Proposed regional policy attracts submissions

The region’s most significant resource management policy document attracted more than 180 submissions on a variety of issues from around the region.

The proposed statement is the region’s key document that sets policy and guidelines for how natural and physical resources in the region should be managed.

RPS Subcommittee chairman Raewyn Bennett said it was good to see such a high level of response from the community.

“It’s important the document responds to how our regional community wants the area’s physical and natural resources to be managed in the future.

“As expected, submissions reflect the region’s diverse range of agencies, community interests and individual aspirations.

“Staff have now prepared a summary of the decisions requested, and we have called for further submissions on the submissions received. We will hold hearings later this year before making recommendations to Council on all the submissions received,” Councillor Bennett said.

Submissions were received from across the region and from a range of industries, interests and agencies. Of the 183 submissions 64 came from individuals, 31 were from community or environment interest groups, 27 from primary industry organisations and 15 from iwi/hapu or Maori.

Most parts of the proposed document were submitted on. While there was a lot of support for many provisions, some policy areas received greater scrutiny than others.

Issues submitted on included water quality and land use, water quantity, mangrove management, infrastructure and energy, geothermal management, the mapping of the coastal environment and nationally important areas.

Other issues included amending the urban limits lines and the iwi resource management provisions and how the Proposed RPS will give effect to the latest New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement.

Copies of the summary of decisions and submissions are available by contacting the Regional Council.

The deadline for making further submissions in support of, or in opposition to those submissions is now 19 May. Not everyone can make a further submission. Further submissions are only open to persons representing the public interest or who have an interest greater than the general public.