Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) staff and elected members are working to understand the implications of the government’s plans to replace the Resource Management Act (RMA).

The government’s proposed RMA replacement bills, which were unveiled on Tuesday (December 9), total around 750 pages and are designed to “cut red tape, unlock growth and improve environmental outcomes”, according to RMA reform minister Chris Bishop.

The morning after the announcement, QLDC staff discussed the reforms with the Wānaka Upper Clutha Community Board (WUCCB) at a workshop.

The reforms involve “a whole suite of things” and the council is “trying to get our heads around what the impact will be”, QLDC assurance, finance and risk general manager Katherine Harbrow said.

The two new bills - the Planning Bill and the Natural Environment Bill - could be passed into law by 2026.

The new system would reduce the more than 100 policy statements and plans across 78 local authorities down to 17 Regional Combined Plans, which will take two years to develop.

Deputy mayor Quentin Smith, who spoke out on Tuesday against a provision for landowners to be compensated for restrictions imposed for landscape, heritage and biodiversity reasons, said at the workshop that councils were in for “a pretty wild ride”.

“We’re trying to plan ahead for an uncertain future.”

Read more: RMA reform could ‘bankrupt the district’ - deputy mayor

Katherine said QLDC was working with other councils to navigate the changes.

Mayor John Glover wonders how councils will be able to incorporate all the changes within a four percent rates increase.

QLDC was also investigating the four percent rates cap proposed by the government, she said.

Speaking to the Wānaka App by phone, mayor John Glover said he was wondering how councils would be able to incorporate all the changes within a four percent rates increase.

The district’s “iconic landscapes” have been protected by the RMA for many years, he said.

He questioned how the reforms would balance competing interests: “How do you have tourism and growth at the same?”

The changes are “pretty brutal for all of us, really”, he said.

Chris Bishop said additional legislation to extend existing consents which will be passed under urgency in the coming days.

“These transitional arrangements make sure people are not forced to navigate unnecessary costs or uncertainty as we move from the old system to the new one.”

PHOTOS: Wānaka App