General earthworks

Earthworks are not covered by your building consent. To create or change a driveway, pond, pool, seawall, or landscape contouring, you’ll need to make sure you follow the requirements of the District Plan; otherwise, you’ll need a resource consent.

Site boundaries

You may need to get a site survey and geotechnical report, depending on:

• the scale and nature of the proposed earthworks
• if it’s unclear if all your proposed work is on your own property
• if you’re likely to be working close to your property boundary.

You’ll need the neighbouring property owner’s approval for building consent, and generally for a resource consent too.

Volume and location of earthworks

You’ll need a resource consent if you’re going to be doing earthworks:

• within 20 metres of a water body, including wetland and coastal water
• on a slope of more than 28 degrees
• in residential and working zones– that involve more than 50 cubic metres of earth within a five-year period, and will change the ground level by more than a metre
• in rural zones – that involve more than 100 cubic metres of earth within a five-year period, and will change the ground level by more than a metre
• in a flood hazard area identified on Kāpiti Coast maps – involving more than 10 cubic metres of land within a 10-year period, and will change the ground level by more than 0.5 metres.

See our District Plan > Part 2 General districtwide matters > Earthworks for details, or call us to discuss.