PremiumOpinionUpdatedOpinion byDr Greg SeverinsenNZ Herald·20 Aug, 2026 05:11 AM4 mins to readDr Greg Severinsen is the reform director at the Environmental Defence Society.The Environmental Defence Society believes greater development at the edge of the Waitākere Ranges would be possible under new Resource Management Act laws.The Government’s replacement laws for the Resource Management Act introduce a new concept called “regulatory relief”. In simple terms, if a council restricts what landowners can do with their property in order to protect things like native bush, coastlines or outstanding landscapes, the council may have to compensate them.
That
