Territorial Authorities

A territorial authority is a city council or a district council.

There are currently 11 city councils and 50 district councils in New Zealand. Territorial authorities are not subdivisions of regions and can fall within more than one region. They are generally responsible for roading, reserves, sewerage, building consents and land use and subdivision. They are subject to the Local Government Act 2002 and have a key role under the Resource Management Act, which charges them with managing land use and subdivision. Territorial Authorities prepare district plans to assist the council to carry out its functions under the Resource Management Act which include: ¹³²⁶

• Integrated management of the natural and physical resources of the district.
• Ensuring there is sufficient development capacity in relation to housing and business land.
• Effects of the use of land and associated natural and physical resources.
• Natural hazards, the management of hazardous substances, contaminated sites and biodiversity conservation to the extent that they are affected by land use.
• Land subdivision.
• Noise.
• Activities on the surfaces of rivers and lakes.

Territorial authorities also have a general duty to monitor inter alia the state of the environment of the district or city, the efficiency and effectiveness of policies and methods in policy statements and plans, the efficiency and effectiveness of local authority processes (including timeliness, cost, and overall satisfaction) and the exercise of resource consents within the district or city. Territorial authorities must also make available to the public information enabling the public to be better informed about the role of the council and information enabling the public to participate effectively under the Resource Management Act. ¹³²⁷

For a full list of territorial councils and their contact details https://www.lgnz.co.nz/local-government-in-nz/councils-in-aotearoa/council-websites-and-maps/

Last updated at 9:11AM on January 22, 2025