Assessment of Environmental Effects (AEE)

What is an Assessment of Environmental Effects (AEE)?

An Assessment of Environmental Effects is a statement about the effects a proposed activity may have on the environment.

Every activity has some effect on the environment. These effects can be positive or negative. For example, the redevelopment of an old commercial area might produce a more pleasant shopping environment. However a new building may cause loss of privacy for its neighbours and/or an increase in traffic.

An Assessment of Environment Effects (AEE) describes all the environmental effects of the activity on the environment and the ways any negative effects are to be remedied, avoided or mitigated.

If you are applying for resource consent you are required to, pursuant to Section 88 of the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA), provide an AEE.

Every resource consent application must include an AEE.

What is meant by ‘Effect’?

Effects can be:

• Positive or negative
• Temporary or permanent
• Past, present or future
• Cumulative (arising over time or in combination with other effects).

The definition of ‘effects’ in the RMA includes any effects, regardless of scale, intensity, duration or frequency. It includes any potential effect of high probability or of low probability which has high potential impact.

What is meant by ‘Environment’?

The term ‘environment’ includes:

• Ecosystems and their constituent parts, including people and communities.
• All natural and physical resources.
• Amenity values.

The RMA specifically does not require the Council to consider effects on trade competition or the financial viability of an operation. Accordingly information relating to the financial viability of your proposal and its effect on competitors should not be included in your AEE.

What kind of Information is required for the AEE?

The amount of information you need to include in the AEE will depend on how significant the environmental effects will be. Section 850 of the Proposed District Plan will provide an indication of how much detail you need. You must provide at least:

• A description of the proposal
• A description of the site and locality
• A site plan that is drawn to scale and any other relevant plans such as elevations of a new building
• A description of the actual and potential environmental effects of the activity
• Where these effects are likely to be significant, a description of available alternatives
• A description of the ways in which adverse environmental effects can be avoided, remedied or mitigated
• A record of your consultation with neighbours and any other affected parties
• A discussion of any monitoring of environmental effects that may be required to control a certain effect

How do I prepare an AEE?

Taking the time to prepare a careful and thorough AEE will save you time and frustration later. Depending on the scale of the activity you may wish to obtain assistance from an expert to prepare your application. (Such experts include engineers, resource management specialists and surveyors).

Remember that any application needing resource consent will have some environmental effects. The Council will not accept an AEE that says there are no environmental effects from the activity.

Think about what you are proposing to do and how it will change the site. To help you prepare your AEE you can talk to the Council’s Duty Planner to determine which parts of the Proposed District Plan are relevant to your application and the activity status of your proposal, as this can make a difference to the type of AEE you need to prepare. For example, for ‘controlled’ and ‘restricted discretionary activities’ your AEE only needs to address the matters identified in the District Plan while for ‘discretionary’ and ‘non-complying’ activities your AEE will need to address all of the potential environmental effects resulting from the proposal.

What kind of Effects are there?

Some examples of Environmental Effects include:

• Changes to the character of the street or the surrounding landscape
• Noise
• Silt run-off
• Dust
• Shading
• Modification and/or destruction of historical or cultural sites
• Vegetation loss
• Effects on water quality
• Loss of privacy
• Smell
• Visual impact
• Loss of recreational values

You should also address the duration of the effects. For example the construction of a building may result in the following:

• Temporary effects - dust, noise, silt run-off
• Permanent effects - loss of privacy, visual effects
• Cumulative effects - changes in street character

If you decide that some of the effects are significant you may need to consider changing your proposal to ensure that these effects are avoided, remedied or mitigated.

Please click on the link below to download this information:

PIS # 4 - Assessment of Environmental Effects (AEE).tif

Links to relevant Ministry for the Environment Publications for this topic:

The Resource Management Act requires all resource consent applications, other than those for permitted or controlled activities, to submit a statement on the environmental effects of the consent sought.  The impact of your activity will be one of the key considerations when your application is processed.  In considering the effects of the proposed activity, it is helpful to consider two factors.

• Is the effect an addition to that which is already existing in the neighbourhood?
• Is the effect 'noticeable' and is there likely to be a change to the environment?

When preparing an assessment of environmental effects you should consider the following:

• Any effect on those in the neighbourhood and where relevant, the wider community, including any socio-economic and cultural effects.
• Any physical effects on the locality, including landscape and visual effects.
• Any effects on the ecosystem, including effects on plants and animals, and any physical disturbance of habitats in the vicinity.
• Any effect on natural and physical resources have aesthetic, recreational, scientific, historical, spiritual, cultural, or other special value of present or future generations.
• Any discharge of contaminants into the environment, including any unreasonable emission of noise, and the options for the treatment and disposal of such contaminants.
• Any risk to the neighbourhood the wider community, or the environment, through natural hazards, or the use of hazardous substances or hazardous installations.

Checklist

Will The Activity Have Physical Effects On:

Will It Have Visual Effects On:

Will It Be Located On Or Near A Place Or Structure Having:

Will It Discharge Contaminants To:

Will It Create Or Increase Risks Through:

If You Have Answered Yes To Any Of The Above Will It Have A:

What To Include

If you have answered yes to any items in the checklist:

• A description of the activity
• A description of any possible alternative locations or methods of carrying out the activity where it is likely that the activity will result in a significant adverse effect on the environment.
• A description of the actual or potential effects on the environment.
• An assessment of any risks to the environment which are likely to arise from an activity which includes the use of hazardous substances and installations.
• A description of the mitigation measures, safeguards and contingency plan, to help prevent or reduce the effect.
• An identification of those persons interested in or affected by the activity, the consultation undertaken, their comments and your response.  - Affected/interested Persons; Consultation.
• A description of how, once the activity is approved, the effects will be monitored and by whom, if the significance of the activity's effect is such that monitoring is required.