report.

2. Endorses the proposal to divide the Kotahi project into two phases, with:

2.1. the first phase being the development of the Regional Policy Statement and

2.2. the second the phase being the development of the Hawke’s Bay Regional Resource Management Plan.

3. Endorses the progression of the Regional Policy Statement.

Authored by:

Nichola Nicholson

Team Leader Policy & Planning

Approved by:

Katrina Brunton

Group Manager Policy & Regulation

Attachment/s

There are no attachments for this report.

Hawke’s Bay Regional Council

Regional Planning Committee

13 March 2024

Subject: February 2024 Policy Projects update

Reason for Report

1. This report provides an outline and update of the Council’s various resource management projects currently under way.

Resource management policy project update

2. The projects covered in this report are those involving reviews and/or changes under the Resource Management Act to one or more of the following planning documents:

2.1. the Hawke's Bay Regional Resource Management Plan (RRMP)

2.2. the Hawke's Bay Regional Policy Statement (RPS) which is incorporated into the RRMP

2.3. the Hawke's Bay Regional Coastal Environment Plan (RCEP).

3. From time to time, separate reports additional to this one may be presented to the Committee for fuller updates on specific plan change projects.

4. Similar periodical reporting is also presented to the Council as part of the quarterly reporting and end of year Annual Plan reporting requirements.

Decision-making process

5. Staff have assessed the requirements of the Local Government Act 2002 in relation to this item and have concluded that, as this report is for information only, the decision-making provisions do not apply.

Recommendation

That the Regional Planning Committee receives and notes the February 2024 Policy Projects update.

Authored by:

Nichola Nicholson

Team Leader Policy & Planning

Approved by:

Katrina Brunton

Group Manager Policy & Regulation

Attachment/s

1 ⇩

February 2024 RMA policy projects update

Hawke’s Bay Regional Council

Regional Planning Committee

13 March 2024

Subject: February 2024 Statutory Advocacy update

Reason for Report

1. This item updates the status of reports on proposals forwarded to the Regional Council and assessed by staff acting under delegated authority as part of the Council’s Statutory Advocacy project.

2. The Statutory Advocacy project centres on local resource management-related proposals upon which the Regional Council has an opportunity to make comments or to lodge a submission. These include, but are not limited to:

2.1. resource consent applications publicly notified by a territorial authority

2.2. district plan reviews or district plan changes released by a territorial authority

2.3. private plan change requests publicly notified by a territorial authority

2.4. notices of requirements for designations in district plans

2.5. non-statutory strategies, structure plans, registrations, etc prepared by territorial authorities, government ministries or other agencies involved in resource management.

3. In all cases, the Regional Council is not the decision-maker, applicant nor proponent. In the Statutory Advocacy project, the Regional Council is purely an agency with an opportunity to make comments or lodge submissions on others’ proposals. The Council’s position in relation to such proposals is informed by the Council’s own plans, policies and strategies, plus its land ownership or asset management interests.

4. The summary outlines those proposals that the Council’s Statutory Advocacy project is currently actively engaged in.

Decision-making process

Recommendation

That the Regional Planning Committee receives and notes the February 2024 Statutory Advocacy update.

Authored by:

Gavin Ide

Principal Advisor Strategic Planning

Nichola Nicholson

Team Leader Policy & Planning

Approved by:

Katrina Brunton

Group Manager Policy & Regulation

Attachment/s

1 ⇩

February 2024 Statutory Advocacy update

[2] Further information and other resource management-related themes are set out in Attachment 1.

[3] NES-PF was amended in late 2023 and it is now named as a NES for Commercial Forestry.

[4] Also refer to Attachment 2 which is a short 2-page information sheet published by Ministry for the Environment.

[7] All regions now have a three year extension to publicly notify new freshwater plans. Previously, a three-year extension had already been passed for the Hawke’s Bay region (from 31 December 2024 to 31 Dec 2027). That extension was passed as an Order In Council under the Severe Weather Event Recovery Legislation Act 2023 (SWERLA).

[8] The current RPS for Hawke’s Bay is incorporated into the Hawke’s Bay Regional Resource Management Plan (operative in August 2006).

Topic	Raised by