Environmental protection in New Zealand

Geoffrey Palmer has posted "The Resource Management Act - How We Got It and What Changes are Being Made to It". The abstract:

At a time when the New Zealand Government is proposing significant changes to New Zealand’s key environmental protection statute the Resource Management Act 1991, one of the architects traces the Act’s origin and history. The Act is based on the principle of sustainable management articulated in the report of the World Commission on Environment and Development in 1987. This chapter in a book analyses the forces that led to the enactment, particularly the National Development Act 1979. It also canvases weaknesses in the administration of the Act and critiques the Government’s proposals for reform.