A submission, signed by 10 Southland and Otago councils, to the draft Natural and Built Environment Bill has labelled it ambiguous and unclear.
The Bill is the primary proposed replacement for the RMA, with two other Acts proposed to handle strategic planning and climate adaptation.
Its purpose is to set out how the environment will be protected and enhanced.
However, the submission, which is still in the process of being approved by some councils, says the draft falls short of providing a strong sense of direction.
There are concerns the lack of clarity in the Bill could lead to long and costly arguments and legal action.
The submission said implementation of a new system would be expensive and could disrupt current progress towards supporting additional housing capacity and work to implement the Government’s new freshwater management policies.
Those costs and delays would be worthwhile only if new resource management system brought significant improvements to the current system, but the councils were not confident that it would.
The submission also said the draft failed to give adequate direction for urban development.
‘‘It is unclear how urban development is to be provided for ...
‘‘Given the reform’s objectives, and the housing crisis in New Zealand is experiencing, the exposure draft could have been expected to provide for development more explicitly,’’ the submission said.
The Gore District Council is set to confirm whether it supports the submission during a full-council meeting today.
In the meeting agenda, chief executive Steve Parry said the Three Waters reform had captured most of the headlines but, arguably, the reform of the RMA was ‘‘far more comprehensive and revolutionary’’.
‘‘[It] will turn the current system on its head and ambitiously endeavours to collapse 66 district plans into 14 regional plans, with key decisions on content being provided by regional planning committees, the appointment process for which remains unknown at this stage,’’ he said.
The Otago Regional Council will make its decision on the joint submission during its strategy and planning committee meeting tomorrow.
The submission is also addressed from the Central Otago, Clutha, Queenstown-Lakes, Southland and Waitaki District Councils, Environment Southland, and Dunedin and Invercargill City Councils.
