Building Consents for Large Dams
What is a large dam?
A landowner proposing to build a dam or carry out work to an existing one, must first determine whether it is a ‘large dam’. These are defined in the Building Act 2004(external link) as having a:
- height of 4m or more; and
- volume of 20,000m³ or more of water
The landowner must then make a building consent application for all structures that meet this definition. This includes flood control dams, significantly modified natural features and canals, as well as structures that form part of large dams, such as appurtenant structures.
What is a building consent?
A building consent is a formal document issued by a BCA, authorising an applicant to carry out building work in accordance with the approved plans and specifications.
A BCA must grant a building consent if it is satisfied on reasonable grounds that the provisions of the building code would be met if the building work were properly completed in accordance with the plans and specifications that accompanied the building consent application.
Dam Building Consents
From 1 June 2021 Environment Canterbury (ECan) began processing all Building Consents and Code Compliance Certificates for the Otago, Southland and West Coast Regions. ECan are responsible for issuing building consents for large dams, as well as ensuring large dams are well constructed, regularly monitored and that the potential risks to people and property are minimised.
Environment Canterbury is a Building Consent Authority (BCA) accredited with International Accreditation New Zealand and is also registered with the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.
For more information on consenting large dams, go to: https://www.ecan.govt.nz/do-it-online/resource-con... or contact Kate Rutherford at ECan at: kate.rutherford@ecan.govt.nz
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While Building Consents and Certificates of Compliance (CCC) are to be received by Environment Canterbury, the West Coast Regional Council must receive Certificates of Acceptance (COA) for the West Coast Region. These will be processed or the co-ordination of the processing managed by the West Coast Regional Council. You will be notified of who is processing your COA once it has been received.
