Governments have been trying to repeal the Resource Management Act for 14 years and it’s very nearly buried. Today, David Parker will unveil the final details of its replacement, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday morning, sign up here.

Tripling in size since its introduction, the RMA almost has both feet in the grave

Passed in 1991, the Resource Management Act (RMA) was a world first, designed to promote the sustainable management of natural and physical resources. The RMA was introduced in 1989 by Sir Geoffrey Palmer as a 314 page bill; the Act is now over 900 pages long. Successive governments have been trying to reform it since 2008. Prime minister Jacinda Ardern described it as a “patchwork that isn’t working any more” at a recent Business NZ function. Today, after months of delays, we will get the final details of the RMA’s replacement. Three bills will take its place – the Natural and Built Environment bill, the Spatial Planning Bill and the Climate Adaptation Bill, which is expected to be introduced in 2023.

Big day for David Parker who’s “barely come up for air from RMA reforms”

The RMA and its reform is at the axis of some of the biggest issues of our time – housing, infrastructure development, environmental protection and climate change adaptation. The reform has been environment minister David Parker’s baby. As Audrey Young writes in this recent performance evaluation of ministers (paywalled), Parker has “barely come up for air from RMA reforms”. Climate change minister James Shaw cited the RMA reform as one of the major planks of policy “coming into place” for New Zealand to be on the right side of history before he headed to Cop27. Whatever’s announced, you can expect the opposition will have a reaction at the ready. Last week’s pizza and policy session (paywalled) for the National party involved a paper on the RMA from environment spokesman Scott Simpson.

“A faster, cheaper, better” version of the RMA

Criticisms of the RMA over the years could easily fill 900 pages. Ultimately, while many still endorse the spirit of the Act in its protection of the environment, it also hasn’t protected it enough. It’s also been partly blamed for the current housing shortage in New Zealand, stymying development with long and cumbersome processes. As the Herald’s Thomas Coughlan writes, deputy prime minister Grant Roberson said yesterday the legislation would save users of the resource management system 19% a year, “about $149m a year”. We know co- governance is off the table, that there’s a focus on early decision-making and streamlining the number of resource management plans produced by local government (from more than 100 to 14), and that it will involve more direction at a national level.

Salmon farm consent will number among Act’s final rides

As the sun sets on one of our most significant and controversial pieces of legislation, we will be able to count consent for open water salmon farms among the Act’s final rides. Bulletin readers should be familiar with my unusual interest in salmon and might recall the 1,300 tonnes of salmon that died at a Marlborough Sounds salmon farm due to an oceanic heat wave. Back in July, New Zealand King Salmon chief executive Grant Rosewarne said a bespoke piece of legislation, rather than the lengthy RMA process, would’ve likely saved the salmon and their business. New Zealand King Salmon has finally been granted consent to establish two open water farms (paywalled) in cooler waters after a three-year resource consent process. It’s a long-awaited win for sustainable aquaculture and climate adaptation, and one of the many examples of why few will mourn the Act’s demise.