Decisions out on policy statement

Decisions on all submissions to the Proposed Bay of Plenty Regional Policy Statement will be publically released this week.

To find out more about the Proposed Regional Policy Statement and read the decisions, visit our Proposed Regional Policy Statement page >>

The Proposed Bay of Plenty Regional Policy Statement identifies significant resource management issues for the region, and enables the use and development of natural and physical resources, such as water and land. It allows for the development of roads, infrastructure and buildings in ways that maintain a healthy environment.

Bay of Plenty Regional Councillor Raewyn Bennett, who chaired the Proposed Regional Policy Statement Hearing Committee, said it was encouraging to reach another milestone in the process for developing the statement.

"The Proposed RPS sets out how the community will manage resources so they provide for the present without compromising future generations," Cr Bennett said. "It's been an incredibly thorough process to get it to this stage, and I've been encouraged by the level of interest we've had from the public and iwi to make sure we've got the policy right."

Significant issues that the Proposed Regional Policy Statement identifies include managing urban growth and the way we use land, making water available for horticulture and farming, protecting our outstanding natural features and landscapes and providing for tangata whenua relationships with the environment.

This month's notifications relate to parts of the Proposed Bay of Plenty Regional Policy Statement on:

• Air Quality,
• Energy and Infrastructure,
• Geothermal Resources,
• Integrated Resource Management,
• Iwi Resource Management,
• Matters of National Importance,
• Natural Hazards,
• Urban and Rural Growth Management, and
• Water Quantity.

 

The notification gives those who originally submitted on the proposed policy the opportunity to lodge an appeal with the Environment Court.

Decisions on the Coastal Environment, and Water Quality and Land Use provisions of the Proposed RPS were released in March. This enabled Variation 1 (Coastal Policy) to the Proposed RPS to be notified to give effect to the New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement 2010.  Proposed Variation 1 was publicly notified on Thursday 31 May 2012. 

Copies of the Council's decisions are available from Bay of Plenty Regional Council's offices, district and city council offices, libraries and service centres, can be posted out or downloaded from our website www.boprc.govt.nz > Knowledge Centre > Policies > The Next Regional Policy Statement.