The chairperson of the Environment Committee is now calling for submissions on the Fast-track Approvals Bill. The Fast-track Approvals Bill is an omnibus bill. It would enable a fast-track decision-making process for infrastructure and development projects that are considered to have significant regional or national benefits.

The bill would establish a separate process for the following approvals:

· resource consents, notices of requirement, and certificates of compliance (Resource Management Act 1991)

· concessions (Conservation Act 1987)

· authority to do anything otherwise prohibited under the Wildlife Act 1953

· archaeological authority (Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga Act 2014)

· marine consents (Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf (Environmental Effects) Act 2012)

· land access (Crown Minerals Act 1991)

· aquaculture activity approvals (Fisheries Act 1996).

To access the fast-track approvals process, project owners would need to apply to the joint Ministers. A project would then be referred to an expert panel to assess the project and make a recommendation to the joint Ministers, who would then determine whether the approvals should be granted or declined.

Tell the Environment Committee what you think

Make a submission on the bill by 11.59pm on Friday, 19 April 2024.

For more details about the bill:

• Read the full content of the bill
• Get more details about the bill
• What’s been said in Parliament about the bill?
   

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