A resource consent is a requirement under the Resource Management Act (RMA) to apply for approval to undertake any activity, which is not identified as being permitted under the RMA or a District or Regional Plan. There are six different types of resource consent, detailed below:
-
certificate of compliance - is applied for to satisfy any critics about an activity, or to confirm an activity does comply with the District and Regional Plan.
-
land use consent - is applied for when land is being used in a way that none of the other resource consent types apply.
-
subdivision consent - is applied for when the property boundaries are being altered or new properties are being created. Click here for more information on the types of subdivision.
-
To do something in a coastal marine area is called a coastal permit.
-
A Water permit - is applied for when water is being used such as a water extraction. The only exception is when the activity is in the coastal marine area.
-
A discharge permit - is applied for when something is being discharged into a water body that is not located within the coastal marine area. There are several types of discharge permits, this include, discharge to air (for example dust), discharge to ground (septic tank into a soakage field), and discharge into a water body.
Click here for more on the different types of subdivisions.
For each of the above types of resource consents, an activity is classified as one of six types. The types of activities are:
-
Permitted Activity - this is an activity that you do not need a resource consent for as long as the activity complies with the District and Regional Plan.
-
Controlled Activity - this is an activity for which a resource consent is required, however consent cannot be refused although conditions may be imposed.
-
Restricted Discretionary Activity - this is an activity for which a resource consent is required. Also consent can be refused, but only for specifically identified parts of an activity, for example, a lack of access to a property.
-
Discretionary Activity - this is an activity for which a resource consent is required. Consent can be refused if any of the possible effects are considered significant and that there is no viable or desirable mitigation measures.
-
Non-complying activity - this is an activity for which resource consent is required. Consent can be refused if any of the possible effects are considered significant and that there is no viable or desirable mitigation measures. Also refusal can be given if the proposal does not meet the policies and objectives of the District / Regional Plan (or the vision for the zone).
-
Prohibited Activity - this is an activity for which no resource consent can be given under any circumstances. An example is consent for a nuclear power plant.
-
Restricted Coastal Activity - this is an activity that is identified in the regional plan or regional coastal plan as either a discretionary and consent must come from the Minister of Conservation.
-
Recognised Customary Activity - this is an activity carried out under a customary rights order. Orders are created either by the Maori Land Court or the High Court and recognise a particular activity that has been in use or practice, and which has been carried out in that area since 1840.
All resource consent applications are either considered on a non-notified, limited-notified or full public notification basis. The decision whether to notify an application largely depends on the type of activity and the degree of perceived effects the activity will have. Applications for a permitted activity or controlled activity are usually not notified. Restricted Discretionary, Discretionary and non-complying activities may be notified, however if they are not notified, the applicant has usually had to have received affected persons approvals.
For information on resource consent processes, timeframes and costs, please explore one of the following topics:
-
Non-notified Land Use consent, coastal permit, water permit and discharge consent.
-
Publicly notified Land Use consent, coastal permit, water permit and discharge consent.
-
Small urban subdivision (2 - 3 lots) and rural subdivisions (less than 20 hectares).
-
Medium sized urban subdivision (4-10 lots) and rural subdivision (21 - 100 hectares).
-
Large sized urban subdivisions (11 + lots) and large rural subdivisions.
Suggested Topics: FAQ, Advice and Tips, Definitions, Types of subdivision
