ICZM: The New Zealand Case Study
New Zealand is quite unique as it uses sustainable management within legislation, with a high level of importance placed on to the coastal environment. The Resource Management Act (RMA) (1991) promoted sustainable development and mandated the preparation of a New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement (NZCPS), a national framework for coastal planning. It is the only national policy statement that was mandatory. All subsequent planning must not be inconsistent with the NZCPS, making it a very important document. Regional authorities are required to produce Regional coastal policy plans under the RMA (1991) but strangely enough, they only need to include the marine environment seaward of the mean high water mark. But many regional councils have chosen to integrate the ‘dry’ landward area within their plans, breaking down the artificial barriers. This attempt at ICZM is still in its early days running into many legislative hurdles and is yet to achieve a fully ecosystems-based approach. But as part of ICZM, evaluation and adoption of changes is important and ongoing changes to the NZCPS in the form of reviews is currently happening. This will provide an excellent stepping stone for future initiatives and the development of a fully integrated form of coastal management.
Read more about this topic: Integrated Coastal Zone Management
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