ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on integrated management as manifested through the hierarchy of policies and plans which the Resource Management Act (RMA) provides for the coastal environment. It compares provisions in the Tauranga District plan relating to open coast hazards with those in the district schemes prepared under previous legislation, to see if the new policy framework was more robust and the coastal environment better managed. The chapter traces policy from higher-level policy statements and plans through to district plans, to find out whether or not more integrated environmental policy had been achieved, both horizontally and vertically. It examines a horizontal comparison of district plans prepared under the RMA for the adjacent jurisdictions of Tauranga District Council and Western Bay of Plenty District Council, where, policies affecting the Omokoroa coast. The district scheme of Mount Maunganui Borough Council characterized the planning problem as the management of urban growth along the coast in an area of known risk from natural hazards.
