The Government is giving councils a three-month window to put forward proposals to simplify and strengthen local government in their regions.

Two new appointments and one reappointment have been announced to the Environmental Protection Authority board.

The Government is giving councils a three-month window to put forward proposals to simplify and strengthen local government in their regions.

The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment has made a submission on the Fisheries Amendment Bill.

MfE has released further Recommendations and Decisions Reports for several national direction instruments, including marine aquaculture, commercial forestry, stock exclusion, papakāinga, electricity transmission activities and telecommunication facilities.

Last year Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Kuia and Kahu Environmental were awarded for a Cultural Impact Assessment recognised for providing a tikanga-grounded framework that elevated the voice of Ngāti Kuia whanau and demonstrated a methodology that was both analytically robust and deeply anchored in place, people and whakapapa. The award acknowledges work that is thoughtful, clear, rigorous, and that genuinely supports good decision‑making within the resource management system, for whenua, wai, and whānau.

Off the back of last year’s highly successful moot, the RMLA is calling for resource management lawyers in their first five years of practice to compete in our annual Young RMLA mooting competition.

The granny flat building consent exemption is expanding to support faster construction, more choice for homeowners, and a wider range of off-site building methods.

The Government has released a new implementation plan that aims to sharpen New Zealand’s focus on restoring biodiversity and supporting nature to recover.

The Climate Change Commission’s routine annual advice on NZ ETS auction settings, recommends keeping auction volumes and price controls the same for now to limit the risk of further price instability and support confidence in the NZ ETS.

Charlotte Muggeridge and Thomas Gibbons were RMLA’s 2025 Publications Award recipients for publishing New Zealand’s first dedicated textbook on subdivision law — a comprehensive analysis combined with a clear, practical and illustrated text, built to guide future reform. We asked Charlotte and Thomas to tell us more about their successful nomination.

The Environmental Protection Authority has effectively signalled that the fast-track regime isn’t stacking up financially for the Crown entity.