On-Site Effluent Treatment Regional Plan

The On-Site Effluent Treatment Regional Plan 2006 deals with the effects of domestic wastewater on water quality in the Bay of Plenty.

On-site effluent treatment systems include septic tanks and associated soakage fields and advanced aerobic systems.

The Plan and maps are available to download:

• Operative On-Site Effluent Treatment Regional Plan - Text
• Operative On-Site Effluent Treatment Regional Plan - Maps:
  • Schedule 9 Maps of Rotorua Lakes Catchments 
  • Schedule 10 Maintenance Zone Maps
  • Schedule 11 Reticulation Zone Maps

Please note Ongare Point, Te Puna West and Lake Rotomā settlement areas (excluding Ngamotu) are now reticulated and are therefore no longer considered as Maintenance Zones.

Amendments

Plan Change 1 (Date Deferral for Small communities) incorporated 1 March 2011.
Plan Change 2 (Maintenance Zones) incorporated 12 August 2014.

Update on New Draft OSET Provisions

The Regional Council initially planned to notify draft OSET provisions in 2025 as part of the wider Essential Freshwater plan change. However, the Government is currently revisiting national direction for managing freshwater and other regulations relevant to OSET discharges.

To ensure alignment with anticipated new legislation requirements, the Council has decided to delay the release of draft plans and options for feedback until after central government has finalized national changes.

What happens in the meantime?

Planners are now consulting with key stakeholders to ensure the draft provisions are supported and meet our management objectives. The focus is on work that is likely to be relevant and useful even after central government policy and regulatory changes.

Under section 79 of the Resource Management Act 1991, the rules in the current Operative On-Site Effluent Treatment Regional Plan will remain in force while the new provisions are being developed.

For any questions, please contact Jill Owen, Senior Planner, by email or phone 0800 884 880.