Apply for A Resource Consent

To find out if you need a resource consent for an activity, call one of our consent officers at the Regional Council. Most advice is free of charge unless your request is complicated and takes more than an hour. Alternatively, you can check the rules in the relevant Regional Plans.

The Regional Council processes and issues consents for the following activities:

Land Use Consents:

• Using or disturbing a waterbody or its bed;
• Carrying out earthworks;
• Carrying out vegetation clearance;
• Installing structures such as culverts and bridges.

Water Permits:

• Taking groundwater or surface water;
• Damming water;
• Diverting water.

Discharge Permits:

• Discharging to land, water, or air (such as discharging dairy effluent to land).

Coastal Permits:

• For activities within the coastal marine area, such as black sand gold mining, coastal protection structures, or whitebait structures on certain rivers.

Some activities do not need a resource consent as they are permitted by rules in our Regional Plans. Consent Officers can offer advice on what you may be required to do to comply with the various plans rules and conditions. If you can’t meet these conditions, you will need to apply for a Resource Consent. Consent Officers can also provide guidance on the information you will need to supply, and any consultation appropriate for your proposal.

The three District Councils also issue resource consents for land use activities, subdivisions and building consents. Don't forget to check with your District Council to see if you will require consent from them.

Buller District Council - http://bullerdc.govt.nz/district-council/property/...

Grey District Council - https://www.greydc.govt.nz/06your-home/planning-an...

Westland District Council - www.westlanddc.govt.nz/resource-management

The resource consent process can be broken into three main stages:

Stage One – the applicant prepares their application

Contact a Consents Officer at the Regional Council to discuss your proposal and find out what application forms you need and any information required. It is essential to provide all the relevant information requested as insufficient information can delay the processing of your application.

Forms can be posted to you, collected from the West Coast Regional Council office or downloaded for you to print here.

If you are having difficulty completing the application forms, or unsure what forms you need to complete, please contact a Consents Officer.

Stage Two – the Council considers the application

When you lodge your application, council officers will check your application to ensure you have provided all the necessary information required and to see if you have paid your application fee. Council will let you know if anything more is needed, and may also ask you to supply further information once your application has been accepted.

Council determines the scale and effects of the proposed activity, and any affected parties from whom you will need to obtain written approval. Council will decide whether or not to publically notify your application to hear other people’s views.

Stage Three – the Council makes a decision

You will receive a letter in the mail advising you on the outcome of your application. The time taken to inform you will depend on whether the application was notified and whether there was a hearing.

All resource consent applications should now include an assessment against the National Policy Statement Freshwater Management (NPS-FM), in particular in regard to Te Mana o Te Wai. Under the Resource Management Act Council must now take the provisions of the NPS-FM into account when processing resource consent applications received after the Essential Freshwater Package took effect (03 September 2020).

Click here to view the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management.

Some previously permitted activities will now require resource consent under the new National Environmental Standard for Freshwater. Click here for more information.

Application forms have been developed for farming activities (apart from intensive winter grazing – this will be updated once available), wetland and other river related activities.