The Hub - June 2010

Revamped and ready to go: check out the changes to our consents sections

We have taken a good look at our service and determined there were better ways to organise our section to meet the needs of our customers.

We grouped consent activities and teams by customer groups to make it easier to talk to our customers and meet their needs. We also increased the number of teams and team leaders from four to five. The teams working with water quality and quantity needed to be better aligned to complement the Canterbury Water Management Strategy zones, so we made that change too. 

From Monday 31 May 2010, Consents looks like:

• Industrial Consents team - Richard Purdon is the team leader for the consenting team working with industrial based customers.  The activities managed will be: air discharges, storm water discharges including municipal storm water, marine farms and harbours, quarrying and land use activities associated with these activities including bore permits.
• Residential Consents team – This new team will work with our residential development customers and will be led by Paul Hopwood. This team will complete the applications for sewage and storm water including municipal sewage and also the land use consents and bore permits associated with residential properties throughout the region including the coastal hazard zones.
• Rural Consents team - North Canterbury – This new team will process consents for applicants in Kaikoura, Hurunui and Waimakariri District who are applying to take ground or surface water, discharge dairy effluent, the associated land use activites and works in the bed of rivers. This team will not cover the Waimakariri River.
• Rural Consents team - Mid-Canterbury - Dirk Brand will be the team leader for this team.  This team will be completing the rural team activities associated with the Christchurch, Selwyn and Ashburton districts.  This team will take manage consents concerning the Waimakariri River including gravel consenting.  Will also continue with process of the Ashley River gravels.
• Rural Consents team - South Canterbury – This team will be managing consents in the Timaru, Mackenzie, Waimate and Waitaki districts including the Rangitata and Waitaki Rivers and the South Canterbury gravel consents. Angela Dean is the new team leader.
• Consent Operations and Consent Hearings teams remain unchanged.

Changes in the resource consent section

Farewell – Peter Savage, left at the end of April to take a position with Fulton Hogan and to Amanda Sinclair has also left.

Internal changes - John Boraston has accepted a permanent change and has moved into a role where he will oversee and coordinate the implementation of special projects. The newly appointed section manager is Tania Harris.

Consents also say goodbye to Tim Ezzy, Tim has accepted a position in the Groundwater Section as Team Leader Hydrogeology.

Leo Fietje has moved to the planning team and Lynda Weastell moves to the consents section.

Introducing our new guidebook: Taking Care of Business!

This new guidebook is for businesses and land developers and/or their consultants who are currently undertaking, or intend to undertake, an industrial activity within the Canterbury region.

The guidebook was designed with easy to follow sections, resource consent application tips and practical advice, and is available for download on the Environment Canterbury website at www.ecan.govt.nz. Copies can also be obtained though our Customer Services team.

There are new guidebooks and booklets being published on a regular basis. Keep checking on the website for updates!

New fixed charges for resource consent activities

From 1 July 2010 we are increasing most of our fixed charges for consent processing, to account for an increase in our hourly charge rates. New hourly charge rates from 1 July are:

• Consents Investigating Officer/Hearings Officer: $115 per hour plus GST
• Senior Consents Investigating Officer/Specialist Officer/Team Leaders/Management Officer: $135 per hour plus GST
• Consents Administration Officer: $75 per hour plus GST

Taking Care of Business - Guidebook for people undertaking, or about to undertake, industrial activities (pdf 395 kB)

Please note that there is a new fixed charge that has been set for Resource consents to discharge water from an aquifer test of $536 plus GST ($603 inclusive).

As GST will be increasing on 1 October, all fees and charges will correspondingly increase by another 2.5% at that time.

Water Consultants Meeting

Location: Waitaki Room

Environment Canterbury

Date: Thursday, 2 September

Time: 1:00 p.m.- 3:00 p.m.