New Zealand's Resource Management Act, which was adopted in 1991, is regarded as innovative as it provides a framework for sustainable management and places a high emphasis on protection of the environment. The paper outlines the Resource Management Act as it relates to transport and land use planning, namely, the hierarchial structure of national and regional policy statements, regional and district plans and the role of these three levels of government. It also outlines the role of Transit New Zealand, the national funding agency for land transport, in relation to the Act and sustainability. The paper considers the concept of sustainability in terms of transport and land use planning and outlines the initiatives taken by Transit New Zealand and the Ministry of Transport. In addition to the above, the purpose of the paper is to highlight some of the broader issues which are impeding progress towards sustainable management in relation to major road and transport projects. These are: the lack of national policies and the necessary requirements for implementation, the lack of strategic (regional) planning, and weaknesses in project evaluation. Despite the substantial initial progress being made, the paper concludes that these issues must be rectified if integrated transport and land use planning is to be achieved, thereby enabling sustainable management of the resources to be attained. (A)
Abstract