13 MARCH 2008 NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE, No. 58 1631

of the public at the regional office of the Ministry of
Education, 39 Princess Street, Christchurch.
Dated at Wellington this 6th day of March 2008.
KATHY PHILLIPS, Group Manager, National Operations.
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Environment

Crown Entities Act 2004

Appointments/reappointment to the Environmental Risk Management Authority

Pursuant to section 28(1)(a) of the Crown Entities Act 2004,
I appoint

Richard Woods
as a member and chair of the Environmental Risk Management Authority for a term of three years commencing 11 April 2008 and expiring on 11 April 2011.

Pursuant to clause 1, Schedule 5 of the Crown Entities Act 2004, I appoint

Dr Max Suckling
as deputy chair of the Environmental Risk Management Authority, for a term commencing 11 April 2008 and expiring 19 March 2009.

Pursuant to section 28(1)(a) of the Crown Entities Act 2004,
I reappoint

Dr Valerie Orchard
as a member of the Environmental Risk Management Authority for a term of three years commencing 2 May 2008 and expiring on 2 May 2011.

Dated at Wellington this 25th day of February 2008.
HON TREVOR MALLARD, Minister for the Environment.
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Resource Management Act 1991

National Policy Statement on Electricity Transmission

ANAND SATYANAND, Governor-General

ORDER IN COUNCIL

At Wellington this 10th day of March 2008

Present:
HIS EXCELLENCY THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL PRESIDED IN COUNCIL

Pursuant to section 52(2) of the Resource Management Act 1991, His Excellency the Governor-General, acting on the advice and with the consent of the Executive Council and on the recommendation of the Minister for the Environment (having satisfied the requirements of that Act), approves the following national policy statement.

PREAMBLE

This national policy statement sets out the objective and policies to enable the management of the effects of the electricity transmission network under the Resource Management Act 1991.

In accordance with section 55(2A)(a) of the Act, and within four years of approval of this national policy statement, local authorities are to notify and process under the First Schedule to the Act a plan change or review to give effect as appropriate to the provisions of this national policy statement.

The efficient transmission of electricity on the national grid plays a vital role in the well-being of New Zealand, its people and the environment. Electricity transmission has special characteristics that create challenges for its management under the Act. These include:

• Transporting electricity efficiently over long distances requires support structures (towers or poles), conductors, wires and cables, and sub-stations and switching stations.

• These facilities can create environmental effects of a local, regional and national scale. Some of these effects can be significant.

• The transmission network is an extensive and linear system which makes it important that there are consistent policy and regulatory approaches by local authorities.

• Technical, operational and security requirements associated with the transmission network can limit the extent to which it is feasible to avoid or mitigate all adverse environmental effects.

• The operation, maintenance and future development of the transmission network can be significantly constrained by the adverse environmental impact of third party activities and development.

• The adverse environmental effects of the transmission network are often local – while the benefits may be in a different locality and/or extend beyond the local to the regional and national – making it important that those exercising powers and functions under the Act balance local, regional and national environmental effects (positive and negative).

• Ongoing investment in the transmission network and significant upgrades are expected to be required to meet the demand for electricity and to meet the Government’s objective for a renewable energy future, therefore strategic planning to provide for transmission infrastructure is required.

The national policy statement is to be applied by decision-makers under the Act. The objective and policies are intended to guide decision-makers in drafting plan rules, in making decisions on the notification of the resource consents and in the determination of resource consent applications, and in considering notices of requirement for designations for transmission activities.

However, the national policy statement is not meant to be a substitute for, or prevail over, the Act’s statutory purpose or the statutory tests already in existence. Further, the national policy statement is subject to Part 2 of the Act.

For decision-makers under the Act, the national policy statement is intended to be a relevant consideration to be weighed along with other considerations in achieving the sustainable management purpose of the Act.

This preamble may assist the interpretation of the national policy statement, where this is needed to resolve uncertainty.

1. TITLE

This national policy statement is the National Policy Statement on Electricity Transmission 2008.

2. COMMENCEMENT

This national policy statement comes into force on the 28th day after the date on which it is notified in the New Zealand Gazette.

3. INTERPRETATION

In this national policy statement, unless the context otherwise requires: