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Public comment is being sought on what is effectively an updated rulebook for the way Northland’s water, air, soil and coast are used and managed.
Northland Regional Council chair Bill Shepherd says the council’s proposed regional plan will ultimately replace the three existing regional plans, which are well over a decade old.
“It’s not an understatement to label it one of, if not ‘the’, most important documents council has consulted on for many years,” he says.
Cr Shepherd says the new plan is simpler, more streamlined and easier to use than its predecessors. It covers a broad range of activities including proposed rules for coastal works, earthworks, water use and discharges to air, land and water.
Among key changes in the proposed plan are new limits on taking water from rivers, lakes and aquifers, making it easier to get permission for mangrove removal, and new stock exclusion rules for rivers, drains, wetlands and lakes.
Northland residents have until Wednesday November 15 (4pm) to provide feedback on the plan.
