RMA re-write will keep communities in the dark

Greedy developers will be celebrating the tabling today of the rewritten Resource Management Act Amendment Bill, Green Party Co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons predicted.

"The original Bill, as reported back by the Environment select committee in 2001, was a careful attempt to balance a wide range of interests," said Ms Fitzsimons. "But this re-write gives comfort to lazy councils and arrogant developers by pandering to the myth that public participation is about delays rather than democracy."

The Bill reverses two key decisions of the select committee. Firstly, it re-introduces 'limited notification," which will further reduce public participation in decisions. Secondly, it removes clauses accepted by the committee which would allow appeals to the Environment Court against decisions not to notify applicants.

"Most resource consents are non-notified already," Jeanette Fitzsimons said. "Only five percent of consents are publicly notified and the Bill reduces this further."

Under the Bill, local councils will decide who is affected by a proposal. If they get it wrong, those affected will have to go to the High Court to get a say on that proposal.

"Limited notification means that groups representing the public and community interest and the environment will have less chance of being involved.

"United Future - which is backing this Bill - claims to be family-friendly. I'll be interested to see how they defend their support to the first family to find its property being undermined by unscrupulous developers and a 'pro-business' council conspiring to limit public input."

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