Editing Resource Management Act 1991 (section)

== Beginnings ==

Following the [[New Zealand National Party|National Party's]] antipathy to environmental issues in the 1980s, as expressed in the [[Think Big]] economic development projects and the [[National Development Act 1979|National Development Act]], the [[New Zealand Labour Party]] went into the [[New Zealand general election, 1984|1984 election]] campaign with a platform of reforming planning and local government institutions and adopting better environmental policies.<ref>Wheen, N. (2002) A history of New Zealand environmental law. pp 261–274, In 'Environmental histories of New Zealand', edited by Pawson, E. and Brooking, T. Oxford University Press, Melbourne, page 269.</ref> The reform policy involved creating an integrated resource decision making system to replace the existing sectoral based system. The Labour Party environment policy, such as this quote from Part I, paragraph 3, owed much to the [[Brundtland Commission]]'s concept of [[sustainable development]];<ref>Fisher, D. E. (1991), 'The resource management legislation of 1991: A judicial analysis of its objectives', p 2, fifth paragraph.</ref><blockquote>to ensure the management of the human use of the biosphere to yield the greatest sustainable benefits to present generations while maintaining the potential to meet the goods and aspirations of future generations</blockquote>