Geothermal plan change

The RMA requires Council to review its regional plans on a regular basis and sets out a formal Plan Change process for this to happen. Our starting point is checking what we know – what the Regional Policy Statement tells us to do, where the current plan is working and where it is not, and what our community is telling us. 

This review is a part of a formal Resource Management Act process. The broad steps include:

• Reviewing and monitoring the effectiveness of current planning provisions under section 35(2)(b) of the RMA. See the following documents for the results of this review.
• RMA Section 35(2)(b) Review of Geothermal Provisions of the Bay of Plenty Regional Water and Land Plan: Tauranga Geothermal Resource (2015)
• RMA Section 35(2)(b) Rotorua Geothermal Regional Plan Review 2010
• Reviewing our understanding of the resource (e.g. research, monitoring and modelling). We monitor the state of the environment, including specific geothermal monitoring in some places (e.g. surface feature and geothermal reservoir monitoring in Rotorua).
• Identifying the community's values through community engagement. Engagement with the community throughout the plan review process is crucial. At all key stages of the plan review, we have been and will be working closely with Māori and holding targeted workshops with stakeholders and interest groups. This approach will vary between different systems.
• Developing system management plans (a whole system approach) to inform policy. The Regional Policy Statement requires system management plans for some geothermal systems including Kawerau, Tauranga and Rotorua. The system management plans will guide the policies in our Regional Plans.
• Weighing up different management options and their costs and benefits.
• Developing a draft Plan Change informed by system management plans, before formalising the Plan Change through public notification for submissions under the Resource Management Act.

Regional Council has done a thorough review of the existing plans and conducted further research to help better understand the systems. This data has been turned into technical reports to support the work we are doing. This information is publicly accessible through the environmental data portal and technical reports can be found on the glossary page.

In April 2024, Councillors approved the Rotorua Geothermal System Management Plan (SMP) – Ngā Wai Ariki o Rotorua He Mahere Whakahaere Pūnaha, a ‘care plan’ and Regional Council policy that will help guide the overall management of the Rotorua Geothermal System.

We began our engagement on the geothermal plan change in the Rotorua area in 2018 and extensive tangata whenua engagement has been undertaken already, including nine hui and additional targeted hui with iwi authorities.

For the Rotorua System Te Ahi Kaa roa working Group, with tangata whenua representatives from Ōhinemutu, Ngapuna, Kuirau/Tarewa and Whakarewarewa, has also been established to ensure the voice of these communities is heard through the plan change process. This roopu (group) has been meeting regularly since 2019 providing input into the plan review process, helping with the development of the issues and options discussion documents for the Rotorua geothermal system and more recently preparing the report Ngā wai ariki o Rotorua: He Kohikohinga, which focusses on Hau Kāinga perspectives on the health and wellbeing of geothermal taonga within Rotorua.

In September and October 2019, we met with Māori  and with key stakeholders and interest groups to share information about the state of the Rotorua geothermal system and to discuss and gather feedback on issues, objectives and policy options identified in:

• Rotorua Issues and Options discussion document August 2019
• Rotorua Issues and Options discussion document – summary version August 2019

Key themes we heard from the community were:

• Protection of geothermal taonga
• Questions about how certain the science informing the plan change can be
• Efficiency, use and innovation should be a focus
• Incorporation of Mātauranga Māori principles in all aspects of management a priority
• Consenting and process barriers need to be addressed
• Governance and ownership an unresolved issue
• Bringing the community together to listen to differing views is important

We have also had early targeted hui with Māori for some other, but not all, geothermal systems. 

The Bay of Plenty Geothermal Systems – The Science Story reports inform the regional plan change process and describe the Bay of Plenty Geothermal Systems, current uses, and the current scientific knowledge of the geology, geophysics and chemistry.

We monitor the Rotorua System closely so have more detailed information. These documents are a summary of the current health and trends for the geothermal aquifer, surface geothermal features, and current use of the system:

• The Science Story Environmental Summary Report – Rotorua Geothermal System
• Ahi Kaa Roa report – Ngā Wai Ariki o Rotorua: He Kohikohinga

In addition some of the key milestones achieved in support of the geothermal plan change are:

• Improved data on how much geothermal is actually being used in Rotorua and Tauranga
• Rotorua reservoir model has been reviewed and updated with current data, with scenarios underway to test allocation limits and reservoir pressures
• Long term trends analysis in the Rotorua system reservoir conditions completed.
• Development of options for improved efficiency in Rotorua. Comparison of the effects of different production systems in Rotorua
• Geothermal State of the Environment Monitoring Programme reviewed and a draft monitoring strategy in development.
• Surface feature monitoring programme extended outside of the Rotorua system to include Tikitere