Engineering Standards
Kaipara District Council's Engineering Standards (ES) 2026 were approved by Council on 26 August 2026. This follows the careful consideration of submissions to the draft ES and Council thanks all submitters for their feedback.
The new ES 2026 adopts most of the parts of the Whangarei District Council ES 2022 and the Transportation section of the Regional Infrastructure Technical Specifications version 1, with modifications to suit the local district and to facilitate innovation in engineering design. Key considerations in preparing the ES 2026 were:
- creating a document which is clear and simple to use
- results in efficient design without “over engineering” or “under engineering”
- providing certainty for developers
- facilitating alternative innovative engineering design and efficiency in the approval process
- aligning with KDC’s vision and community outcomes set by Council
- providing opportunity for cost efficiencies in using well tested existing standards rather than developing a new standard from scratch
Council welcomes collaboration with developers to future proof Council's asset network.
Amendment to the Kaipara District Council Operative District Plan 2013
The ES 2026 are given immediate effect through an amendment to the Kaipara District Council Operative District Plan, 2013. An advice note has been added that states compliance with the KDC ES 2026 is considered an acceptable means of compliance with Kaipara District Council Engineering Standards 2011.
Resource consents that have been approved with conditions referring to the 2011 ES, may be implemented according to the 2011 standard, or resource consent holders may elect to design and construct infrastructure according to the 2026 ES. Engineering matters that are controlled directly by the KDC Operative District Plan, 2013, will continue to apply.
The approval of new resource consents, submitted after the publishing of the ES 2026 (22 September 2026) will refer to the ES 2026. Any questions or feedback on these ES maybe emailed to RMAConsents@kaipara.govt.nz
Engineering Standards 2026
Engineering Standards Introduction (pdf 662kb)
Chapter 1 General (pdf 935kb)
Chapter 2 Site development suitability (geotechnical and natural hazards) (pdf 710kb)
Chapter 3 Transport drawings (pdf 8.44mb)
Chapter 4 Stormwater and drainage (pdf 1,737kb)
Chapter 5 Wastewater (pdf 813kb)
Chapter 6 Water supply and reticulation (pdf 787kb)
Chapter 7 Public spaces and landscape works (pdf 749kb)
Chapter 8 Electricity, telecommunications and gas (pdf 579kb)
Appendices (pdf 4.31mb)
Drawing Sheets (pdf 2.04 mb)
KDC Engineering Standards 2026 complete document (pdf 25.77mb) large document
Engineering Standards 2011
Table of Contents
Part One - General Provisions
Part Two - General Design Provisions
Part Three - Quality Assurance Requirements
Part Four - Land Stability and Earthworks
Part Five - Roads and Access
Part Six - Stormwater Drainage
Part Seven - Wastewater Reticulation and On-Site Treatment
Part Eight - Water Supply and Reticulation
Part Nine - Landscape Design and Practice
Part Ten - Network Utilities
Appendix A - Drawings: Index
Appendix A - Drawings: Part One
Appendix A - Drawings: Part Two
Appendix A - Drawings: Part Three
Appendix A - Drawings: Part Four
Appendix B - Mangawhai EcoCare Project: Pump Stations Communication Standard
Kaipara District Council Engineering Standards 2011 (whole document)
