. . . Among the changes being proposed are new standards to allow commercial vegetable growers to grow food within a catchment without having to get resource consent, clarifying what a wetland is, enabling more papakāinga housing and clarifying consent pathways for mining and quarrying.
The long list of proposals are found across three discussion documents being released on the Ministry for the Environment website today.
They make changes to national directions, which are rules and policies found under the Resource Management Act (RMA) that inform how councils develop and implement local plans and rules.
Chris Bishop, the minister in charge of RMA reform, said the current regime was a “direct contributor to New Zealand’s infrastructure deficit”, driving up costs, slowing down projects and overall, a “complicated nightmare for councils and applicants alike”.
“Sorting out our planning rules is critical to boosting economic growth and improving living standards,” he said. . .
Next year we’ll replace the RMA with new legislation premised on property rights. Our new system will provide a framework that makes it easier to plan and deliver infrastructure and energy projects, as well as protecting the environment.”
The changes being proposed today are to the national directions under the current RMA and are intended to give effect to a range of coalition commitments in a way that can be done “quickly and relatively easily”.
Bishop said this will “unclog the growth arteries of the economy” and be able to transition to the new RMA system once that is legislated and implemented. . .
Farmers and horticulturalists will be supportive of changes to freshwater management.
The RMA began with the best of intentions but has got far too complicated and costly.
. . . “This is a key step toward restoring balance in how freshwater is managed across the country and ensuring the interests of all water users, including farmers, growers, and rural communities, are properly reflected,” Mr McClay says. . .
“Regional councils must work within national direction that is fit for purpose, not pursue agendas that undermine local economies or the people who rely on the land,” Mr McClay says.
“We’re committed to a freshwater system that protects the environment while also supporting the people who feed and grow New Zealand,” Mr Hoggard says.
“The current rules are too complex, too expensive, and too often ignore the practical realities of landowners. We’re fixing that.”
The consultation proposes replacing the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2020 and related regulations with a more practical, efficient, and regionally adaptable system.
“The current system’s Te Mana o te Wai has caused frustration across rural New Zealand, with some councils applying it in a way that sidelines the very people working to improve water outcomes,” Mr Hoggard says.
“Farmers aren’t asking for a free pass – they’re asking for a fair go,” Mr McClay says.
“We won’t stand by while councils weaponise Te Mana o te Wai, to push ideology over common sense. It must reflect the importance of freshwater to all New Zealanders.”
The proposed changes would:
- Replace the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2020 and the National Environmental Standards for Freshwater;
- Give councils greater flexibility to balance environmental goals with economic impacts and allow longer timeframes to reach targets where needed;
- Remove unnecessary consents for practices like crop rotation and enable commercial domestic vegetable growing;
- Support long-term water security by enabling water storage;
- Improve the protection of drinking water sources; and
- Review and simplify data requirements under synthetic nitrogen fertiliser regulations.
These are practical, farmer-focused reforms will restore confidence and reduce red tape, while still delivering environmental gains.
“We’ve heard from farmers across the country that nationally determined bottom lines are not always appropriate and can be unachievable even in some catchments dominated by native bush. They also take away flexibility from local communities to achieve the environmental outcomes they want,” Mr Hoggard says.
“We’re putting outcomes ahead of process and backing rural New Zealand to be part of the solution,” Mr McClay says. . .
Federated Farmers applauds the Government’s announcements today on a comprehensive review of freshwater regulations.
“We’re pleased to see all options are on the table and that consultation will be open until 27 July,” Federated Farmers freshwater spokesperson Colin Hurst says.
“The previous Government’s freshwater rules were completely unworkable for farmers. In some cases, even if you converted a whole catchment to native forest, you still wouldn’t have achieved the bottom lines.
“The current Government simply had to push pause on these rules – and now we’re seeing steps towards more sensible national direction to local authorities.”
Hurst says it’s particularly welcome that the Government wants a more balanced approach to Te Mana o Te Wai.
“That concept, as pursued by the previous Government, has been unworkable and highly problematic.
“It was unclear how councils should interpret and apply what was a vague concept of protecting the mana and mauri of water under Labour’s rules, and what that might mean for our farms and rural communities.”
Under Te Mana o te Wai, the health and wellbeing of water is put ahead of all other considerations, including human health, and social, cultural and economic wellbeing.
“That seems wildly imbalanced. The Government’s announcements today recognise such a strict hierarchy is flawed.”
The consultation document says: “Multiple objectives require councils to provide for multiple outcomes and can better reflect the interests of all water users.”
“Federated Farmers absolutely agrees with this. In fact, we believe it’s worth considering whether Te Mano o te Wai is a concept that should be scrapped altogether, which is one of the options now on the table,” Hurst says. . .
It is definitely worth considering whether Te Mano o te Wai should be scrapped altogether.
It is a vague concept which contradicts the idea of balancing environmental, economic and social considerations.
Vegetable growers are also supportive of proposals:
Vegetables NZ is applauding the Government for supporting industry standards that protect the environment by proposing to allow commercial vegetable growers to grow food without having to strive for unworkable resource consents.
“This proposal is a major step forward for New Zealand’s food security and the health of kiwis,” says Vegetables NZ Chair, John Murphy.
“Without it, the heart of New Zealand’s vegetable growing community was under threat.
“Taking a national approach to vegetable production and ensuring vegetable growing is a permitted activity is essential for vegetable growing to be viable and for us to feed New Zealand. . .
This isn’t just making business easier for growers, it will make growing vegetables both easier and less expensive which will be good for consumers too.
And when the eco-zealots start screaming about polluting waterways, do keep in mind that water going through and immediately below native forests doesn’t meet some existing standards.
Consultation is open until July 27th.
More information can be found at the Ministry for Environment.
Ele Ludemann is a North Otago farmer and journalist, who blogs HERE - where this article was sourced.
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