Policy 13-3: Regional rules^ for activities affecting indigenous biological diversity^

The Regional Council must require resource consents^ to be obtained for vegetation clearance*, land disturbance*, cultivation*, bores*, discharges^ of contaminants^ into or onto land^ or water^, taking, use, damming or diversion of water^ and activities in the beds^ of rivers^ or lakes^ within rare habitats*, threatened habitats* and at-risk habitats*, and for forestry* that does not minimise potential adverse effects^ on those habitats, through regional rules^ in accordance with Objectives 12-1, 12-2 and 13-2 and Policies 12-1 to 12-8.

Policy 13-3ANatural inland wetlands*
The loss of extent of natural inland wetlands* is avoided, their values are protected, and their restoration is promoted, except where:
  1. the loss of extent or values arises from any of the following: 
  1. the customary harvest of food or resources undertaken in accordance with tikanga Māori
  2. wetland maintenance, restoration, or biosecurity (as defined in the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management)
  3. scientific research
  4. the sustainable harvest of sphagnum moss
  5. the construction or maintenance of wetland utility structures (as defined in the Resource Management (National Environmental Standards for Freshwater) Regulations 2020)
  6. the maintenance or operation of specified infrastructure or other infrastructure (as defined in the Resource Management (National Environmental Standards for Freshwater) Regulations 2020)
  7. natural hazard works (as defined in the Resource Management (National Environmental Standards for Freshwater) Regulations 2020); or
 
  1. the Regional Council is satisfied that:
  1. the activity is necessary for the construction or upgrade of specified infrastructure; and
  2. the specified infrastructure will provide significant national or regional benefits; and
  3. there is a functional need for the specified infrastructure in that location; and
  4. the effects of the activity are managed through applying the effects management hierarchy ; or
 
  1. the Regional Council is satisfied that that:
  1. the activity is necessary for the purpose of urban development that contributes to a well-functioning urban environment (as defined in the National Policy Statement on Urban Development); and
  2. the urban development will provide significant national, regional or district benefits; and
  3. the activity occurs on land identified for urban development in operative provisions of a regional or district plan; and
  4. the activity does not occur on land that is zoned in a district plan as general rural, rural production, or rural lifestyle; and
  5. there is either no practicable alternative location for the activity within the area of the development, or every other practicable location in the area of the development would have equal or greater adverse effects on a natural inland wetland; and
  6. the effects of the activity will be managed through applying the effects management hierarchy; or
 
  1. the Regional Council is satisfied that:
  1. the activity is necessary for the purpose of quarrying activities; and
  2. the extraction of the aggregate will provide significant national or regional benefits; and
  3. there is a functional need for the activity to be done in that location; and
  4. the effects of the activity will be managed through applying the effects management hierarchy; or
 
  1. the Regional Council is satisfied that:
  1. the activity is necessary for the purpose of:
    1. the extraction of minerals (other than coal) and ancillary activities; or
    2. the extraction of coal and ancillary activities as part of the operation or extension of an existing coal mine; and
  2. the extraction of the mineral will provide significant national or regional benefits; and
  3. there is a functional need for the activity to be done in that location; and
  4. the effects of the activity will be managed through applying the effects management hierarchy; or
 
  1. the Regional Council is satisfied that:
  1. the activity is necessary for the purpose of constructing or operating a new or existing landfill or cleanfill area; and
  2. the landfill or cleanfill area:
    1. will provide significant national or regional benefits; or
    2. is required to support urban development as referred to in paragraph (c); or
    3. is required to support the extraction of aggregates as referred to in paragraph (d); or
    4. is required to support the extraction of minerals as referred to in paragraph (e); and
  3. there is either no practicable alternative location in the region, or every other practicable alternative location in the region would have equal or greater adverse effects on a natural inland wetland; and
  4. the effects of the activity will be managed through applying the effects management hierarchy.

Policy 13-4: Consent decision-making for activities in rare habitats*, threatened habitats* and at-risk habitats*
  1. For activities regulated under Rule 13-8 and 13-9, the Regional Council must make decisions on consent applications and set consent conditions^ on a case-by-case basis:
    1. For all activities, having regard to:
      1. the Regional Policy Statement, particularly Objective 6-1 and Policy 6-2,
      2. a rare habitat* or threatened habitat* is an area of significant indigenous vegetation or a significant habitat of indigenous fauna,
      3. the significance of the area of habitat, in terms of its representativeness, rarity and distinctiveness, and ecological context, as assessed under Policy 13-5,
      4. the potential adverse effects^ of the proposed activity on significance,
      5. for activities regulated under ss13, 14 and 15 RMA, the matters set out in Policy 13-2(k) and relevant objectives and policies in Chapters 5, 14, 16 and 17, and
      6. for activities involving a discharge^, the matters in Policy 14-9.
    2. For electricity transmission and renewable energy generation activities, providing for any national, regional or local benefits arising from the proposed activity.
  2. Consent must generally not be granted for resource use activities in a rare habitat*, threatened habitat* or at-risk habitat* assessed to be an area of significant indigenous vegetation or a significant habitat of indigenous fauna under Policy 13-5, unless:
    1. any more than minor adverse effects^ on that habitat’s representativeness, rarity and distinctiveness, or ecological context assessed under Policy 13-5 are avoided.
    2. where any more than minor adverse effects^ cannot reasonably be avoided, they are remedied or mitigated at the point where the adverse effect^ occurs.
    3. where any more than minor adverse effects^ cannot reasonably be avoided, remedied or mitigated in accordance with (b)(i) and (ii), they are offset to result in a net indigenous biological diversity^ gain.
  3. Consent may be granted for resource use activities in an at-risk habitat* assessed not to be an area of significant indigenous vegetation or a significant habitat of indigenous fauna under Policy 13-5 when:
    1. there will be no significant adverse effects^ on that habitat’s representativeness, rarity and distinctiveness, or ecological context as assessed in accordance with Policy 13-5, or
    2. any significant adverse effects^ are avoided.
    3. where any significant adverse effects^ cannot reasonably be avoided, they are remedied or mitigated at the point where the adverse effect occurs.
    4. where significant adverse effects^ cannot reasonably be avoided, remedied or mitigated in accordance with (c)(ii) and (iii), they are offset to result in a net indigenous biological diversity^ gain.
  4. An offset assessed in accordance with b(iii) or (c)(iv), must:
    1. provide for a net indigenous biological diversity^ gain within the same habitat type, or where that habitat is not an area of significant indigenous vegetation or a significant habitat of indigenous fauna, provide for that gain in a rare habitat* or threatened habitat* type, and
    2. reasonably demonstrate that a net indigenous biological diversity^ gain has been achieved using methodology that is appropriate and commensurate to the scale and intensity of the residual adverse effect^, and
    3. generally be in the same ecologically relevant locality as the affected habitat, and
    4. not be allowed where inappropriate for the ecosystem or habitat type by reason of its rarity, vulnerability or irreplaceability, and
    5. have a significant likelihood of being achieved and maintained in the long term and preferably in perpetuity, and
    6. achieve conservation outcomes above and beyond that which would have been achieved if the offset had not taken place.

Policy 13-5: Criteria for assessing the significance of, and the effects^ of activities on, an area of habitat
  1. Rare habitats* are areas of significant indigenous vegetation or significant habitats of indigenous fauna under criterion (ii)(E) below. Threatened habitats* are areas of significant indigenous vegetation or significant habitats of indigenous fauna under criterion (i)(A) below. An area of rare habitat* or threatened habitat* may also be an area of significant indigenous vegetation or significant habitat of indigenous fauna under one or more of the other criteria below. An at-risk habitat* may be recognised as being an area of significant indigenous vegetation or a significant habitat of indigenous fauna if one or more of the following criteria are met:
    1. in terms of representativeness, that habitat:
      1. comprises indigenous habitat type that is under-represented (20% or less of known or likely former cover), or
      2. is an area of indigenous vegetation that is typical of the habitat type in terms of species composition, structure and diversity, or that is large relative to other areas of the same habitat type in the Ecological District or Ecological Region, or has functioning ecosystem processes. or
    2. in terms of rarity and distinctiveness, that habitat supports an indigenous species or community that:
      1. is classified as threatened (as determined by the New Zealand Threat Classification System and Lists*), or
      2. is distinctive to the Region, or
      3. is at a natural distributional limit, or
      4. has a naturally disjunct distribution that defines a floristic gap, or
      5. was originally (ie., prehuman) uncommon within New Zealand, and supports an indigenous species or community of indigenous species. or
    3. in terms of ecological context, that habitat provides:
      1. connectivity (physical or process connections) between two or more areas of indigenous habitat, or
      2. an ecological buffer (provides protection) to an adjacent area of indigenous habitat (terrestrial or aquatic) that is ecologically significant, or
      3. part of an indigenous ecological sequence or connectivity between different habitat types across a gradient (eg., altitudinal or hydrological), or
      4. important breeding areas, seasonal food sources, or an important component of a migration path for indigenous species, or
      5. habitat for indigenous species that are dependent on large and contiguous habitats.
  2. The potential adverse effects^ of an activity on a rare habitat*, threatened habitat* or at-risk habitat* must be determined by the degree to which the proposed activity will diminish any of the above characteristics of the habitat that make it significant, while also having regard to any additional ecological values and to the ecological sustainability of that habitat.