The role of district planning in resource management : a case study of the Akaroa basin : A research project Presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Resource Management in the Centre for Resource Management, University of Canterbury and Lincoln College

Abstract

This project, which is in two parts, examines the effectiveness of the Akaroa District Scheme in wisely administering the resources of the Akaroa Basin, and attempts some general conclusions about the value of District Scheme planning as an institutional framework for natural resource management.

The traditional view of resources has generally dominated land use issues in the Akaroa Basin and as that view derives from the cultural history of its people this is considered at some length in the first section of the project. This section also deals with some of the effects of human settlement on the environment, and the influence of the dominant culture on the values and resource perceptions of the local population. The physical history of the Basin, its geology, climate, vegetation, soils, hydrogeology, some land assessment and utilisation methods and energy issues are covered in this section.

The second section reviews the Town and Country Planning Act 1977, the operation, of the District Scheme, its value as a resource management framework, and the implications the limited success of the scheme has for district planning in rural areas generally. A chapter on politics, public participation and the position of science in resource management precedes a discussion on the need for a land ethic and for a new approach to district planning. The section concludes with a set of general statements about the role of district planning in the development of land resources in New Zealand and some specific suggestions for improving planning in rural areas.