SURV205 Statutory Planning and Environmental Principles Practice Flashcards

Comprehensive practice vocabulary flashcards covering the core principles, legal doctrines, statutory frameworks, institutional structures, and planning theories in New Zealand statutory planning.

Public Participation Purpose in the RMA

A two-fold statutory objective affirmed in Westfield (NZ) Ltd v North Shore CC [2005]: first, recognising and protecting the particular rights and interests of affected individuals and the general public; second, enhancing the overall quality of environmental decision-making.

Principles of Consultation (Section 82 LGA 2002)

Statutory requirements for local authorities including providing reasonable access to information in an appropriate format, encouraging affected persons to present views, maintaining an open mind, giving due consideration to views, and providing access to clear records of decisions.

Levels of Public Participation (IAP2 Spectrum)

A framework defining increasing levels of public impact on decision-making: Inform (provide balanced information), Consult (obtain feedback), Involve (work directly to reflect concerns), Collaborate (partner in decision-making and developing alternatives), and Empower (place final decision-making in the hands of the public).

Precautionary Principle (Principle 15 Rio Declaration)

An international environmental principle stating that where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent environmental degradation.

Effects-Based Approach

The RMA's regulatory philosophy of managing the environmental effects and consequences of activities rather than prescribing or prohibiting the specific activities themselves, intervening only when effects fail to promote sustainable management.

Section 3 RMA 1991 (Meaning of 'Effect')

A broad statutory definition including any positive or adverse, temporary or permanent, past, present, or future, and cumulative effects, as well as potential effects of high probability and potential effects of low probability that carry a high potential impact.

Adaptive Management

An iterative management approach confirmed in Sustain Our Sounds v New Zealand King Salmon [2014] that allows an activity to proceed in staged phases when there is baseline data, effective monitoring, clear thresholds for action before damage occurs, and remedying mechanisms before effects become irreversible.

Polluter Pays Principle

A fundamental environmental law principle (Principle 16 of the Rio Declaration and May 1972 OECD guidelines) requiring national authorities to internalize environmental costs so that polluters financially bear the full costs of pollution and remediation.

Sustainable Development (Brundtland Report 1987)

Development defined in 'Our Common Future' as meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs, integrating environmental, economic, and social equity.

Section 5 RMA 1991 (Sustainable Management)

Managing the use, development, and protection of natural and physical resources to enable people and communities to provide for their social, economic, and cultural wellbeing and health and safety while sustaining resources for future generations, safeguarding life-supporting capacity, and avoiding, remedying, or mitigating adverse effects.

2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

A United Nations global blueprint adopted in 2015 consisting of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) addressing poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace, and justice.

Earth Overshoot Day

The calculated annual date when humanity's aggregate demand for ecological resources and services surpasses the Earth's capacity to replenish them within that year, with humanity consuming resources approximately 1.8 times faster than ecosystems can regenerate.

Mātauranga Māori

The holistic Māori knowledge system and worldview encompassing cultural heritage, traditional practices, and genealogy (whakapapa) that acknowledges the profound interconnectedness of living and non-living elements in the environment.

Tikanga Māori

Customary Māori system of values and practices ('correct behaviour') recognized in modern jurisprudence (e.g., Re Edwards [2021]) as Aotearoa New Zealand's first law, governing relationships between people, ancestry, land, and natural resources.

Kaitiakitanga

The customary ethic and responsibility of guardianship, stewardship, and trusteeship over the environment, natural resources, and taonga, explicitly recognized as an 'other matter' to have particular regard to under Section 7(a) of the RMA 1991.

Legal Personhood of Ecosystems

A statutory mechanism in Treaty of Waitangi settlements that grants independent legal status to natural entities (such as Te Urewera in 2014 and the Whanganui River as Te Awa Tupua in 2017), establishing that they own themselves and are represented by joint governance bodies.

The Land Ethic (Aldo Leopold 1949)

An ecological philosophy asserting that the boundary of moral community must be enlarged to include soils, waters, plants, and animals (the land), governed by the maxim: 'A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it does otherwise.'

The Lorax (Resource Planning Metaphor)

Dr. Seuss's literary allegory demonstrating the environmental consequences of unlimited industrial growth ('biggering and biggering'), externalized environmental costs, lack of ecological limits, and the necessity of a guardian (kaitiaki) speaking for voiceless ecosystems.

Tragedy of the Commons

An economic and ecological theory articulated by Garrett Hardin (1968) positing that rational individuals acting independently in their self-interest will inevitably overexploit and deplete a shared, limited open-access resource, leading to systemic ruin.

Mutual Coercion Mutually Agreed Upon

Garrett Hardin's proposed social solution to the tragedy of the commons, where resource users collectively consent to binding statutory regulations, taxes, or limits to protect shared resources from depletion.

Strong Sustainability Model

A nested ecological model prepared by Sustainable Aotearoa New Zealand Inc. (SANZ) where the economy (econosphere) is constrained within human society (sociosphere), which in turn is completely bounded by the biophysical limits of the biosphere.

Steady State Economy

An ecological economic model conceptualized by Herman Daly featuring constant stocks of physical wealth and population maintained by a minimal throughput of resource extraction and waste within ecosystem capacity.

Local Government Act 2002 Purpose (Section 10)

The statutory objective of local government to enable democratic local decision-making and action by and on behalf of communities, and to promote the social, economic, environmental, and cultural well-being of communities for the present and the future.

Creature of Statute

A legal characterization of local authorities denoting that their powers, governance structures, and jurisdictions are strictly created, enabled, and restricted by Parliament through legislation like the Local Government Act.

Long-Term Plan (LTP)

A mandatory 10-year strategic planning document prepared by local authorities every 3 years under the Local Government Act 2002, setting out planned activities, expenditure, community outcomes, and infrastructure priorities.

Infrastructure Strategy (LGA 2002)

A statutory component of a council's Long-Term Plan covering a minimum 30-year horizon that identifies major infrastructure issues, capital expenditure choices, maintenance schedules, and demand assumptions for core services.

District Plan

The primary statutory land-use instrument prepared by territorial authorities under Section 73 of the RMA 1991 to regulate zoning, subdivision, and development to achieve sustainable management within a district.

Section 32 Evaluation Report

A mandatory statutory assessment under the RMA 1991 evaluating whether proposed plan objectives are the most appropriate way to achieve the Act's purpose, and whether proposed policies and rules are the most efficient and effective methods.

Activity Classes (Section 87A RMA 1991)

The six-tier statutory categorization of activities under the RMA: Permitted (no consent needed), Controlled (consent granted, control restricted), Restricted Discretionary, Discretionary, Non-Complying, and Prohibited (no application may be made).

Height in Relation to Boundary (HIRB)

A district plan bulk-and-location standard that projects an angled recession plane (e.g., 45 degrees from 2.5 metres above boundary level) to prevent building dominance and protect solar access on neighbouring properties.

Future Development Strategy (FDS)

A high-level strategic spatial planning document required under the NPS-UD 2020 that identifies where and when a local authority will provide 30 years of urban growth capacity, integrated with infrastructure funding.

Structure Plan

A non-statutory framework plan outlining the comprehensive spatial layout of future land uses, roading grids, infrastructure networks, open spaces, and hazards across a defined growth area, often used to support plan changes.

The Planning Funnel

The proposed decision-making architecture of the Planning Bill and Natural Environment Bill where high-level policy choices and trade-offs are settled at national and spatial levels and cannot be relitigated at lower plan or consenting stages.

Landowner Relief Framework

A mechanism in proposed RMA-replacement legislation requiring councils to justify and offer financial or regulatory relief (e.g., rates remissions, bonus development rights, or cash) when rules protecting heritage, landscapes, or biodiversity place an unreasonable burden on landowners.

Randerson Report (2020)

The comprehensive independent review of the Resource Management Act chaired by retired Court of Appeal Judge Tony Randerson QC, which identified 15 key systemic failures and recommended repealing and replacing the RMA with separate planning and environmental legislation.

Section 4 RMA 1991 (Crown Exemption)

The statutory provision establishing that the RMA binds the Crown, except for activities certified by the Minister of Defence as necessary for national security or specific works managed under the Conservation Act 1987.

Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment (PCE)

An independent Officer of Parliament established under the Environment Act 1986 appointed for a 5-year term to act as an environmental ombudsman, reviewing legislation and providing reports to Parliament without holding direct enforcement powers.

Ministry for Cities, Environment, Regions and Transport (MCERT)

A public sector amalgamation established on 1 July 2026 consolidating the Ministry for the Environment, Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, Ministry of Transport, and local government functions of Internal Affairs.

Cascade of Planning Documents

The administrative hierarchy confirmed in EDS v NZ King Salmon [2014] where national policy statements flow down through regional policy statements, regional plans, and district plans, giving operational substance to Part 2 with increasing particularity.

National Policy Statements (NPS)

Instruments issued by central government under Section 45 of the RMA to state objectives and policies on resource management matters of national significance, which regional and district plans must give effect to.

National Environmental Standards (NES)

Nationally binding technical regulations promulgated under Section 43 of the RMA that prescribe baseline environmental standards, methods, or limits that override less stringent local plan rules.

Environmental Bottom Lines (King Salmon Case)

The legal precedent set by the Supreme Court in EDS v NZ King Salmon [2014] establishing that directive environmental policies (e.g., using 'avoid') in higher-order documents must be obeyed, precluding an overall broad balancing approach.

'Avoid' (RMA Statutory Interpretation)

The strict legal definition established by the Supreme Court in King Salmon [2014], meaning to 'not allow' or 'prevent the occurrence of' adverse effects, rather than merely attempting to minimize or mitigate them.

Section 223 Certification (RMA 1991)

Formal approval granted by a territorial authority certifying that a cadastral survey plan for subdivision matches and complies with the scheme plan approved in the original resource consent.

Section 224(c) Certificate (RMA 1991)

A certificate issued by a territorial authority confirming that all conditions of the subdivision consent and physical infrastructure requirements have been completed, enabling LINZ to deposit the survey plan and issue new titles.

Types of Resource Consent (Section 87 RMA 1991)

The five distinct statutory permissions under the RMA: Land Use Consent (s9/s13), Subdivision Consent (s11), Coastal Permit (s12/s14/s15), Water Permit (s14), and Discharge Permit (s15).

Section 9 RMA 1991 (Land Use Presumption)

The permissive statutory presumption governing private land under the RMA: any land use is lawful unless it specifically contravenes a National Environmental Standard, regional rule, or district plan rule.

Section 11 RMA 1991 (Subdivision Presumption)

The restrictive statutory presumption that prohibits any person from subdividing land unless it is expressly allowed by an NES, a district plan rule, or an approved resource consent, and shown on an approved survey plan.

Assessment of Environmental Effects (AEE)

A mandatory report required under Section 88 and Schedule 4 of the RMA 1991 that identifies, evaluates, and details mitigation measures for actual and potential environmental effects resulting from a proposed activity.

Section 106 RMA 1991

The statutory power granting a consent authority discretion to refuse a subdivision consent application or impose conditions if the land or infrastructure is subject to significant risk from natural hazards.

Rational-Comprehensive Planning Theory

A top-down, expert-driven planning methodology that treats policy formulation as a scientific, sequential process: problem definition, alternative identification, systematic evaluation, implementation, and empirical monitoring.

Incremental Planning ('Muddling Through')

Charles Lindblom's (1959) planning model asserting that decisions in complex societies proceed through small, gradual adjustments to existing policies rather than comprehensive overhauls.

Advocacy Planning

A planning doctrine introduced by Paul Davidoff (1965) asserting that planners are not value-neutral technocrats and should explicitly represent and advocate for marginalized, under-represented, and disadvantaged groups.

Arnstein's Ladder of Citizen Participation (1969)

A typological model evaluating degrees of power distribution across eight rungs: non-participation (Manipulation, Therapy), tokenism (Informing, Consultation, Placation), and citizen power (Partnership, Delegated Power, Citizen Control).

Garden City Movement (Ebenezer Howard 1898)

An influential urban planning concept designed to combine town and country benefits via master-planned, self-contained communities of finite size, cooperative land ownership, and permanent surrounding agricultural greenbelts.

Master Planning (Interdisciplinary Collaboration)

The collaborative practice of spatial design, site layout, and infrastructure delivery that integrates expertise from planning, architecture, landscape architecture, engineering, and cadastral surveying.

Smart Growth

An urban planning philosophy promoting compact, walkable, transit-oriented development, mixed land uses, environmental conservation, and efficient utilization of existing public infrastructure to counteract automobile-dependent suburban sprawl.

Conventional Suburban Design ('Dumb Growth')

A low-density land development paradigm characterized by Ewing & Hodder (1998) as separating land uses and housing types, utilizing curved branching cul-de-sacs, wide roads, large front setbacks, and surface parking.

Rural-Urban Boundary (RUB)

A spatial planning containment line used by metropolitan councils (such as Auckland) to sequence urban land release and avoid subsidizing bulk infrastructure on peripheral greenfield sites.