Comprehensive stormwater network discharge consent

The Christchurch City Council holds a resource consent with Environment Canterbury, known as the Comprehensive Stormwater Network Discharge Consent (CSNDC), for discharges from the public stormwater network.

Our consent, CRC252424, covers most stormwater discharges generated from within Ōtautahi-Christchurch and from settlement areas of Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū - Banks Peninsula, with exceptions for contaminated sites and some discharges into land. 

Granted by ECan in December 2019, the consent describes the scope of permitted discharges and includes conditions requiring the Council to carry out research, monitoring, and actions to improve waterway health and manage flooding. The consent does not cover discharges that are not strictly stormwater, such as groundwater/dewatering, industrial process water, or washdown activities. Details on the consent can be found at Environment Canterbury(external link).

For new developments and redevelopments, permission must be sought from Christchurch City Council to discharge stormwater into the public network. Conditions of approval may include requirements to provide on-site stormwater treatment or detention storage.  Application for approval to discharge stormwater into the network should be directed to stormwater.approvals@ccc.govt.nz. 

Transition Plan

On 1 January 2025, Christchurch City Council changed the way it assesses, approves, and rejects stormwater discharges into its network under the CSNDC. These changes are detailed in the Transition Plan [PDF, 691 KB] and focus on the following types of stormwater dischargers:

• Stormwater from contaminated or potentially contaminated sites listed on ECan’s LLUR.
• Construction-phase discharges from sites with a total disturbed area exceeding 5 hectares on flat land or 1 hectare on hills.
• Sites listed on Schedule 1 of the CSNDC, and sites currently operating under a separate ECan stormwater resource consent that now wish to discharge under the CSNDC authority.

Two-year reporting

Under Condition 61, the Council must publish a two-year report every two years. This report covers:

• Activities and research carried out under the consent.
• Results from the environmental monitoring programme.
• Progress on improving stormwater management.