Consents do not have to be held by the landowner. Any person can apply for consent for an activity, on any property. Gaining resource consent does not guarantee land access.
There are various application costs, annual costs and monitoring costs involved with applying for, and then holding resource consent. It is important that you understand these charges so that they do not come as a surprise when invoice(s) arrive. Get a full description of these charges on the consent charges page
There are two options for consent ownership in this case. It’s up to you to decide which option best suits your needs: Consent is held by you as the land owner or Consent is held by the lessee, view the advantages and disadvantages of each option in the guide for consent holder’s page.
Application forms are specific to what you want to do, and for which purpose. Have a look through the forms and choose the one that fits your activity, i.e. to take groundwater (bore water) for irrigation. You can contact the consents advisor on 06 835 9210 or 0800 108 838 if you can’t find the right one.
You can make a submission only if the application is open for submissions, if it is, you need only fill in the submission form, and send a copy to the Regional Council, and the applicant. You can attach any further comment or information you like to your submission
No, not if you do not want to, you can lodge a submission and not present it in person if a hearing is held
You can make presenting your submission as formal or informal as you like, you will be speaking to the people who will make the final council decision, they may have some questions for you, but the applicant or the Council cannot ask you questions.
You can contact the Consents Advisor on 06 835 9210 they are equipped to provide you all the advise you need, and are here to help.
This is a school or kindergarten that has committed to be part of the Enviroschools programme, a curriculum linked programme that operates nationally to educate children about sustainability and environmental care.
Click here for the list (link to PDF page list)
You are welcome to discuss this with HBRC’s Enviroschool coordinator on 06 833 8036 or email
Yes, kindergartens and play centres can be Enviroschools. Go to http://www.enviroschools.org.nz/
This is the national coordinating body for the programme providing resource and teacher support - http://www.enviroschools.org.nz/
Check for planting days and similar events on our events calendar (link to events calendar). You can get advice from our HBRC community engagement coordinator ph 06 833 8036. Department of Conservation, Forest & Bird and the Environment Centre may also like some extra hands for their projects.
If you are in an urban residential area then ring your local Council. If the burning is taking place on an industrial site or you are in a rural area, contact the Regional Council Pollution hotline on 0800 10883
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) regularly reviews estimates for sea level rise. The IPCC's latest report presented six projected ranges for sea level rise, each based on different carbon emission scenarios. The most likely scenario identifies a sea level rise of 500mm by 2100. This 0.5m figure has been adopted in guidance notes by the Ministry for the Environment and was also adopted in defining the coastal hazard zones. The IPCC regularly reviews its projected sea level rise ranges, so different figures may be applied to coastal hazard zone assessments in the future.
The regional council is working on a web-based mapping system (like Google Maps) that would allow people to view maps of coastal hazard zones at particular locations. In the interim, contact the Hawke's Bay Regional Council.
There is anecdotal evidence that property values have been affected by the coastal hazard zones and associated rules. In some cases elsewhere in New Zealand, anecdotal evidence also suggests that property values have been boosted by similar zones and rules because development of neighbouring and surrounding land is restricted. The Regional Council commissioned a professional valuation company to investigate the property value implications of the coastal hazard zones and associated rules. That research concluded that "there is insufficient evidence that anything other than normal market forces are at play in affecting property values" at case study localities. The valuation report also concluded that "there does not appear to been any adverse effects to value that can be identified as caused by the proposed RCEP and the introduction of Coastal Hazard Zones." The 2008 valuation report can be viewed on the Hawke's Bay Regional Coastal Environment Plan webpage.
Climate change and the resulting increased frequency and severity of storm events is a concern to the insurance industry. Each insurance company has its own approach to this trend, so you are best to talk to your insurer directly, and don’t be afraid to ask several companies too.
The coastal hazard zones typically stretch along the coastline, but do not always encroach an equal distance inland. This variance may result in CHZs extending over properties for differing distances and not at all for other properties. CHZ3 represents areas at risk of coastal flooding. Neighbouring properties may be at slightly different elevations and as such may not be affected by the same flooding.
Coastal hazard zones are defined in the Hawke's Bay Regional Coastal Environment Plan. Those coastal hazard zones and rules will be regularly reviewed (at least every 10 years). If current monitoring programmes and further studies reveal erosion and inundation risk is different to that previously predicted, then the CHZs will be adjusted as part of the regular plan review process.
Maybe. Rules in the Hawke's Bay Regional Coastal Environment Plan do not impose a complete ban on building a house in a coastal hazard zone. However, in CHZ1 or CHZ2, building a new house will require a resource consent from the Regional Council before the activity can be lawfully carried out (NB: a resource consent is not the same as a building consent from a city or district council). Depending on the coastal hazard risk and any mitigating circumstances, the Regional Council may decline consent, or grant consent subject to conditions. Rules in the Regional Coastal Environment Plan also apply to areas where coastal flooding presents a risk, although those rules only address non-reticulated wastewater systems and landfills etc. Rules in the RCEP do not apply to houses and other buildings within CHZ3 as the 2004 Building Code already requires some such buildings to be built above predicted flood levels.
The Hawke's Bay Regional Coastal Environment Plan includes rules restricting a range of land use activities within defined coastal hazard zones. Most additions, external alterations and new buildings will require a resource consent. These restrictions are in addition to requirements under the Building Act and Building Code which are administered by city and district councils. Maintenance, repair and internal alteration works are generally permitted within the coastal hazard zones.
The replacement (eg: in event of fire), maintenance, repair, removal or demolition of most existing buildings and structures is permitted – the proviso being that the works must be of a similar scale/character as the existing building. These permitted maintenance and repair works do not include alterations, extensions or replacement work that increase the floor area of existing buildings. Internal alterations, maintenance and repair works are not restricted by regional rules. However, the normal building consent requirements still apply here. Repair of buildings damaged by action of the sea is restricted. A resource consent is required from the Regional Council (in addition to any relevant building consents).
The subdivision proposal will have to meet the requirements of the Resource Management Act and the existing district plans. The district or city council from which you will need approval to subdivide, will consider the hazards that the land is at risk from when it assesses your subdivision application, and determine whether a consent should be granted.
In short, no. There is no absolute right to undertake protection work to protect any property. However, if you can prove that there is no other practical method and your proposed protection structure will not adversely affect other properties or natural coastal processes etc, then the Regional Council may grant resource consent for proposals that do not comply with rules in the Hawke's Bay Regional Coastal Environment Plan.
Maintenance and repair of existing coastal protection structures requires a resource consent from the Regional Council before the activity can be lawfully carried out. The Regional Council may decline consent or it may grant consent, subject to conditions. The consent process will assess the type and scale of adverse effects of the activity and any measures proposed to mitigate those effects. If a resource consent is granted, it may cover maintenance and repair work over several years – not necessarily just one repair job.
The current policy of councils is to continue to maintain physical protection works where it has been constructed for community purposes and is presently maintained by a district, city or regional council. Such policies are however always open to review and may change in the future. Often, the Regional Council’s responsibilities to undertake river control and drainage works are misconstrued as also placing obligations on councils to ‘hold back the sea.’ Councils are not legally required to construct physical defences against the sea, although from time to time they may become involved in community initiatives to enhance natural coastal protection (eg: dune restoration programmes).
No, the Regional Council’s existing policy is not to initiate new hard engineering coastal protection works, but to continue to maintain works where the Regional Council has already established these. The Regional Council may consider on a case by case basis facilitating a range of coastal management options, but the preference is to avoid any hard engineering solutions. District and city councils may consider whether or not to initiate new coastal protection works on a case by case basis. Most coastal protection works will require prior planning approval (resource consent) before being constructed or implemented, regardless of who undertakes the works.
This is a matter which would need to be determined on a project by project basis and it would need to go through the decision making processes under the Local Government Act. Costs of any such works is most likely to be borne by the landowners and asset owners who will benefit from the protection work.
Due to the large size of electronic files for the schedules and figures, please contact the Policy Team to request a hard copy of digital copy of the schedule(s) and figure(s) you are interested in.
Local Body elections are held every three years. The next election of members of all Regional Councils, District Councils, Community Boards and District Health Boards will be held in October 2013.
Those eligible to vote at the election are all resident electors and non-resident ratepayer electors whose names appear on the District Electoral Rolls. The preliminary electoral rolls for each constituency will be available for inspection at Council Offices, libraries and Post Shops fromthe end of July 2013. Applications for enrolment or for changes to rolls can be made by: • Completing the appropriate form at any Post Shop • Telephoning 0800 ENROLNOW or 0800 36 76 56 • Accessing the Enrolment Centre website A person who resides in one area and owns property in another, may claim for enrolment as a Ratepayer elector. Similarly a firm, Company, Corporation or Society paying rates on a property may nominate one of its members or officers as a ratepayer elector. The person so nominated must live outside the region. Enquiries as to eligibility to enrol as a ratepayer elector should be made at any of the council offices.
The First Past the Post electoral system will be used for the Hawke's Bay Regional Council elections.
Voting documents will be sent to all eligible electors from toward the end of September 2013. Votes will be able to be cast during the three weeks from the date the documents are sent out until noon on voting day. Any voting papers that are not in the Electoral Officer’s hands by noon on Voting Day will not be counted.
Anyone interested in standing for the Regional Council will be able to obtain candidate information from the Council’s Electoral Officer from mid July 2013.
For further information on the elections please contact the Council’s Electoral Officer. Carol Gilbertson Phone: (06) 835-9216 Fax: (06) 835-3601 E -mail: Carol@hbrc.govt.nz Postal Address: The Electoral Officer Hawke's Bay Regional Council Private Bag 6006
Hawke's Bay Regional Council works with individuals, community groups, companies, government authorities and local councils to develop a clean and healthy environment. Our responsibility as an environmental manager is to protect the Hawke's Bay land, water, coast and air by allowing sustainable development to take place. This is done through Resource Management Plans, and by issuing and monitoring resource consents to control the impacts of human activities. The Regional Council also has a primary role in flood control and drainage and manages many kilometres of stopbanks and other flood protection works to ensure that land and property are safe. The Regional Council has regulatory roles in plant pest and animal pest control, and emergency management.
Council meetings are advertised in newspapers and on this website towards the end of each month. Members of the public are welcome to attend formal Regional Council meetings, which are usually held on the third or last Wednesday of each month. Other Council Committees are held to a regular schedule. Meeting agendas and minutes are available at local libraries, Council offices and this website.
Firstly, the boundaries of the region are based on river catchments, while district and city council territories are based on population and communities of interest. Another difference is that the Regional Council concentrates on the 'natural environment' - water, air, land, coastal - with a long-term view to make sure these are used sustainably, and are just as available and just as good (if not better) in the future as they are today. City and district councils concentrate on the 'built environment' and deliver services – such as drinking water, sewage disposal, rubbish disposal, roading networks, swimming pools, libraries and parks - to their local communities. They must also take care of the environment, but in the same way all resource users do - by undertaking activities in accordance with environmental laws and regional plans. Despite the different objectives of the councils, they are often jointly involved in local projects and in representing their communities at a national level.
The Resource Management Act 1991 is one of the principal Acts behind the work of Regional Councils and many of our activities are aimed primarily at benefiting the environment. The Regional Council has also taken on responsibility for local government functions that have overall regional benefits - such as public transport, drainage, maritime safety, and plant and animal pest control. The Biosecurity Act 1993, Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002, Land Drainage Act 1908, Maritime Transport Act 1994 and Soil Conservation and Rivers Control Act 1945 are all relevant. The Local Government Act 2002 governs the way the Council functions, while the Local Electoral Act 2001 governs election of Councillors. (For a complete list see the LTCCP).
There is a brochure available which gives information about the scheme. It is available here as a pdf document (1.26Mb).
The scheme is free, however the agency which assesses you may charge a small fee if you are not a member of their organisation.
If you have a significant, permanent impairment which prevents you from using your own car or travelling on a bus, you will need to be assessed to make sure that you are genuinely in need of subsidised taxi travel, and that you meet the criteria of the Scheme.
Provides subsidised taxi travel for Hawke’s Bay residents, who are unable to use public transport due to a significant, permanent impairment.