CCNZ has made submissions on the Natural and Built Environment (NBE) Bill and Spatial Planning (SP) Bill, which are two parts of the legislation proposed to replace the Resource Management Act (RMA).

CCNZ acknowledges the Government’s resource management reform (RM reform) objectives, and seeks the following from RM reform:

• Consenting pathways that enable the construction, operation and maintenance of infrastructure and the built environment, for both large and small projects
• Efficient and effective and affordable consenting, planning and other regulatory processes, also to avoid unnecessary delays in regulatory processes
• The above to apply to civil construction at all scales, from small earthworks to multi-firm construction alliances for nationally significant projects
• Ability to manage trade-offs or conflicts between RM reform objectives, eg between protection of, and the use and development of the natural and built environment
• Effective mechanisms to balance the environmental cost of development against the benefits infrastructure delivers for our society
• Access to raw materials that enable infrastructure construction, such as aggregate, steel and concrete, and efficient repurposing of construction and demolition waste, whether through recycling or through identified sites for enabling infrastructure - eg cleanfills
• Upholding of property rights, including for existing infrastructure and buildings

CCNZ made detailed submissions, supporting the intent of the reform, but indicating while the SP Bill was largely succinct and fit for purpose, significant changes were proposed for the NBE Bill to be workable. Reforming the RMA to be complemented by the SP Bill and proposed National Planning Framework should be considered as an alternative.

Read the submission>>