S+SNZ Planning & Resource Management study plan

Map the statutory hierarchy from the Resource Management Act through national policy statements, national environmental standards, and regional and district plans, and draw a one-page diagram showing how each instrument constrains the one below it

Summarise the purpose and principles provisions in your own words, including how the Act's purpose and the matters of national importance interact in a consent decision

List the functions of regional councils and territorial authorities and classify ten sample activities to the correct decision-maker

Explain the role of the Environment Court, the High Court, and the Minister for the Environment in plan and consent processes

Walk through each step of the resource consent process from application lodgement to decision, noting statutory timeframes and notification options at each step

Distinguish controlled, restricted discretionary, discretionary, non-complying, and prohibited activity status and predict the consent pathway for each

Identify the information an assessment of effects on the environment must contain and the tests for adequacy

Explain when public or limited notification is required and how affected persons are determined

Apply the assessment criteria for a resource consent to a written scenario and reach a reasoned recommendation

Draft conditions of consent that are enforceable, certain, and reasonably related to the effects being managed

Explain the notification decision and the tests a council must apply before deciding on limited or public notification

Describe the objections and appeals routes available after a consent decision and the time limits that apply

Outline the plan preparation and review process from initiation through notification, submissions, hearings, and decisions

Explain the purpose and content of an evaluation of appropriateness and effectiveness of plan provisions and how it is reported

Distinguish plan changes, variations, private plan requests, and the plan review cycle

Describe how submissions, further submissions, and hearing processes work and how decisions are appealed

Explain how cadastral survey data and the survey system underpin subdivision and boundary determinations, and identify the role of survey plans in resource consent applications

Interpret a simple site plan and identify the information needed to assess a subdivision against district plan standards

Apply common development controls such as height, setback, site coverage, and density to a hypothetical site and calculate compliance

Describe the subdivision consent process and the relationship between survey plan approval and the grant of subdivision consent

Explain the principles of consultation and how they differ from notification, and identify when consultation is required or expected

Describe the obligations relating to tangata whenua under the Act and how iwi and hapu participation is provided for in planning processes

Draft a consultation plan for a plan change, identifying affected parties and methods of engagement

Explain how feedback from consultation is recorded, analysed, and reported in a decision

Explain how heritage values are identified and protected through plan provisions and consent conditions

Describe how natural hazards are assessed and managed through plans, including risk and likelihood considerations

Identify the environmental effects that require particular attention in an assessment of effects and how mitigation and offsetting are treated

Apply heritage and natural hazard considerations to a written consent scenario and recommend conditions

Explain the ethical obligations of a planning professional, including conflicts of interest, confidentiality, and honest reporting to decision-makers

Describe practice management essentials such as file management, records, quality review, and time and cost estimation for consent work

Review your weakest two domains from earlier weeks and re-test yourself on their core concepts

Sit a timed mixed practice set covering all eight domains and review every incorrect answer