PROPOSALS OUT FOR SUBMISSION ON CHANGES OF NATIONAL DIRECTION

The Government announced today that it is calling for feedback/ submissions on proposals to change and inform development of national direction under the resource management system.

A flurry of four media releases have been released:

• Electrifying growth: Infrastructure and energy RMA national direction open for consultation
• Consultation opens on sweeping overhaul of primary sector regulations
• Making it easier to consent quarries and mines
• Enabling more housing: National direction on granny flats and papakāinga

Early media coverage includes:

• RNZ – Sweeping RMA changes for housing, freshwater, infrastructure rules proposed
• NZ Herald – Biggest change in NZ history: New proposals for freshwater, infrastructure, farming
• Stuff / The Post – Government proposes RMA overhaul to infrastructure, freshwater, housing regulations

National direction sets national resource management policy and rules which inform regional and local plans, policy statements and resource consent decisions. It includes national policy statements, national environmental standards, and section 360 regulations. 

Submissions are invited on proposals to update national direction for infrastructure, development and the primary sector and on options to amend freshwater national direction, and test how housing proposals could fit into the new resource management system. 

The Ministry for the Environment has outlined Four consultation packages today, 29 May 2025. Consultation for the first three packages will run from Thursday 29 May until 11.59pm on Sunday 27 July. Consultation on package 4 is expected to start in early June. 

A full public notice of new and amended proposals for national direction is available as a PDF here.

The packages are

Package 1: Infrastructure and development

See: https://consult.environment.govt.nz/resource-management/infrastructure-development-primary-sector-nd/

The Government aims to make it easier for councils to plan and deliver infrastructure by making four new national direction instruments and amending four existing national direction instruments.  

Package 2: Primary sector  

See: https://consult.environment.govt.nz/resource-management/infrastructure-development-primary-sector-nd/

The Government aims to enable growth in the primary sector by making changes to eight existing national direction instruments.  

The proposals to prepare and amend national direction in Packages 1 and 2 are being consulted on under section 46A of the Resource Management Act. They are grouped for ease of reading and to help understand where instruments deal with similar matters.   

Package 3: Freshwater   

See: https://consult.environment.govt.nz/resource-management/freshwater-national-direction/

The Government is seeking feedback on options to amend freshwater national direction to better reflect the interests of all water users, and on whether changes should be implemented under the existing RMA or under new resource management legislation.    

Further consultation will be undertaken, later this year, through a more detailed exposure draft of the proposed freshwater national direction.  

Package 4: Going for Housing Growth 

The Government is seeking feedback on how the proposals in the first pillar of the Going for Housing Growth programme could fit into the new resource management system.  Pillar 1 aims to free up land for development and remove unnecessary planning barriers. This package is a joint consultation run by the Ministry for Housing and Urban Development and the Ministry for the Environment.  Consultation on Package 4: Going for Housing Growth is expected to commence in early June 2025. 

WEBINARS BEING RUN BY THE MINISTRY FOR THE ENVIRONMENT

Webinars are being run on Package 1, 2 and 3 and to answer questions.

The Ministry recommends checking regularly for any updates to information on webinars at https://environment.govt.nz/news/consultation-on-updating-rma-national-direction/

Webinar 1 – Package 1: Infrastructure and development
Wednesday 4 June | 10.30am – 11.30 am
Intended for local government, Post Settlement Governance Entities, and resource management practitioners.

Webinar 2 – Package 2: Primary sector and Package 3: Freshwater
Thursday 5 June | 1pm – 2.30pm.
Intended for local government, Post Settlement Governance Entities, and resource management practitioners.

Webinar 3 – Package 1: Infrastructure and development
Tuesday 10 June | 10am – 11 am
Intended for a general audience.

Webinar 4 – Package 2: Primary sector and Package 3: Freshwater
Wednesday 11 June | 10.30am – 12pm
Intended for a general audience.