Find out more about how to manage different waste streams, carry out works around waterways like repairing bridges and culverts, and navigate retrospective consenting as part of storm recovery efforts.
We know the recent weather has caused significant damage, and many of you are already working hard to repair accessways, fences, and infrastructure. It’s understandable that some operations — like farming or industrial activities — may not be running as usual, especially with issues like flooding, silt, or damaged effluent systems. These factors can get in the way of operating in a compliant way.
Recovery takes time, and every situation is different. If you're unsure about what’s needed or how to stay compliant during this period, please get in touch — we're here to help.
→The guidance presented here can also be downloaded in PDF form (pdf 122 KB).
If your infrastructure has been damaged and you're finding it hard to meet your consent requirements, please get in touch with your TDC Compliance Team. We're here to support you and can offer practical advice on how to meet your conditions, including what timeframes might be realistic given your situation.
We recommend putting together a plan to get your infrastructure back up and running as soon as you can. In the meantime, it’s important to do what you can to reduce any environmental impact. What’s practical and appropriate will look different for each farm or business, and we’ll work with you to figure that out. We understand things aren’t running as usual right now, and we’ll be assessing compliance on a case-by-case basis. Our goal is to support recovery while helping you stay on track.
Please keep a record of any work you carry out and take photos and videos of damage before starting. This helps create a clear record of the situation you are facing.
Please be careful.
If a structure is authorised by an existing resource consent, it is likely to include conditions that allow for maintenance of the structure, so have a read of any consents first.
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Flood-related waste management and disposal enquiries.
Phone: 03 543-8400 to lodge a Service Request, or Email: engineering.csrs@tasman.govt
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We have put together some guidance for managing waste from the recent weather events. This includes help on dealing with silt, woody debris, posts and wire, and hazardous substances. You can find further details here: What to do with your flood-related waste |
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→ If you can, please separate different types of waste — it makes things much easier to manage and dispose of properly.
Click the tabs below for practical guidance on handling various waste streams—including silt, woody debris, posts and wire, and farm dairy milk, as well as managing the disposal of deceased stock.
If you’re moving silt, please take care not to spread or pile it up near sensitive areas like wetlands, bores, or waterways. If you’re unsure, it’s best to check in with us.
If you're moving silt on your property or accepting it from elsewhere, please consider how its placement might affect nearby waterways, change floodwater flow, or impact neighbours downstream. TheTRMP has controls around raising land or creating bunds, as doing either of these can have unintended effects — both on-site and off-site — so it’s best to understand these before investing time and money.
If you're unsure, get in touch with us early. The more we understand your situation, the better we can help you explore your options.
Some silt in the Motueka Valley area may contain fragments of Asiatic Knotweed — an aggressive, hard-to-control weed. It’s already established in the Wangapeka River, through its confluence with the Motueka River, and all the way out to the sea. The recent flooding may have spread it further.
To help prevent its spread, treat any silt from the Motueka Valley catchment as potentially contaminated. Keep it within the catchment unless it's going to an authorised disposal site. This weed can also affect built infrastructure - including concrete foundations, so please take care.
For more on why Asiatic Knotweed is a problem and how to manage it, check out the Asiatic Knotweed Factsheet.
Silt can pose a health risk, take necessary precautions.
For silt that you’re planning to manage on-site for incorporation into productive land, there’s guidance available through MPI On-Farm Support or your rural professional.
Just a reminder — treated timber and certain materials like tyres, plastics, and galvanised wire must not be burnt. Burning these is not allowed under the TRMP, to learn more, head on over to our Outdoor Burning page.
You can burn small amounts of untreated timber or wood from your own property, but please do so carefully to avoid affecting your neighbours — especially when it comes to managing smoke.
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TDC is investigating support options for management of woody debris such as industrial scale chipping and consented clean burning through an approved contractor. |
If you’re unsure about what’s okay to burn, when and where (for example, are you in a Fire Sensitive Area), it’s best to check in with the Compliance Team.
If milk can’t be collected from your farm due to access issues, and you need to dispose of it on-site, please follow DairyNZ’s “Milk Disposal” guidance. It's designed to help you manage this situation safely and responsibly.
Dumping or discharging milk should only be done when absolutely necessary. Following the recommended steps will help minimise environmental impacts.
If you need to dispose of a small number of stock, you can use an offal pit as part of your usual farm operations — just make sure it’s in the right location. The TRMP allows this, as long as the pit is at least 50 metres away from waterways and bores, and at least 500 mm above the average winter water table. Head on over to our Managing Dead Stock and Offal page to learn more.
If you’re unsure about the best location or setup, feel free to get in touch.
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Remedial works in and around waterways that are required following extreme weather events are provided for within the TRMP. Such works are permitted if it is IMMEDIATELY following the event.
→The period of immediacy following the June/July 2025 weather events has now passed.
Now, works in a waterway or river are required to meet TRMP rules. If you are uncertain about the works you are proposing, contact the Consents or Compliance team for further advice.
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The tabs below provide guidance on what you can do in and around waterways, including repairing bridges, culverts, and fencing during this time period.
You can also carry out this work if erosion or build-up is stopping structures from working properly, or if it’s increasing the risk of flooding to nearby land.
Consented river structures, rock walls etc, normally have maintenance conditions. Please check the resource consent conditions. We can check if you hold any consents at specific locations.
If you’re unsure whether your situation fits these criteria, get in touch.
The construction of new stop banks can have significant effects on your neighbours and potentially yourself, and is not permitted. A stop bank is any raising of the ground along or behind the riverbank, higher than what existed before the flood, that may change the way flood waters flow.
Note that the major river recovery work required in the River X and River Y rivers will be led by the TDC Rivers team. They are also undertaking post-flood tree and debris clean-up on a number of River Z watercourses that were severely impacted by the storms.
If a small stream has shifted from its original course due to the weather event, it may be redirected back to its original (pre-event) channel or left to remain where it is without needing resource consent, provided the realignment does not pose an increased risk to downstream properties.
We recommend you take photos before/ during and at the completion of work as a record. If you’re unsure, please contact the TDC Rivers team via the Service Desk, with photographs and your intended plans, to discuss.
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The Rivers team have a significant amount of work ahead, and a process is in place to triage all requests received through the Service Desk. |
Where the removal, replacement, or repair of river crossing structures can be carried out under permitted activity rules, no resource consent is required. Note: Building consent may still be required. If you wish to view the relevant rules, head on over to our Rural Sector Rules page and scroll down to Part 4: Rivers and Lakes
Bridge and culvert maintenance can also be carried out without a consent, provided it meets the conditions of the TRMP. Maintenance refers to restoring a structure to working order and does not include any significant changes to its form, orientation, or outline.
Temporary bridges
If a temporary bridge has been installed and it turns out a resource consent is needed, please let TDC know within seven days of the work being done. We understand that recovery work often needs to happen quickly, and we’re here to support you through the process.
In these cases, a retrospective consent will need to be applied for — and our team can help guide you through what’s needed.
Permanent bridges
A resource consent may be required for new permanent bridges.
Before construction begins, the following steps need to be undertaken:
Culverts
Replacement, repair or reinstallation of a culvert is generally permitted under the TRMP and the National Environmental Standard for Freshwater (NES-F) 2020. Even if a consent isn’t needed, NES-F still requires specific information to be collected for each culvert. In most cases, culverts must provide fish passage.
If the culvert or river crossing is in a Plantation Forest, the National Environmental Standards for Commercial Forestry (NES-CF) 2017 also apply.
Before you install a culvert, here are a few important steps to follow:
If your head is spinning at this point, and you’re unsure about what’s needed, contact us and we can guide you through it.
If fencing along waterways on your farm has been badly damaged or destroyed, we understand there’s a lot of recovery work ahead. There’s no need to rush into replacing these fences straight away.
Where you can, we recommend using temporary fencing to keep stock out of waterways in the meantime.
We understand urgent recovery work may sometimes need to happen before resource consent is in place. TDC can consider retrospective consent for work that was urgently needed and directly related to this weather event.
If you need to act quickly, please:
Some activities — like burning certain types of waste — are strictly prohibited and can’t be approved under any circumstances.
This helps keep the process fair and transparent, and following the correct process is very important. You can find the application form at www.tasman.govt.nz (search: resource consent form).
If you’re planning any work that might need a resource consent, we encourage you to get in touch with our Natural Resources Consents team first at NRdutyplanner@tasman.govt.nz. They can help confirm whether a consent is needed and talk you through what’s realistic in terms of timing.
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We understand that the cost of specialist advice and consenting fees can be a barrier for some landowners. To help with these costs, please check with your insurer and the Natural Hazards Commission (formerly EQC), as remedial work to protect your land may be covered. You may also be eligible for support through the Mayoral Relief Fund or MPI’s relief provision, administered by the Mayoral Relief Fund.
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If you’re unsure about whether your planned activity is okay, please contact your Consenting Team at nrdutyplanner@tasman.govt.nz or Compliance team at Compliance.Officer@tasman.govt.nz.
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TDC Catchment Advisors are also here to help, and can connect you to wider council advice:
Wai-iti/Waimea/Buller Motueka/Riuwaka/Moutere/Kaiteriteri
Brigid Graney Helen Forsey
brigid.graney@tasman.govt.nz helen.forsey@tasman.govt.nz
Tākaka/Aorere
Kat Bunting
kat.bunting@tasman.govt.nz
