More than 500 planners, resource managers, urban designers and environmental practitioners will converge on Dunedin when the annual New Zealand Planning Institute (NZPI) national conference is held in the city next month.
The event, to be held from April 12-15, will include speakers such as Building, Housing and Environment Minister Nick Smith, former prime minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer and Commissioner for the Environment Dr Jan Wright.
NZPI chief executive Susan Houston said global warming would be a key topic of discussion, and had been the catalyst for a ‘‘new era of planning''.
‘‘Most of New Zealand's towns and cities are located by the coast where waves, the tide, wind and change in sea level can damage public and private assets,'' she said.
‘‘Managing coastal hazards has been a challenge over 25 years of Resource Management Act (RMA) experience.''
Transport issues, such as traffic jams and the increasing popularity of cycling as a mode of transport, was another key issue which would be addressed, she said.
‘‘We know getting people about by bike in an everyday fashion will become more common in New Zealand's towns and cities in the coming decades, so let's plan for that.''
Other topics of discussion would include the increasing demands for water supply and allocation pressures on the groundwater resource, Maori concerns at the modification of rivers and what they perceive to be inappropriate flow regimes, and the amalgamation of Auckland's eight regional and territorial authority stormwater departments into the Auckland Council Stormwater Unit.
‘‘This conference is about planning for New Zealand's future.
‘‘New Zealand's population is ageing and living longer.
‘‘The baby boomer generation sits on the cusp of retirement and we need to plan for both appropriate housing and caring for older New Zealanders.''
