Trevor
Mallard24 September, 2008 - Environment
Minister Trevor Mallard has welcomed the
passage of the Aquaculture Legislation Amendment
Bill which is aimed at improving the operation
and development of the aquaculture industry
in New Zealand.
"The Aquaculture
Legislation Amendment Bill passed by parliament
today clarifies the policy intent of the
aquaculture reforms by ensuring that applications
for the occupation of the coastal marine
area for aquaculture activities cannot be
made unless they relate to aquaculture management
areas in operative regional coastal plans,"
Trevor Mallard said.
"The issues with
existing legislation arose from a May 2006
decision of the Environment Court, in the
case of SMW Consortium Limited v Tasman
District Council.
" By correcting
problems with the current law and improving
operation for businesses, iwi and local
government, the aquaculture industry will
be better placed to grow and contribute
to New Zealand’s economic growth,"
Trevor Mallard said.
The Aquaculture Legislation
Amendment Bill amends the Resource Management
Act 1991, the Fisheries Act 1996, the Maori
Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement
Act 2004 and the Aquaculture Reform (Repeals
and Transitional Provisions) Act 2004.
Currently worth over
$300 million to the New Zealand economy,
the aquaculture industry is the fastest
growing sector of New Zealand’s seafood
industry, and there is an industry strategy
in place for that to rise to a billion dollars
by 2025.
Trevor Mallard said
another bill, the Aquaculture Legislation
Amendment Bill (No 2), will have its first
reading in parliament later this week.
The Aquaculture Legislation
Amendment Bill (No 2) will amend legislation
to facilitate the creation of new aquaculture
management areas, address issues relating
to invited private plan changes, enable
experimental aquaculture, provide for aquaculture
agreements in transitional processes under
the old Fisheries legislation, support environmental
monitoring and other technical amendments
relating to the 2004 aquaculture reforms.
The bill will also give
certainty to the invited private plan change
(IPPC) process which is emerging as the
preferred means for councils to progress
the development of aquaculture management
areas.
