Regional Plan Review

Regional Plan Review

Greater Wellington Regional Council (GWRC) has been working to review the existing regional plans for the Wellington Region. We have learned much about how human activity affects our region’s natural and physical resources and we have worked closely with communities and individuals to develop rules that protect the right things, in the right places.

As a result of this review, the Proposed Natural Resources Plan for the Wellington Region was developed. The Proposed Plan was approved by Council for public notification on 31 July 2015. It combines coastal and regional plans, as well as incorporating regulatory and non-regulatory methods.

The Proposed Plan identifies five distinct catchment areas (whaitua) within the region. The whaitua process provides a decentralised approach to establishing priorities and programmes within each whaitua through catchment groups called whaitua committees. These committees work collaboratively and use an integrated approach to resource management.

Greater Wellington Regional Council circulates regular newsletters providing updates on our work towards developing the new natural resources plan for greater Wellington. If you would like to receive this newsletter please contact regionalplan@gw.govt.nz. Alternatively you can view copies of previous newsletters here.

Submissions on the Proposed Natural Resources Plan

Submissions on the Proposed Natural Resources Plan for the greater Wellington region opened on 31 July 2015 and closed on 25 September 2015.  

View submissions here

Summary of Decisions Requested and Further Submissions

The Summary of Decisions Requested has been publicly notified as of 26 February 2016 and the Further Submission Period closed 29 March 2016.

If you or another submitter requested to be heard in support of your original submission, Greater Wellington Regional Council will hold a hearing. A hearing committee or hearing panel will consider the submissions and hear any evidence that supports the submissions.

For more information please visit our Proposed Natural Resources Plan page. 

Developing the Proposed Natural Resources Plan

A draft Natural Resources Plan for the Wellington Region was published in September 2014 and was made available for public feedback from this time through to November 2014. We received comments, views and suggestions from more than 130 people or organisations and this valuable information helped us develop the Proposed Natural Resources Plan for the Wellington Region.

For more information on the development of the Proposed Natural Resources Plan click here