Property Council Bay of Plenty branch acting president Darryl Fletcher is unhappy with the Bay of Plenty Regional Council's proposed regional policy statement, saying it is too prescriptive.

Required under the Resource Management Act 1991, the statement identifies major resource management issues for the region and how to manage its natural and physical resources sustainably.

However, Darryl says the proposed statement is unbalanced and is moving away from a broad policy based approach to a prescriptive, rules based approach.

'The regional policy statement needs to focus on principles in order to create a document that is enabling, within the context of protecting the sustainability of the region's natural and physical resources.

'Instead, this statement unnecessarily uses words that are prescriptive and absolute in nature.

'Consequently, many of the policies and methods that it contains read like rules.”

In its submission on the proposed statement, the Bay of Plenty Property Council branch argued that notably, the words ‘avoid', ‘priority', ‘requiring' and ‘ensuring' promote outcomes that do not recognise the enabling provisions of the Resource Management Act 1991 or allow full consideration its second part.

The branch's submission also focuses on the coastal environment section and the need for the statement to acknowledge the existence and requirement for subdivision, use and development in the coastal environment.

'The coastal environment objectives, policies and methods effectively preclude subdivision, use and development in the coastal environment, which does not reflect the requirements of the New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement 2010.

'The statement gives direction to regional and district plans so it is crucial to get it right, and provide a balanced, even-handed guide to the future use and management of natural and physical resources.”

Hearings are scheduled to start in July and Property Council has asked to be heard in support of its submission.