JUST GOOD BUSINESS BUZZ : EPA launched

A new Environmental Protection Authority was launched last month in what’s being heralded as new era in managing New Zealand’s natural resources.
The EPA comes into being as part of the Resource Management Amendment Act and allows major resource consent appliers to bypass local authorities and go direct to central Government for project approval. While the Authority will initially be statutory office with the Ministry for the Environment, broader role for it is being considered, according to Environment Minister Nick Smith.
This could include environmental responsibility for New Zealand’s exclusive economic zone, oversight of hazardous substances and new organisms and the administrative functions of the Emissions Trading Scheme.
See www.epa.govt.nz