NPT-PDI- Structure and Format Report Part 1

Background Working Document

Structure and Format

Internal Ministry for the Environment Research

November 2013 This is one of a series of background working papers prepared by the Ministry for the Environment to help inform the development of national planning standards. A list of all the background papers is available on our website: www.mfe.govt.nz/rma/legislative- tools/research-informing-development-of-first-set-of-national-planning-standards

Published in May 2017 by the Ministry for the Environment Manatū Mō Te Taiao PO Box 10362, Wellington 6143, New Zealand

ISBN Number: 978-0-908339-78-5 Publication number: ME 1284 © Crown copyright New Zealand 2017

This document is available on the Ministry for the Environment website: www.mfe.govt.nz.

2 Background research only – not government policy 3 Background research only – not government policy Contents

1 Introduction 4

2 Review of Structure of Plans 5 2.1 Past Comment on Plan Structure 5 2.2 Quality Planning Guidance on Plan Structure 8

3 Review of E-Planning 11 3.1 Past Comment on E-planning 11 3.2 Quality Planning Guidance on E-planning 12

4 Survey of Current Plans 13 4.1 Method 14 4.2 Structure of Regional Planning Documents 15 4.3 Structure of Unitary Plans 16 4.4 Structure of District Plans 17 4.5 General Variables in Plan Structure 17

5 Survey of Current E-Planning 20 5.1 Overview 20 5.2 Innovations in E-Planning 20

6 Assessment of Plans and E-planning against QP Recommendations 25 6.1 Methodology 25 6.2 Findings 26 The elements of plan structure where variation from the good practice structure were identified include: 26

7 Discussion 31 7.1 Introduction 31 7.2 Key Challenges 31 7.3 Further Investigation 32

8 Conclusions 34

4 Background research only – not government policy 1 Introduction

This report is part of background research to assist in the development of a national planning template for RMA planning documents. Its goal is to identify current practice and trends in the structure, format and electronic delivery of RMA plans in New Zealand, with a view to building on best practice in the proposed template.

The first section of this report surveys articles and opinion pieces on plan structure and format, and online availability. It is clear from this review that both planners and resource management lawyers have identified problems with poor plan drafting, structure, and formatting. The report goes on to look at the current guidance, particularly the Quality Planning guidance, that is available to councils when drafting their new plans, both as paper documents and online.

To gain an understanding of the current situation in New Zealand, we then conducted a desk- top survey of the current planning documents of regional and unitary councils, and the table of contents for at least one of the plans of each council. Further analysis was done of the way four different regional councils divide up their functions in their planning documents. To gain an understanding of the structure of second generation district plans, we looked at ten new district plans, and compared the table of contents with the plan being replaced.

We also examined some key variables in plan structure, for example the placement of objectives and policies relative to the rules, and the relationship between regional or district- wide provisions, and zone or catchment specific provisions.

We then examined 17 different councils’ electronic planning services, looking at the usability of the online plan, and other planning functions available online.

Finally, using the Quality Planning guidance, we developed two assessment frameworks, one for plan structure and format, and one for usability online. This was then used to assess three regional, one unitary and five district plans in more detail.

Our research has confirmed there is considerable diversity in plan structure and format across New Zealand. Although we identified a clear trend towards consolidation of planning documents at the regional level, we did not find evidence in our sample of any emerging consistency in plan structure and format in second generation plans. The extent to which councils are making use of e-planning to communicate planning information is also highly variable, with some innovative and user friendly initiatives occurring, while other councils struggle to manage simple documents online.

The project has provided valuable context for the development of the national planning template, and has identified further issues it would be worthwhile to investigate.

5 Background research only – not government policy 2 Review of Structure of Plans

2.1 Past Comment on Plan Structure A number of research reports and articles have been prepared which discuss the quality of RM A planning documents, including their structure, format, and organisation. The bulk of this rese arch was undertaken during the early 2000s when councils began considering the developmen t of their second generation plans and focuses on the shortcomings of first generation plans. V ery little recent commentary exists on the structure and format of RMA second generation pla nning documents.

Plans under the RMA In 2002, Judge Bollard presented a paper at the Resource Management Law Association confer ence (Plans under the RMA; 2002) which sets out his views on the quality of planning docume nts under the RMA. While the RMA prescribes the framework for plan provisions, he states tha t councils are ‘on their own’ in determining how to fulfil their responsibilities in such a way tha t the end product is a well drafted planning instrument, formatted and cross referenced in a us er friendly way, and crafted with the rigour necessary to avoid unnecessary repetition, vaguen ess and confusion.

Judge Bollard states there are some salient factors which warrant priority attention for bringin g about change and improvement in plan quality. Those relating to structure and format of plans are -

 Excessive wordiness, poor drafting, lack of clarity, and impeded ease of reference o Adopt plain English so that the plans provisions, especially rules, are readily un derstood o Avoid unnecessary definitions of words or phrases o Avoid ambiguity, look for simplicity, and maintain orderliness of thought and e xpression. Good drafting and layout will often point up uncertain factors that a re required to be addressed through better conciseness or suitable elucidation.  Overblown framework of applicability and control, including problems of internal inco nsistency. o There is a need for integrated consistency within the hierarchical structuring t hat the Act predicates is critical when viewing a plan’s content and scope. o Plan variations and changes must be conceived and drafted as to blend cohere ntly, both with the parent instrument, and within the wider hierarchical struct ure. o A lack of coherence becomes evident through a failure to indicate how one part of the plan relates to another. Cross-referencing often assists, but there m

6 Background research only – not government policy ay well be a need to go further by stating positively how one provision or set o f provisions is to be interpreted or applied in the face of another.

Drafting district plans – is there a better way? An article in the Planning Quarterly magazine in 2000 discussed how district plans could be ma de shorter, simpler, more user friendly and less costly (Drafting district plans – is there a bette r way? Bob Nixon; September 2000). The author states that there is no one reason for the inc reasing volume and complexity of district plans; rather it is the result of a combination of facto rs, including -  the incorporation of more environmental matters under planning legislation  lack of national guidance for plan content or preparation  the number of categories of consent  greater public awareness of environmental issues and generous submission, further su bmission and appeal rights  increasingly active role of elected representatives in initiating demands for regulations  inclusion of ever more sophisticated ‘effects based’ controls  demands for special ‘site specific’ exemptions to rules  ‘just in case’ rules to close ‘gaps’ to preventing some unexpected use to establish as of right  fear of legal challenge and preoccupation with drafting detailed ‘bullet proof’ rules

The author suggests that the method of constructing plans under the RMA must change, or the system will collapse under its own weight. The article suggests that combining some of the feat ures of the NZ and English planning systems would make plans shorter, make plans easier to us e and understand, reduce the time and cost of plan preparation, facilitate easier participation by submitters and retain a strong culture of justification.

Resource Management, Plan Quality and Governance: A report to Government In 2001 a three phase research project was undertaken into planning under the RMA by Neil Er ickson, Janet Crawford, Philip Berke and Jennifer Dixon (Resource Management, Plan Quality and Governance: A Report to Government; 2001). Phase 1 of the research included an assess ment of plan quality. The research outlines eight principles for evaluating plan quality and sugg ests that plans that incorporate these principles are of higher quality than plans that do not inc orporate them. Some of these principles relate to the contents of planning documents rather than structure and format, but are worth noting. The principles identified are:

1. Interpretation of the mandate 2. Clarity of purpose. 3. Identification of resource management issues. 4. Quality of fact base. 5. Internal consistency of plans 6. Integration with other plans and policy statements.

7 Background research only – not government policy 7. Monitoring 8. Organisation and presentation

Under principle 8, the authors consider quality organisation and presentation involves making plans readable, comprehensive and easy to use both by lay people and professionals, for example by including a user’s guide, glossary of terms, cross referencing, diagrams and illustrat ions.

Following the analysis of a selection of RMA plans, the research found that regional and local p lanning documents only received fair to poor scores against principles for plan quality. With re gard to the organisation and presentation of plans the report suggests that every plan should b e readable and accessible, with a well-organised structure and logical connection from one par t to another. The authors conclude by saying that planners already know how to organise and present plans well, but have failed to consistently apply this knowledge to their work.

Let planners learn to keep it simple An article in the New Zealand Herald prepared by two planners in 2002 (Let planners learn to keep it simple; May 2002) outlines the finding of an analysis of several plans which were publicly notified at the time. They found the plans to be poorly structured with inadequate outlines provided in their introductions to explain their scope and structure and the underlying concepts.

The assessment also found the plans to be badly written. The documents were “prolix” and the mode of expression was generally “tortuous, obscure and filled with jargon”. The authors argue that it is difficult for the average reader to discover what he or she may, or may not, do within the framework of objectives, policies and rules set out in a plan. The plans have been professionalised in ways that make it impossible for most laypeople to discover their meaning. In comparison to the old district scheme the modern district plan is a professional’s document – and even for professionals plans are not user-friendly.

The authors believe badly written and structured plans came about because of public sector reform and the introduction of ‘resource management’ (as distinct from planning) and its focus on avoiding, mitigating or remedying adverse effects. As a consequence district plans became less directive but much harder to understand. In concluding, the authors state that district plans prepared under the RMA need to emulate the clear, simple structure, plain English and accessibility of the old district schemes.

Second generation district plans In his presentation at the NZ Planning Institute conference in 2003, Fraser McRae (Second Gen eration District Plans; 2003) confirmed some of the points made by Judge Bollard in 2002. He noted that it is important that while each plan is different there is commonality of structure a mongst first generation plans. Whatever structure is used, he said it is worth noting that every section is important within itself but the connections to other sections are just as important. At

8 Background research only – not government policy the time, the Waikato District Council were reviewing their district plan. Fraser outlined the co uncils approach to the district plan review saying they had blended and adapted ‘best practice’ aspects of a number of first generation plans and new ideas that were developed locally. The c ouncil also developed a more focused policy framework withfewer statements of issues, object ives and policies.

Summary While there is no significant body of research on plan structure and format, what comment has been made is largely negative, identifying a variety of ways in which plan drafting, structure and format fall short of the ideal of a user-friendly plan.

2.2 Quality Planning Guidance on Plan Structure The Quality Planning website (QP website) was launched in 2001 to ‘promote good practice by sharing knowledge about all aspects of practice under the RMA’. The QP website is a partnership between the New Zealand Planning Institute, the Resource Management Law Association, Local Government New Zealand, the New Zealand Institute of Surveyors and the Ministry for the Environment. The QP website is now the primary tool for delivering robust information on RMA processes and environmental policy to resource management practitioners.

Quality Planning states that most first generation regional and district plans are generally one or more of the following six basic plan-types:  Area-based plans: the area management approach could best be thought of as a series of plans rather than a single plan. Each ‘sub-plan’ covers a particular geographic area t hat may have been delineated from others by physical, geographic, political, ecological, or historical characteristics.  Topic-based plans: topic-based plans tend to be based around dealing with a single iss ue, or a specific group of issues, for example water management, or air quality.  Self-contained zone plans: All policy framework elements and rules applying to a parti cular zone are contained in discrete chapters that can be read without having to cross- reference to any other part of the plan other than the planning maps.  Activity-based plans: activity-based plans centre on known activity types, or clusters of activities, and how they are to be managed. This approach is often used in conjunction with one of the other plan typologies such as ‘zone’ or ‘topic-based’ plans.  Effects-based plans: These are plans based around environmental effects rather than t he activities that generate them. Some plans group effects into management areas.  Hybrid plans: This represents the most common approach to district plans. Some issue s are dealt with issue by issue while others are zone-related, with certain issues and m anagement solutions being dealt with solely within a zone or management area. Such plans also tend to mix the zone-based and activity-based organisational style.

9 Background research only – not government policy The six types represent a simplification of styles and approaches and in reality most plans incor porate some features from more than one type. Of the plan types outlined, the topic-based m odel was the style most commonly used by regional councils for first generation regional plans, while the hybrid model was the most commonly used for district plans.

Hybrid plans allow for region or district-wide issues to be incorporated into the same plan as lo calised issues without repeating provisions in each zone or area-based chapter. Those issues th at are found throughout a region or district can be incorporated into ‘general chapters’ and be cross-referenced from other parts of the plan; those issues specific to an area, zone or (in the c ase of regional plans) possibly district can be dealt with in discrete chapters that relate solely t o those areas. Quality Planning notes that as councils look at preparing combined planning doc uments, it is likely that their plans will also bear an increased resemblance to the hybrid style.

Overarching principles for plan structure and organisation The Quality Planning website sets out a number of overarching principles that should guide the organisation and structure of plans, these are:  Structure a plan around user expectations and conventions. Many publications follow a particular organisational style and format that people sub-consciously absorb.  Keep it simple. Avoid the temptation to put everything into the plan. Ask, ‘does this ad d value to the plan and make it easier to use?’ and ‘would plan users actually need, or use, this information?’  Keep the bigger picture in mind i.e. relationships with other documents.

Law Commission Report 35 Legislation Manual: Structure and Style Quality Planning references the Law Commission’s Report 35 Legislation manual: Structure and Style (1996). It contains useful material on drafting style, and while plans are not legislation per se, they are regulatory documents, and some of the same principles may usefully applied to the structure of plans.

The Parliamentary Counsel Office considers that all legislation, whether primary or secondary, should seek to comply with the following criteria regarding the organisation of material:  Material should be arranged in a logical order;  General provisions should be followed by specific provisions and exceptions;  Provisions that relate to the same subject should be grouped together;  Provisions should be arranged in temporal sequence;  Provisions that are significant should come before provisions of lesser importance.  Sections and clauses should be limited in the number of sub clauses they contain. As a general rule, a clause should have no more than 6 sub clauses.  Division into parts and the use of headings and subheadings breaks up a long documen t and aids comprehension.  Sections and clauses should be numbered.

10 Background research only – not government policy The Quality Planning guidance on plan structure and organisation reflects the structure recommended in the Law Commission’s report.

The Quadrant Approach Quality Planning [insert link] provides a sample structure for second generation plans with a view to assisting in achieving a degree of commonality and consistency between plans, while st ill allowing local authorities to structure plans in a way they consider best meets local circumst ances.

This example plan structure is known as the ‘quadrant approach’ to structuring a plan. The qua drant approach is an adaption of the hybrid-style of plan, chosen for its ability to cover a broad range of issues and topics that occur over a range of differing geographic scales and locations. Provisions are grouped according to issue or topic, but rules are separated from objectives and policies and are instead consolidated in a separate chapter or chapters.

The quadrant approach is based on trying to structure a plan in a way that it follows a logical pr ogression, is able to handle complexity without repetition, and is oriented to what most users will be looking for.

To avoid duplication, provisions are grouped in terms of whether issues apply across a district or region, or to only part of the district or region – so avoiding repetition of district-wide issues in every chapter. This is used in relation to the policy sections and rules sections of the plan.

The policy sections run in logical fashion from issues through to policy, so that cross referencin g for these sections is minimised and the relationship from issue to policy (and back again) is cl early evident.

Having all rules together without the need to shift through pages of issues, objectives and polic ies is beneficial to plan users. If a resource consent is required, cross-references can refer the p lan users to the relevant policy, objective or issue.

Issues are suggested so as to provide a convenient and logical way of grouping objectives and policies, and provide context as to their origin.

The quadrant structure assumes that environmental results expected and monitoring procedur es have been transferred to a monitoring strategy. Methods (other than rules) and principle re asons have been identified in the s32 report and, where appropriate, other documents such as the long term plan. Explanatory notes (such as in the margins in the policy chapters) could be u sed to alert plan readers to the location of other methods contained in external documents.

11 Background research only – not government policy 3 Review of E-Planning

E-planning covers are large range of different ways of making planning information accessible online. It can include access to planning documents and maps, integration between GIS and planning information, the ability to find out which plan provisions apply to a particular property and / or type of activity, and making online planning applications.

The Quality Planning website states effective e-planning can provide the following benefits:  Promotes communication and collaboration  Flexibility for administration of planning documents and resources  Potential for faster compliance with any amended regulations or introduction of any national direction  Information available immediately ‘anytime, anywhere’  More accessible, transparent process  Instant information delivery – e.g. with the online consent lodgement option.  Potential to save cost and time  Better information management.  Ease of search function, for example key word searches  Different modes of information delivery – interactive tools, online video tutorials.

Users of internet-enabled services will generally expect sites to be technically robust (i.e. load well and have links that work) and easy to navigate (e.g. through the use of search aids). Information made available needs to be up to date, relevant and authoritative and is able to be copies or printed and accessible across a range of users and computer hardware and software platforms.

While all councils now make their plans available on their websites, there is considerable variability in the currency and accessibility of the planning material, and in the use of other e- planning techniques in New Zealand.

3.1 Past Comment on E-planning

There is little literature on e-planning in New Zealand, but two articles are summarised below.

Moving planning into the electronic age An article published in the NZ Planning Institute’s quarterly newsletter in 2006 (Moving Planni ng into the Electronic Age, Blair Devlin; June 2006) provided a snapshot of the state of e-plann ing in New Zealand. The primary benefit for practitioners is in reducing front counter enquiries and associated administration time and cost. In 2006, while every council had a website the qu ality of planning information and services provided varied greatly. Most councils displayed RM A plan information in PDF format which is cost effective, easy to produce and relatively easy to use. The author notes however that PDF documents can be cumbersome for displaying inform

12 Background research only – not government policy ation due to the numerous sections of an RMA plan that a user would refer to in order to estab lish compliance and that HTML is faster and easier and better for providing a more integrated f inal product.

The article notes that one of the limitations of e-planning is the difficulty of keeping online RM A plans up-to-date. The research confirmed that plans are not always updated when plan chan ges or variations are publicly notified. A further challenge to e-planning is the availability of tec hnical expertise. This requires adequate resourcing at the council level, and good communicati on between planning and information technology staff. The third key challenge identified is ob taining political or managerial ‘buy-in’ to the use of the internet for delivering e-planning servic es.

Streamlining and simplifying third generation plans? Jo Mooar notes that although it is not a requirement, there are increasing expectations among plan users that plans will be readily available online and be up to date (Streamlining and simpli fying third generation plans? Jo Mooar, Senior Associate, Simpson Grierson; November 201 1). The author states that this raises challenges for local authorities in ensuring that a plan, whi ch may be easy to use in hard copy, remains the same when available online. Research underta ken by the author demonstrated that key provisions were often not easily identifiable and the display of documents online did not allow easy browsing of provisions. This could result in key plan provisions being overlooked, with the potential for incomplete applications being lodged and/or developments proceeding on the mistaken basis that no consent was required.

3.2 Quality Planning Guidance on E-planning Quality Planning notes that that increasingly the public is seeking to use the internet not just as a source of information, but as a medium to complete transactions. The Quality Planning website contains guidance on e-planning, and identifies the key features of “e-RMA” as:

 RMA information and services can be accessed online

 a ‘joined up’ approach – an e-RMA system should be compatible with other information and services provided on a Council’s website, and adhere to government standards and best practice

 appropriate use of technology. It should not require users to have unusual, costly and/or unsupported software. Text and map-based information should be presented in an appropriate format

 developing an e-RMA system provides an opportunity to integrate the ‘front’ and ‘back’ office practices of councils and to create an integrated and coherent electronic

13 Background research only – not government policy process for RMA practice and procedure. The front office is the council’s website, while the back office is the internal computing system

Quality Planning has developed guidance to encourage and assist councils to develop administration systems that will support the online delivery of RMA information and services. The guidance makes a number of specific recommendations about e-planning including -

 Clearly identified operative and proposed versions of policy statements and plans, and accompanying explanations  Links to national policy statements and standards  Links to other documents incorporated by reference into the plan and other relevant documents  Ability to easily search policy statements and plans  Two-way indexing, so the user can easily move to and from contents pages and plan sections  Internal links, for example between plan text and definitions  Files that are easy to read, download, and copy and paste from  Short ‘drilling distances’ ie only a small number of layers required to click through to find information  Integration between GIS systems with planning maps and provisions  No specialist software required.

Specific guidance is provided about providing maps online –  A legend which remains visible while viewing maps  Ability to easily move between maps, and zoom in and out  Street names and other labelling to help the user orient themselves  Icons and symbols that link through to the relevant plan schedules or tables  Printer-friendly options.

4 Survey of Current Plans

Having looked at the identified problems associated with the first plans developed under the RMA, and at the guidance provided by Quality Planning on structuring a plan and providing good online functionality, we undertook a high-level survey of a range of RMA planning documents and websites. The following Section 4 covers the method and results of the analysis. Section 5 looks in more detail at e-planning.

14 Background research only – not government policy 4.1 Method To gain an up-to-date overview of the structure and contents of planning documents produced by regional, unitary and district councils, we did a desk-top survey of 28 councils, with a particular emphasis on second generation plans.

At regional level, the survey covers all regional council and unitary councils except for the Chat ham Islands. It includes Auckland Council’s proposed Unitary Plan.

At district level we have looked at ten plans, covering twelve districts. 1 There are 61 district co uncils in New Zealand, of which around 20 have a full second generation plan process underwa y. Some councils are at the very early stage of a complete review of their plan, and are develo ping options for a second generation plan to be notified in due course. We excluded these from our analysis.

From the district councils which have a second generation plan at draft stage or later, we selec ted plans from -

 District councils of different sizes  Rural, urban and provincial councils  Plans of different types – effects based, activity based, and mixed  Plans with special features, for example the Wairarapa Combined Plan, and the Thame s Coromandel Plan which has a unique online format.

The grouping of councils by size is based on a combination of the district population, the numb er of planning staff, revenue from resource consents processing, and the number of consents p rocessed during the 2010/11 RMA survey period.

We primarily used online versions of plans. This has been an instructive process in itself. Some councils are very explicit about the stage of the plan review cycle they are at. For other council s it can be difficult to find any reference to plan review on their website. For example, one draf t plan was accessible only as an attachment to a report to council; there appeared to be no ref erence to it on the planning section of the website (this has subsequently been corrected). Wh ile we have made every effort to ensure the links and information in this report are up to date, is it possible that that in some cases we have not fully represented the current council docume nts or their intended review processes.

1 The Wairarapa Combined District Plan covers three different district councils: Masteron, Caterton, and South Wairarapa.

15 Background research only – not government policy 4.2 Structure of Regional Planning Documents

Table 1 in Section 10 shows the first generation, and where relevant, second generation planni ng documents for all eleven regional councils. It also gives a general table of contents for the “main” regional plan, usually a land and water plan.

There is a great diversity in the way in which regional councils express their functions in their plans. In the first generation plans, all regional councils except for Hawkes Bay had a separate Regional Policy Statement (RPS). Most regional councils then developed a series of “topic- based” plans, with separate plans for air, coast, water, land management etc. Including the RPS, but excluding specific catchment plans, regional councils have had an average of four to five first generation planning documents each. For this reason, we have focused our attention on, firstly, any second generation plans, and secondly on the most significant of the first generation plans. Most regional councils now have a second generation RPS. These tend to be simpler in structure than plans, as they don’t contain rules. We have not looked at the structure and format of RPSs; this would be a useful exercise to carry out at a later date.

Within plans, there is also a wide variety of ways topics and functions have been grouped. Some seem to be broadly structured around consent type with, for example, discharges grouped together; the One Plan follows this general structure. Others have separated out issues of particular local importance. For example, Southland has a separate rules chapter for agricultural effluent; Taranaki has separated point-source and diffuse-source discharges into different chapters. Some plans have separate sections for wetlands; others cover wetlands under the sections dealing with water and /or land. Table 2 looks in more detail at the planning documents for four regional councils, and clearly illustrates the different ways in which regional functions can be divided up between plans, and within plans.

In addition to the differences outlined above, there is the general diversity in plan drafting: placement of introductory and context setting information; placement of objectives and policies and assessment criteria with or separate from the relevant rules; separation or integration of iwi issues.

This diversity, combined with the use of additional plans for specific catchments and in some cases the continued existence of transitional pre-RMA provision, has resulted in a very complex situation, with each region having a different suite of planning instruments, and the regional council functions “sliced and diced” in different ways.

With the review of regional planning documents, there is a clear move towards consolidation. Six of the eleven regional councils have undertaken this process. Most notable is Horizons, which has combined seven different documents and over 1000 pages of text into its combined One Plan. Hawkes Bay has also combined the RPS and four plans into the Regional Resource Plan Wellington, Canterbury, Southland and West Coast Regions are also moving towards combining planning documents, and there may be others in this category, that have not

16 Background research only – not government policy reflected this on their website. Over time this amalgamation of regional planning documents will simplify the national situation somewhat, but even where consolidation is taking place, there is no common format being used. The likely result will be fewer plans, but possibly no significant standardisation of the structure within plans.

4.3 Structure of Unitary Plans

Table 3 shows the plans for unitary councils. Nelson, Marlborough and Tasman have largely integrated their resource management functions into a “resource management plan” with a separate RPS. This is logical, given that a single council deals with both regional and district functions, and in most cases, whether the provisions in the plan are of district or regional origin under the RMA is not particularly relevant to most users of a unitary plan. Section 80 of the RMA requires that any combined plan clearly identify the RPS, regional plans and district plans, and this is clearly necessary where different councils have responsibility for these functions. Notably, unitary councils have previously requested a change to the RMA to remove the requirement for them to have a separate RPS (see Appendix 2).

Marlborough is unusual in that it has two separate plans, reflecting the geography of the District. However they are working towards combining these. They are proposing to have all the objectives and policies in the RPS, so that the resource management plan will contain only rules. This is an interesting and potentially user-friendly approach, but would only be available to a unitary authority.

The Gisborne District Council plan structure keeps the key regional and district functions separate, by having separate plans, although the Land and District Plan combines both regional and district functions. They are currently developing a new water plan, to replace the transitional provisions and presumably the current discharge plan.

Because of the smaller number of councils, it is more difficult to identify firm trends, but both Gisborne and Marlborough are working towards consolidating their plans.

Auckland, as a new unitary council and subject to its own legislation, is something of a special case. It has had the task of combining eight district plans with four regional plans plus the RPS. It has also chosen a structure that is suitable for searching online, and for a “property-based” planning query function. As with other unitary plans, the structure does not explicitly distinguish between regional and district content, other than for the RPS. However there are two Auckland-wide natural resources sections (one of objectives and policies, and one of rules) that cover most of the regional council functions. Within these sections, the topics are arranged alphabetically (agrichemicals to water), a technique that is not commonly used in other plans. Other regional provisions are included as an “overlay”.

17 Background research only – not government policy 4.4 Structure of District Plans

There is much less diversity in the structure of district plans than is evident in regional and unitary plans. Most plans are made up of sections covering zone and “overlay” provisions (for example flooding, landscape or heritage overlays), sections covering district-wide provisions (for example signs or parking and transport requirements), subdivision provisions, and a range of supporting material. Table 4 shows the generalised structure of twelve first generation plans and ten second generation plans, and notes any significant changes.

Of the ten second generation plans we looked at, all except Otorohanga have the general structure described above. Otorohanga has is almost entirely “effects-based” and doesn’t make use of zones. Rather it has three “effects areas” (rural, urban services and urban limited services), and within these areas, applications are assessed against a range of possible effects. Most plans contain a mix of activity and effects-based rules. Ashburton has an almost entirely “activity-based” plan, and follows the common structure of zone provisions, and district–wide provisions. From our initial analysis it would seem that only the most effects-based plans result in a significantly different plan structure. This is worthy of further research.

Kapiti is notable in having separated out all the objectives into a separate chapter. Hamilton has a separate appendix which contains matters for control and discretion, and assessment criteria. These are well referenced from the relevant rules. This approach may result in the reduction in duplication in the plan. Typically similar rules in plans repeat the same matters and assessment. For example all rules with an urban design component tend to have very similar assessment criteria

Otherwise, the main differences between plans relate to “generic” structural issues, which are relevant to both regional and district plans, and these are covered in the following sections.

4.5 General Variables in Plan Structure

A number of key elements of plan format and structure are common to both regional and district plans and regional policy statements:

1. The size of the plan, which is determined by a. the number and complexity of the issues covered b. the drafting style, and c. the degree to which non-statutory explanatory and context setting information is included in the document. 2. The number of sections and chapters

In plans (as opposed to regional policy statements which don’t include rules):

18 Background research only – not government policy 3. Whether or not objectives and policies are placed with the relevant rules 4. Whether or not district-wide provisions precede zone-specific provisions 5. Whether assessment criteria are included with the relevant rules, and / or with the relevant policies, or in a separate section.

Size of Plan Of the ten second generation plans we looked at, six are smaller than their first generation equivalent. The Combined Wairarapa Plan replaces three previous plans; so while the plan is larger than any of the ”parent” plans, the effect of combining the plans has reduced some 900 pages of planning provisions to 400. Rangatikei, Thames Coromandel, and Southland have also significantly reduced the size of their second generation plans.

Rangatikei District Council has gone from 268 pages in their first generation plan to 160 pages in their second generation plan. The reasons for the reduction in size are that the drafting has become more concise and clear and less repetition through better plan structuring. Rangatikei have also made a step towards reducing the usage of uncommonly used words so the plan is drafted in ‘plain English’.

Southland has also reduced the size of its new plan. The previous sections describing the district and its issues, and the statutory planning context have been reduced from 40 pages to 8 pages. They have also reduced the size of the section covering district-wide provisions, and the zone-specific provisions. The number of zones had been reduced from 8 to 5.

Four of the second generation plans are larger than their first generation equivalents with Tauranga, Invercargill and Kapiti plans being notably larger.

Kapiti Coast District Council’s second generation plan has increased from 1,044 pages in their first generation plan to 1,396 pages. Whilst the drafting style has changed from ‘wordy’ rules to table based rule format, the increase in size is largely due to the identification and inclusion of new information; including areas of outstanding natural landscape, significant amenity areas, renewable energy, coastal hazard management areas and additional design guidelines. There is also more explanation to the objectives and policies.

Invercargill has increased from 270 pages to 440 pages. The section on issues objectives and policies is larger, although the list of topics is comparable. However the rules have been reformatted and an activities table replaced with a more standard text based rule format for the zone rules. The number of zones has increased from 16 to 21.

Tauranga has increased from 630 pages to 826 pages. Approximately half of this increase is related to additional appendices, many of which contain outline plans for specific areas or urban design criteria. The definitions section has also increased significantly in size.

Sections and Chapters Councils use a wide variety of techniques to structure the information in their plans, and different terms, including section, code, chapter, part, module, and volume. Chapter and

19 Background research only – not government policy section are the most commonly used terms. The Northland Water and Soil Plan has 41 chapters (excluding the appendices); the Waikato Regional Plan, which covers a larger range of topics, has 8 chapters. District plans show a similar range. While some of the drivers of multiple sections are clear (range of topics, numbers of zones etc) most of the differences seem to be a question of style. Some councils prefer to amalgamate provisions; others split them into much smaller chapters.

Placement of Objectives and Policies One of the key structural issues in all plans (excluding regional policy statements) is whether objectives and policies are largely combined with the relevant rules, or whether they are separate. The Quality Planning recommendation is that they are separate, as many applicants will not need to refer to the objectives and policies; rather their key interest is in the rules.

Our analysis shows a fairly even split between these two options. Of the twenty-six plans we looked at, fourteen separated the objectives and policies from the rules, and eleven combined them with the rules. Kapiti has introduced a “mixed” model, which as discussed below.

Four second generation district plans have changed the placement of their objectives and policies; three have moved from having the objectives and policies separate from the rules, to combining them with the rules. Kapiti District’s new plan has an unusual model, in that the objectives are in a separate chapter, and the policies are combined with the relevant rules. Previously the objectives and policies were separate from the rules. None of the second generation plans we looked at moved from combining the objectives and policies with the rules to separating them, as recommended by the Quality Planning guidance.

Order of District-Wide and Zone-Specific Provisions As with the placement of objectives and policies, there is no clear preference for the order of district-wide and zone specific provisions. In the ten district plans we looked at, five put the zone-specific provisions before the district-wide provisions, and five put them after. As noted, the Otorohanga plan has a different structure, but its chapter on Land Use starts with district– wide rules. The regional plans are more complex, with many regional councils having separate catchment-specific plans. However the new Canterbury Land and Water plan has its region- wide rules before the subsequent sub-regional provisions.

Placement of Assessment Criteria Generally assessment criteria for rules are placed with the rule, either in a list following the main part of the rule, or where there is a tabular rules format, in a column alongside the relevant rule. However, as noted above, a few plans separate out the assessment criteria into a separate chapter. Clearly the success of this structure depends on good cross-referencing.

20 Background research only – not government policy The extent to which it reduces the repetition and increases consistency in plans is worthy of further investigation.

Conclusion The decisions made on each of the variables discussed above are fundamental to the structure of the plan, and each variable is largely independent of the others. They are also largely independent of the content of the plan, although the size of the plan is in part (but only in part) driven by the number and complexity of the resource management issues the plan addresses.

It is the lack of consistency to the way in which councils make these and other “lower order” plan format decisions that results in plans with such very different structures to the point that as noted in Section 2, even experienced planners can have difficulty navigating them.

5 Survey of Current E-Planning

5.1 Overview Our survey of 17 council websites found that the following e-planning features were available on all sites: - District Plan - District Plan Maps - Information on District Plan Changes - Information and forms for lodging a resource consent - Notified resource consent information displayed online - Form for submission on notified consents.

Many of the challenges identified in the 2006 and 2011 studies noted in Section 3 were still ap parent in 2013. In particular, keeping web information up to date and relevant is a challenge for many councils. With the development of many second generation plans, either as ‘draft’ or ‘partially operative’ and online publication, it becomes difficult for a user to understand which rules are operative or effectively operative and relevant to use. Often council websites do not make a clear distinction about which parts of plans are relevant to use.

Other common problems include web links that do not work, web sites that are difficult to navigate, and online plans that have poor indexing and so that it is easy to get ‘lost’ in the plan. There are, however, a number of innovative and user-friendly advances taking place online.

5.2 Innovations in E-Planning

21 Background research only – not government policy The majority of councils are still using PDF format for plan chapters and maps. However, a number of councils have shifted from PDF files on the website, to using more innovative tools such as interactive online plans, planning enquiry tools, using GIS systems to display and query planning information, searchable resource consent databases, online consultation, planning apps, and electronic newsletters.

Interactive Online Plans Hamilton City Council’s proposed second generation district plan offers two online viewing opti ons; downloading a PDF version or an online interactive option (HTML) which involves navigati ng through a series of web pages. The latter option involves links through to definitions and rel evant standards and provides quick navigation without trawling through irrelevant chapters. The Hamilton website also has an audio option so you can ‘listen to the page’.

Thames Coromandel District Council’s first generation district plan and the proposed second g eneration plan are interactive e-plans. They also offer a page by page PDF download option. Th is e-plan system sets up a column on the right hand side with drop menu options for users to n avigate for specific chapters. Hyperlinks are available throughout chapters to definitions. The C ouncil website states “The District Plan is a very large and comprehensive document, which ca n make it hard to read and use online, especially as an electronic document like a "pdf", which is why we've used locally-developed online planning software so you can easily read and navig ate around our plan online.” This software also incorporates a district plan enquiry tool.

The first generation e-plan is difficult to use, as the provisions can only be viewed in very small “bites”. The new version is significantly improved, and delivers the provisions in appropriate sub-sections. This software system is also being used by Auckland Council for the proposed Au ckland Unitary Plan.

Queenstown Lakes District Council website has a specific tab option to access their E-Plan. This includes a property specific district plan enquiry tool. At the time of testing, neither of these fu nctions were working.

Opotiki District Council has an online district plan in HTML page format, no PDFs are available. However the potential advantages of this system are not fully realised; as a user drills down on the menu options, the index function gets lost, making it difficult to navigate through the plan.

Online Planning Enquiry Tool Auckland Council has developed an online ‘planning enquiry’ tool alongside the proposed Auckland Unitary Plan. The tool has been designed to enable users to find out quickly and easily what is possible to achieve on their property.

At present the first planning enquiry tool “I know my address and I know what I want to do” follows these steps: - Select one or more properties by address - Select one or more development activities - Can I do it?

22 Background research only – not government policy - View the rules.

A further three tools are being developed: 1. I know my address, what can I do there? 2. I know what I want to do, where can I do it? 3. I know the zone, what can I do there?

Thames Coromandel District Council has developed an online ‘District Plan Enquirer Tool’ linked to Google Maps. This tool was not working at the time of testing.

It is important to note that these tools are non-statutory; that is they don’t replace the need to consult the district plan and there is a legal disclaimer to that effect. However they do provide an easy entry point into the plan for the lay-user.

GIS Mapping A number of council’s have GIS mapping options with plan layers. The most comprehensive an d informative GIS mapping system assessed was Environment Canterbury’s system. This has been developed in collaboration with Land Information New Zealand and all district councils within the region. The Environment Canterbury website states that the highlights of the “new system include:  a more responsive map display capable refreshing the screen much more quickly  easy preconfigured maps for the casual user  a predictive search mechanism for finding places, addresses, legal descriptions, roads, intersections, and many other types of features.  an improved printing mechanism that can produce quality maps in pdf, jpeg or png format  the ability to directly save search results to csv file  maps work with smart mobile devices i.e. iPhone, iPad, Android  an advanced viewer for more experienced GIS users with advanced tools” This GIS mapping system includes data from all district councils within the Canterbury region (i ncluding Hurunui’s draft District Plan). The information within this system includes:

- Aerial imagery - Airports - Canterbury maps and district - Canterbury swimming water quality sites - Cemeteries - CERA land check zones and technical categories - Christchurch CBD demolitions - Christchurch Central Transport Plan - Clean Air Zones for Air Quality Purposes - Council Offices, depot locations, service and information centres - District planning zones for all district councils within Canterbury

23 Background research only – not government policy - Greater Christchurch Aerial Imagery 1941, 1965, 1973, 2011 - Greater Christchurch Metropolitan Bus Routes - Groundwater quality, quantity and supply - Land and property information - Libraries - Liquefaction susceptibility - Local attractions - Marine navigation safety - Public recreation facilities - Regional resource consents in Canterbury - Rubbish and recycling stations - Schools and enrolment zones - Selwyn-Waihora Restoration Forum Sites - Timaru Bus Routes - Urban Development Strategy - Water supply, storm and waste networks

This collaborative and integrated system is working towards a single point source for regional a nd district council information within the Canterbury region.

Historic Resource Consent /Property Information Functions A useful tool that has been developed by Whangarei District Council is a historical resource con sent online database. The user enters a property address and a list of resource consents that h ave been granted for the property are available to view. The list includes only basic informatio n, and associated documents are not available online.

Thames Coromandel District Council has a similar online ‘consent tracking system’ search funct ion. This allows a user to search the consent history of any property as well as track the progre ss of any recently submitted consent applications. This includes resource consent, subdivision c onsent, certificate of acceptance, building consent, and building permits.

Environment Canterbury has search function allowing users to search for a resource consent by number, holder, location, type or status.

Land Information New Zealand has articulated a vision for a long term project for property info rmation including resource and building consent information to be available online. The expect ed benefits would include timeliness, quality and cost savings to customers, increased producti vity, and more valuable datasets enabling better public services. A number of other governme nt departments have also expressed an interest in advancing this vision.

Online Consultation System Thames Coromandel District Council website states that it is committed to providing as many online services as possible. Their online consultation system includes an online video to assist users making a submission. The system requires a user to create an online account, from which

24 Background research only – not government policy you can log in at any time to make further submissions. The system does not require any printing, emailing or postage via mail.

Lodge Resource Consent Applications Online The ability to lodge a resource consent application online is available online with Environment Bay of Plenty. Separate ‘upload document’ boxes are set out to ensure that all required information parts of a resource consent application are included. Other councils, for example Greater Wellington Regional Council, provide a specific email address which consent applications can be emailed to.

Planning Apps From the assessment of 17 councils, Environment Canterbury’s maps are the only ‘app’ that can be downloaded smart phone/tablet devises (android or Apple).

Wellington City Council has iPhone applications available on Wellington walking tracks and parks. Further applications are under development regarding public services, although it is not clear whether these will relate to planning functions.

Planning Newsletters Nelson District Council offers a service whereby anyone can sign up to their newsletter online and receive email newsletters from the Council on planning matters within the community. This is a simple, cost effective way of informing the public.

Conclusions Some councils we reviewed, for example Auckland and Environment Canterbury, are making significant investment in e-planning capability, and are greatly improving the users’ access to and interaction with planning information. Thames Coromandel has also made a strong commitment to online planning, with both a first and second generation plan available in an online format, and an online consultation tool. Others, like Hamilton and Opotiki are using simpler HTML formats to present their plans and improve their usability. However other councils are struggling to keep PDF copies of their plan up to date, and to keep the links to online documents functional.

It is clear that to have effective e-planning takes significant organisational commitment which is maintained over time. This will be a key consideration for the national planning template.

25 Background research only – not government policy 6 Assessment of Plans and E-planning against QP Recommendations

6.1 Methodology

To gain a more holistic view of a selection of second generation plans, we tested nine against the current guidance on both structure and format and e-planning. In addition to regional / unitary /district and urban / rural representation, we selected plans that were identified in our initial analysis as having made significant changes in the second generation plan, and/or were innovative in their use of online tools, and/or had a special feature. The plans we assessed were: 1. Horizons Proposed One Plan (decisions version) 2. Environment Canterbury Proposed Land and Water Plan 3. Thames Coromandel Draft District Plan 4. Otorohanga Proposed District Plan (decisions version) 5. Kapiti Proposed District Plan 6. Hamilton City Proposed District Plan 7. Auckland Unitary Plan (draft version) 8. Rangitikei District Plan 9. Waikato District Plan (including the Franklin section)

We developed the framework shown in Tables 5-13 in Section 10 to assess alignment with current best practice in plan organisation and structure. The framework is based on the overarching principles and quadrant structure as set out in Quality Planning guidance and the criteria set out in the Law Commissions legislation manual. The second framework on e-planning shown in Tables 14-22 in Section 11 was also developed using the Quality Planning guidance. The assessment of the plans against the frameworks was carried out by two or three experienced planners, generally working together. The goal of the assessments was to understand the extent to which councils are using the available guidelines when making their most recent plans and presenting them online. The assessments and comments are our own views, and are not intended to be a definitive assessment of the plan quality or e-planning capability.

26 Background research only – not government policy 6.2 Findings

The degree to which the plans we assessed follow the good practice structure varied. Generally, plans follow the high- level structure outlined on Quality Planning. The Proposed Kapiti Coast District Plan diverged from this structure the most.

The elements of plan structure where variation from the good practice structure were identified include:

 Whether objectives and policies were separate or grouped with the rules;

 Whether separate chapters on district wide provisions are included;

 Where definitions are located within the plan;

 The range and detail of information in the ‘plan purpose’ of ‘introduction’;

 The style and degree of cross referencing;

 The level of non-statutory information;

 The numbering system adopted.

A summary of the findings for each component of the plan structure assessed is outlined below. The assessment tables for each plan are shown in Section 10.

Contents page

The contents pages of the plans assessed were generally easy to follow and at a good level of detail for the reader to gain an understanding of the plan structure. The length of the contents pages varied between less than a page and 10 pages depending on the size of the plan. Having the parts of the plan numbered in the table of contents and having the heading for each part in bold and capital letters seemed to aid in navigating around the plan. The Proposed Kapiti Coast District Plan has several chapter headings which are relatively long and written in full (e.g. ‘network utilities – electricity transmission and distribution, energy, radio and telecommunications’), the contents page could be more digestible if these were shortened. The Waikato District Plan sets out the different parts of the plan in the contents page but these are not outlined anywhere in the actual text of the plan.

Plan purpose

27 Background research only – not government policy All but two of the plans which were assessed included a chapter with explanation about the plans purpose. The sections were generally detailed and included additional administrative information such as how to use the plan, cross boundary issues, description of activity status, and financial contributions.

One plan included a useful diagram illustrating the linkages between the plan and other documents.

Two district plans (the proposed Kapiti Coast District Plan and the Waikato District Plan) do not include a chapter setting out the plans purpose. Both include a general introduction chapter but these do not outline the mandate for the plan, the function of the council, linkages with other documents or an outline of the plan structure. Some of this information is included in th e explanation text to the objectives in the Kapiti Coast District Plan.

Definitions

The majority of the plans assessed did not follow the best practice guidance to place definitions at the beginning of the plan. Most plans have the definitions towards the end of the plan. The Canterbury Land and Water Plan and the Proposed Kapiti District Plan are the exception to this and place their definitions towards the beginning of the plan.

Some plans identify defined terms in the text with an * or in italics while other plans don’t use anything to indicate defined terms. Where plans do identify defined terms sometimes the text appears very ‘busy’ which disrupts the readability and flow of the text.

Some plans included definitions of Maori terms.

None of the plans assessed included a glossary of terms defined elsewhere. Some plans named their definitions chapter ‘glossary’. The Waikato District Plan includes definitions in tabular formal which includes the page number of where the term is used in the plan text (although the cross referencing is not exhaustive).

28 Background research only – not government policy Issues, Objectives, Policies and Rules

The plans assessed vary greatly on their arrangement of issues, objectives, policies and rules. While the best practice guidance is to place the region/district wide provisions before the geographically specific provisions and to place the issues, objectives and policies separate to the rules, there are various arrangements for these provisions and there was no common structure identified.

As previously noted in the more general review, some plans have the objectives and policies separate from the rules and others have them combined. Some plans have separated the district wide and geographic specific objectives and policies while others have combined them.

The Proposed Auckland Plan has the RPS at the beginning followed by zone, overlay and precinct chapters which include the objectives and policies and rules applicable to that zone, overlay or precinct.

The Proposed Kapiti Coast District Plan includes an objectives chapter and various environment and resource chapters which outline the policies and rules for the particular environment or resource. This plan also has the district wide provisions are the end of the plan (instead of at the beginning as the guidance suggests). The Proposed Kapiti Coast District Plan also does not include any issues.

A number of plans include summary tables at the beginning of the rules chapters to illustrate which rule(s) applies to which activity. The Proposed Otorohanga District Plan sets out a series of questions at the beginning of the rules chapters so the reader can determine which rule applies to the activity. A number of plans also set out the rules and standards (and other information such as matters of control/discretion and cross-references) in tables in landscape format.

Some plans set out assessment criteria with the rules and standards while other plans set out the assessment criteria in a separate chapter, often as an appendix at the back of the plan. Other plans include the assessment criteria in the policies.

Appendices

All of the plans assessed included appendices/schedules with a range of information. One plan includes the planning maps as a schedule (rather than a separate volume). Some plans include schedules to zone/resource chapters as well as schedules to the whole plan. The Waikato District Plan included copies of some NES within the appendices.

29 Background research only – not government policy The planning maps assessed were generally consistent with the good practice guidance and were easy to understand. Regional planning maps vary greatly to the district planning maps. The scales, features illustrated, style and number of regional planning maps vary depending on what they illustrate, they don’t form a complete set like district planning maps do.

Most of the district plans which were assessed had the planning maps as a separate volume. The regional planning maps are integrated with the text of the plan or included in the appendices.

Some district planning maps have two series – one zoning map and one features map which reduces the clutter that could result from having a single map.

Some plans have a fold out key while others include the key on each page. One plan includes the key on the back page of the maps.

The Proposed Hamilton District Plan has all residentially zoned land as white instead of filling with a particular colour.

Numbering

The numbering system of the plans which were assessed varied greatly. The plans which we found the easiest to navigate around were those that followed the good practice guidance the closest (e.g. Proposed Hamilton City Plan). The Hawkes Bay Regional Resource Management Plan has all paragraphs of text numbered (including explanation text and definitions).

Cross referencing

The plans assessed varied greatly in their level and style of cross referencing. Some plans had very little cross referencing while others (for example the Proposed Kapiti Coast District Plan) include extensive cross referencing directly within the text and also set out within the rules tables.

Non-statutory information

Most of the plans include a relatively small amount of non-statutory information. The exception to this is the Proposed Kapiti Coast District Plan which includes a large amount of explanation text for each objective and policy. The Horizons One Plan includes a separate volume with material incorporated by reference. The Auckland Plan includes a part setting out non-statutory information.

30 Background research only – not government policy Other Findings

Other points to note from the plan assessment are:

 Only one of the plans assessed, Auckland, arranged some of the content alphabetically.

 The Horizons One Plan includes translation of the objectives in Maori.

 The Hawkes Bay Regional Resource Management Plan includes a separate chapter on non-regulatory methods following the Regional Policy Statement.  Only one of the plans which were assessed, the Rangitikei District Plan, includes statutory acknowledgements. These were included in the introduction chapter of the plan along with the rest of the ‘plan purpose’ information instead of in the appendices as the good practice guidance suggests.

E-Planning Findings The Innovations in E-Planning section of this report shows that a number of councils are focusing on online delivery and planning tools. However from our survey, simple PDF documents are the most common way of displaying plan text and maps. There is considerable variety in how these are used. Otorohanga has a 200 page plan, in one single PDF file. While this means the whole plan can be searched for key words, it is otherwise difficult to navigate around. Rangatikei has a 160 page plan split into four PDF files, was well as being available as a single file. Hamilton’s plan is available in both an HTML format and as PDF files.

Online users should also be able to easily identify which plan or plan rules apply at any time. Currently a number of council websites are silent on this which could result in inaccurate resource consent applications and confusion for applicants. The same can be said for websites that offer too much information, for example the Horizons Regional Council has 5 different volumes of their plan showing submission and appeal points and decision information.

A useful tool that a number of councils are using is to have a plan making process diagram on their website, indicating which stage the council are at with their plan. Shading rules with ‘legal effect’ or notes are other ways councils are currently explaining the status of provisions within plans.

As with text PDF maps are the most common, and again there is diversity in the way these are used. Otorohanga’s PDF maps are of a poor quality, but do display a legend; Rangatikei’s PDF maps are of better quality but the legend must be accessed from a separate document. Linking plan text to GIS mapping is advanced on the Auckland website, but a number of other councils including Wellington do not explicitly link their GIS system with their plan. GIS systems are useful particularly where legends are clear and the system links to plan provisions and features.

Crucially, e-planning systems should be up to date, functional and easy to navigate to provide an effective platform for plans.

31 Background research only – not government policy 7 Discussion

7.1 Introduction Given New Zealand’s largely de-centralised planning system, and the requirement for plan- making at the local level, the great diversity in planning documents in New Zealand is unsurprising. These differences range from the “fundamental” decisions such as how many planning documents a region has and what they cover, to “fine grained” decisions about plan structure and format. There is diversity across the county, diversity within regions, and even on occasion significant diversity within a single council’s planning documents. Some twenty years on, this diversity has been identified as an issue for communities and professionals, and as making development more costly and time consuming that it need be. Bringing a greater degree of consistency to plans is a key objective of the national planning template.

As well as identifying more clearly the drivers for diversity in plans, our high-level survey of plans has enabled us to start building an understanding of what changes councils are making in their second generation plans, the extent to which national guidance from Quality Planning is being used by councils, and new developments in e-planning. This information will help inform the development of the national planning template. Our analysis has also identified some key challenges.

7.2 Key Challenges

Regional Planning Documents The number of regional planning documents, and the different ways they combine regional functions has resulted in a complex situation which will create a significant challenge for the national planning template (not to mention the additional issues that occur where a district falls within more than one regional council area).

An additional layer of complexity is added by the freshwater reforms currently being progressed by the Ministry. These place more emphasis on collaborative planning which is likely to occur on a catchment or sub-catchment basis. This will result in a move towards more regional provisions being structured around geographical areas. Indeed, a number of regional councils have already divided their second generation water plan (or land and water plan) into sub-regional or catchment based chapters.

The development of the national planning template will need to be flexible in allowing councils to progressively divide their planning documents by geographical areas, particularly with regard to water management but potentially also land-use controls such as vegetation clearance, fencing and planting, and work in the beds of rivers and lakes.

32 Background research only – not government policy General Format and Structure Despite guidance on second generation plans having been available for many years, there are few clear trends emerging in plan structure and format. While most generally follow the quadrant approach recommended by Quality Planning, within this each council makes a number of independent choices about structure that cumulatively lead to quite different layouts. This means that whichever structure (or structures) the template mandates, almost all second generation plans will need to undergo significant restructuring.

E-Planning Over time, a “standard” method of displaying plans and maps in PDF format has evolved. Some councils use this in a way that is user-friendly. However others do not make good use of the features available in PDFs and, for example, have large poorly-indexed pdfs, pages with no headers or footers to aid in plan navigation, and maps that don’t display a key. The software used by Auckland and Thames Coromandel and being considered by other councils working on their second generation plans provides a greater level of e-functioning, including the ability to “interrogate” the whole plan, and to develop a site-specific or activity-specific planning query function. Hamilton’s use of HTML also works well.

To have a user friendly online plan, it is preferable for the plan to be intentionally drafted with the key online requirements in mind. Many plans, including some second generation plans, are complex in their format and have very large sections of text. This style of plan does not facilitate online use. It will be necessary for the template to be drafted in such a way that e- planning is enabled, and for this to be robust and directive enough that all plans in the template will be able to translate smoothly into an online format.

7.3 Further Investigation In the course of this research, we identified a number of areas in which further investigation would potentially provide useful input into the template.

Auckland Plan We will look in more detail at the Auckland Unitary Plan, which has successfully combined the RPS and a number of plans into a single plan, and has presented this in an online version, with a planning enquiry function. Our research was carried out during the period after submissions on the draft plan closed, and before the notified version was put online. This meant there were some issues accessing the online tools. It would be important to discuss the relationship between the drafting of their plan, and the online availability and tools. It would also be know what feedback they have received on their online tools and what value it is adding for both external plan users, and planners within the council.

Structure of Regional Policy Statements Most regional councils now have a second generation RPS. The RPS has a particular mandate and role within the RMA planning hierarchy, and will be an important part of the template. We

33 Background research only – not government policy need to identify any common features in the way they are organised that could be incorporated into the template.

Structure of Effects-based Plans Our research identified that the Otorohanga District Plan, which is largely effects-based, has a different format from most other district plans. There are a small number of other plans which fall into the effects-based category, and the structure of these should be further investigated. It is possible that a single template may not be able to easily accommodate plans which are largely effects-based.

Placement of Assessment Criteria Assessment criteria are usually included with rules. However they can add significantly to the “bulk” of the rules, because they are repeated each time there is a similar rule. A few plans have placed the assessment criteria in a separate chapter or section, and it would be useful to look at this in more detail, to see how user-friendly this model is, and whether it decreases the bulk of the rules, and increases consistency within the plan.

Format of Rules Plans use a wide variety of different formats for rules, including tables, columns, flow charts, a nd different text-based formats. Further work is required to survey the main rules formats, an d test their usability.

34 Background research only – not government policy 8 Conclusions

There is no significant body of research examining the structure, format and usability of planning documents in New Zealand. What comment has been made is largely negative, and notes that plans are often difficult to use, for both lay people and those working in the planning and legal professions.

Our review has illustrated the complexity of the decision-making plan-makers face when constructing new plans. Setting aside the content, the decisions made on structure, format and drafting style have a huge impact on how user friendly the resulting plan is, both in text form and when made available online.

Guidance on plan structure and format has been available from Quality Planning for around a decade, and may have had a modest influence on second generation plans. Our review found that most have adopted at a high level the quadrant structure recommended by Quality Planning. Many second generation plans are somewhat smaller in size than their first generation counterpart, and at the regional level there is a clear move towards consolidating planning documents. However our review found no clear trends in overall plan structure; no structure or structures emerged as becoming a default standard.

With respect to e-planning, there are examples of innovative and user-friendly planning websites and interactive maps and planning enquiry systems. However the default method of displaying plans online is still PDF files ranging from the well-indexed and relatively user- friendly PDFs to large files which are difficult to navigate.

The national planning template provides an opportunity to provide at least some standardisation in plans as text files and online, and this review will assist in identifying current best-practice to inform its development.

35 Background research only – not government policy