Resource information
These Regulations, consisting of 58 sections divided into four Parts and one Schedule, are made under the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) and establish the National Environmental Standards for Telecommunication Facilities. The regulations prescribe standards for installing and operating antennas, cabinets, small cell units, and telecommunication lines. Part 2 classifies regulated activities for the purposes of section 87A of the RMA (which sets out the classes of activities for which a resource consent is required and the scope of the consent authority’s power to grant or refuse consent or to impose conditions). They specify to perform activity by the relevant district plan (classified as a controlled, restricted discretionary, discretionary, or non-complying activity, a resource consent will be required). For controlled and restricted discretionary activities, regulations 14 and 15 limit the scope of the consent authority’s power to grant or refuse consent or to impose conditions. The standard for each regulated activity is that the specified regulations in Part 3 must be complied with.Even if a regulated activity is a permitted activity, other provisions of the RMA and district and regional plans may also be applicable. For example: section 17 of the RMA requires a person carrying on an activity to avoid, remedy, or mitigate any adverse effects of the activity, even if it is carried on in accordance with a national environmental standard; section 43A(5) of the RMA allows a district plan to impose terms or conditions on an activity to deal with effects of the activity that are different from those dealt with in a national environmental standard. These regulations do not apply to: activities that relate to facilities but are not within the scope of installing and operating as defined in regulation 5; installation and operation of facilities in circumstances other than those that constitute regulated activities; installation and operation of other kinds of telecommunications equipment; anything done in the coastal marine area or in, on, under, or over the bed of a river or lake, although they do apply to things done over rivers or lakes (such as on a bridge). Those activities are governed by the RMA, other regulations under the RMA, district and regional plans, and other applicable laws.
Implements: Resource Management Act 1991 (No. 69 of 1991). (2015-09-23)
