Regional Air Quality Management Plan
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The Regional Air Quality Management Plan became operative on 8 May 2000. Change 1 to the Regional Air Quality Management Plan was made operative on1 September 2003.
The Plan applies to discharges to air in the whole of the Wellington region, except for the coastal marine area. Discharges to air in the coastal marine area are covered in the Regional Coastal Plan.
The Plan identifies issues to be addressed so that air can be sustainably managed. Objectives, policies, and methods (including rules) have been adopted to address these issues.
You can browse the rules by clicking on the highlighted regional rules link at the left of this screen.
The Ministry for the Environment adopted the National Environmental Standardsfor air in October 2004. National Environmental Standards override regional rules.
The Plan can be downloaded from the right of this screen.
What sort of activities does the Plan cover?
Discharges covered by the Plan include:
- agrichemical spray and powder application
- fumigation
- on-farm and factory farming processes
- processing of animal and plant matter
- heating and electrical generation processes
- processing, storage and transfer and flaring of hydrocarbons and biogas
- fuel conversion processes
- mineral extraction and the sorting and storage of powdered and bulk products
- the drying and heating of minerals
- metal production and processing
- chemical processes
- di-isocyanate and organic plasticiser processes
- coating processes (including spray painting)
- abrasive blasting processes
- cooling towers/ventilation
- burn-offs and burning
- landfilling and composting
- sewage and trade waste conveyance and treatment processes.
The Plan does not restrict discharges to air from vehicles.
You can find the rules or regulations that apply to activities in theuser guide.
Plan effectiveness monitoring
The plan effectiveness report for the Regional Air Quality Management Plan describes the results of monitoring the effectiveness of the policies and methods, including rules, in the Plan. A full copy of the report can be downloaded from the sidebar on the right side of this page.
Related regional plans
The Regional Coastal Plancovers all discharges to air, land and water in the coastal marine area (below the line of mean high water springs). The Regional Freshwater Plancovers all direct discharges to rivers, lakes, artificial watercourses, and groundwater. The Regional Plan for Discharges to Landcovers all discharges of contaminants to land, whether or not the contaminants enter water.
Contact usfor more information about the Regional Air Quality Management Plan.