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RESOURCE CONSENT
Application for Resource Consent
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What is a Resource Consent?
The Carterton District Council District Plan aims to minimise activities, which may have potential harmful effects on the surrounding area and on the environment. Any activities, which may have such effects, are limited by rules in the Plan. The Plan groups activities into different classifications depending on the degree of these effects.
These are:
| Activity Type |
Resource Consent |
Description |
| Permitted |
X
|
Allowed provided the activity complies with the conditions in the Plan. |
| Controlled |
O
|
Approval will be given if the activity complies with the conditions in the Plan |
| Discretionary (Limited) |
O
|
Approval will be given, with conditions imposed, restricted to the matters identified in the Plan. |
| Discretionary |
O
|
Approval may be given and conditions may be imposed. |
X No consent is required.
O Consent is required.
The CDC District Plan does not use non-complying or prohibited activity categories.
How to Make a Resource Consent Application
The quality of the information you supply with your application will determine the efficiency with which Council can consider and determine the application.
Before submitting your application, consider the following points.
* Have a clear understanding of your proposal. It is frustrating and expensive if an application is changed once it is being processed.
* Consult with Council staff and any people who may be affected by your proposal. This will ensure that you are following the correct procedures and it may help resolve potential problems at an early stage.
* Ensure that all the information requested in the application form is provided. This should include a full description of the activity, and an assessment of environmental effects, plus whatever other information is necessary to enable Council and affected persons to fully understand the proposal, ie. Site and landscape plans, photos, etc.
* The appropriate deposit must accompany applications.
What is an Assessment of Environmental Effects?
The Resource Management Act 1991 requires that an assessment of actual and potential effects on the environment be submitted with all applications. The AEE process:
* Helps you identify and understand the effects of what you want to do and why they happen.
* Helps to identify both the negative and positive effects early in the process.
* Helps in project feasibility and design.
* Means that you consider the views of others.
* Helps to identify how you could modify your proposal to control any adverse effects.
* Helps the Council and affected parties to fully understand the details of the proposal and the anticipated effects on the environment if consent is granted.
* Helps the Council decide whether it should grant consent to your proposal and, if so, whether any conditions need to be attached to the consent.
* Where necessary provides a basis for ongoing monitoring after the consent is granted.
An AEE is an accurate and objective statement about the effects of your proposal and will identify whether there are any potential adverse effects and whether they are acceptable or whether they need to be avoided, remedied or mitigated.
What Needs to be Included in an AEE
Your AEE should include the following which is set out in section 88 and the Fourth Schedule of the Resource Management Act.
* A description of your proposed activity.
* An assessment of the actual and potential effects of your activity.
* Where the effects are likely to be significant, a description of available alternatives.
* For contaminants, an assessment of the nature of the discharge and sensitivity to the receiving environment and any possible alternative methods of discharge, including into any receiving environment.
* A description of how the adverse effects may be avoided, remedied or mitigated.
* The names of parties who may be interested in or affected by your proposal, the consultation undertaken and the views of those consulted.
* Where an effect needs to be controlled, a discussion on how it can be controlled and whether it needs to be monitored. Where appropriate, a description of how this will be done and by whom.
Consider Whether you Need to Seek Specialist Advice
It is your responsibility to ensure that the correct information accompanies your resource consent application.
Your decision on obtaining specialists advice will depend on what you are proposing and what you are comfortable with and able to deal with. You may wish to seek specialist advice if:
* You do not understand particular effects of your proposal and therefore do not know how to address them. You might require for example advice on cultural, engineering, landscaping or archaeological matters.
* The resource consent is complex and requires specialists project management skills.
* There is a dispute about your proposals potential effects.
* Your proposal is a significant departure from the requirements of the District Plan, so you have little guidance on the effects that your proposal might generate.
What Happens when the Council Receives your Application
When a resource consent application is received by the Council it is:
* Checked to ensure all relevant information is provided and the required deposit is paid.
* If the application is incomplete, the Council will request further information before the application can be processed further.
* On receipt of all relevant information the Council processes the application and a report is prepared for Council setting out the matters it must consider and how the proposal measures up against these.
Public Notification & Non-Notification
Some consent applications require public notification which means the application is publicly advertised. This gives the wider community a chance to consider the application and make submissions in support of, or opposition to, the proposal.
The Council may consider that an application can be processed without public notification if:
* The Council considers the effects on the environment from the proposed activity will be minor.
* The activity is controlled and the plan permits consideration of the application without the need to obtain written approval of affected parties.
* The activity is discretionary and the Council is satisfied the adverse effects associated with the activity will be minor, and written approval has been obtained from every person who may be adversely affected.
If a resource consent application is non-notified, the Council will make a decision on the application, including conditions, which may be placed on the consent. A decision on a non-notified resource consent application should be made by Council within 20 working days of the application being submitted, provided further information is not requested.
Non-notified resource consent applications do not go through the submission process. Members of the public do not have the opportunity to make submissions in opposition to or support of the proposal.
When will a Hearing be Held?
Publicly notified applications are subject to a hearing. A hearing must be commenced within 25 working days from the closing date for submissions. Ten working days notice must be given to the applicant and to all submitters who indicate they wish to be heard.
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