Several regulatory changes are required each year to keep the NZ ETS operating efficiently. Smelting aluminium is an eligible industrial activity under the Climate Change Response Act 2002 and the Climate Change (Eligible Industrial Activities) Regulations 2010 because it is an emissions-intensive activity and there is international trade.

This package, released by MfE on 7 February 2025, has Cabinet Minutes and a Cabinet Paper for reforming the resource management system.

This newsletter provides a regular update from the Ministry for the Environment to people and organisations with an interest in the resource management system.

RMLA remains concerned that the RMA continues to be "tinkered with" and questions whether the proposed solution will have the desired effect, particularly where further and significant reform to the RMA itself is also proposed in the short term.

From Friday 7 February, Fast-track applications for referral or for projects listed in Schedule 2 of the Act will be accepted. An application cannot proceed until both application lodgement and payments are completed.

On 8 November 2024, the Environment Select Committee wrote to the Climate Change Commission seeking evidence on the petition of Alex Johnston to phase out industrial free allocation under the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme.

The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment has made a submission to the Transport and Infrastructure Committee on the proposed Offshore Renewable Energy Bill.

The Government has announced Aotearoa New Zealand’s second international climate target under the Paris Agreement. The target aims to reduce emissions by 51 to 55 per cent compared to 2005 levels, by 2035.

Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee conducted an Inquiry into Climate Adaptation which was published in October 2024.

Separately, the Climate Change Commission provided a progress report on the implementation and effectiveness of Aotearoa New Zealand's first national adaptation plan in August 2024.

The Government has responded to both reports.

The global traffic engineering and New Zealand resource management communities are mourning the loss of Peter McCombs, a trailblazer whose remarkable career of 50+ years helped shape the transportation landscape in New Zealand and beyond. Peter passed away on January 8 2025.

The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment has made a submission to the Ministry for Regulation on the proposed Regulatory Standards Bill, outlining his concerns about its implications for environmental protection.

RMLA’s main objective in making submissions on Government proposals is to ensure that a coherent and workable body of resource management and environmental law and practice is developed in New Zealand.