Compliance
Horizons Regional Council is responsible for regulation activities affecting water, air, land and coastal areas. We want to promote the sustainable management of our environment for everyone.
What we do
Our Compliance team is there to help people to comply with rules and regulations. They do this in a range of ways, including monitoring, education, advice, investigations and enforcement. We also have other teams at Horizons who provide education and advice, such as our District Advice and Rural Advice teams. Our aim is to promote compliance and best-practice activities, encouraging everyone to be part of responsible resource management so resources are there to enjoy for many years to come.
We provide regular updates on compliance activities via the Strategy and Policy Committee.
Consents Monitoring
We assist farmers and businesses to obtain resource consents by doing site inspections and offering advice to ensure compliance with the One Plan and relevant legislation. Once a consent has been issued, we monitor compliance to ensure all the conditions of the consent are being met. The type of monitoring and frequency of it will vary, depending on a range of circumstances.
If you have a consent and need clarification on your obligations and conditions, please contact us team by emailing consents.monitoring@horizons.govt.nz or calling freephone 0508 800 800.
Contaminated Sites
Learn more about sites of soil contamination we have information about.
Earthworks
Good management of earthworks helps to minimise the impact of sediment on waterways.
Industry
We monitor water abstraction, wastewater and stormwater across the region.
Forestry
Plantation forestry has its own rules and regulations, including the National Environment Standard - Commercial Forestry (NES-CF)
Rural Farming Compliance
Farming of all kinds – from goat milking to poultry – often requires consents, which need to be monitored.
Pollution Hotline
Our 24/7 Pollution Hotline is available if you see any potential instances of pollution to air, land and water across the region.
Responding to non-compliance
There is no single way to address non-compliance. Every breach of rules and regulations is different. The scale of impact, knowledge and history of the consent holder, and other factors all play a part.
Our approach depends on the issue, context and seriousness. The final outcome can range anywhere from education to prosecution. Any action we take is about getting the most appropriate outcome for everyone, including the environment.