Draft Plan Change 1E – Rural Indigenous Biodiversity Incentives

Draft Plan Change 1E responds to a review of the current District Plan's ‘development incentives’ provisions. 

It aims to refocus those provisions to provide incentives for the restoration, enhancement, and creation of areas of positive indigenous vegetation and in exchange for a limited number of bonus allotments across all rural zones, including General Rural, Rural Production, and Rural Lifestyle zones.

Status: Closed for feedback

About the draft

In 2022, feedback was sought on an earlier draft of this plan change. Work was then paused to focus on Plan Change 2 (the mandatory Intensification Planning Instrument). A revised draft was open for feedback from 16 December 2024, incorporating amendments based on:

• feedback from consultation in September/October 2022
• relevant aspects of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity 2023 (NPS-IB). Note: draft PC-1E does not and is not intended to cover all NPS-IB requirements.

Feedback on the revised draft is now closed and being reviewed.

You can request historical information related to this plan change, including the previous draft and supporting documents, by emailing [email protected].

Note: A draft plan change is not Council policy and has no legal effect.

Timeline

Completed:

• 30 September 2022 - Feedback sought on Draft Plan Change 1E
• 31 October 2022 - Closed for feedback
• 16 December 2024 - Feedback sought on revised Draft Plan Change 1E
• Friday 14 February 2025 - Closed for feedback on the revised draft

Future:

• TBC - Approval sought from Council to publicly notify Proposed Plan Change 1E
• TBC - Public notification of Proposed Plan Change 1E
• TBC - Submissions close
• TBC - Public notice inviting further submissions on Proposed Plan Change 1E
• TBC - Further submissions close
• TBC – Hearing of submissions
• TBC – Council considers the hearing panel’s recommendations and then issues a decision.
• TBC – Council decision is open to appeal to the Environment Court.