Environmental Compliance Officer - Rural

Hawke's Bay Regional Council; Napier; On-site; NZD 76,000 - 89,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

5 weeks annual leave after 3 years

Life insurance

Eye tests subsidy

Well-being initiatives

Job summary

Hawke’s Bay Regional Council in Napier seeks an Environmental Compliance Officer – Rural to join our Compliance Team. You will monitor consents, liaise with consent holders, and report outcomes under the Resource Management Act.

This full-time, permanent role involves investigating environmental offences, preparing enforcement documentation, and contributing to the Selected Land Use Register, while participating in the 24-hour pollution response roster and annual health monitoring.

Qualifications

• Strong knowledge of compliance processes, environmental monitoring, auditing practices, and resource management legislation.
• Proven skills in conflict resolution, project management, and effective relationship building.
• Flexibility and ability to work under pressure while maintaining quality outcomes.

Responsibilities

• Monitor activities authorised through resource consents and liaise with consent holders.
• Investigate environmental offences, prepare enforcement documentation, and contribute to the Selected Land Use Register.
• Support continuous improvement of business processes and participate in the 24-hour pollution response roster.

Skills

Environmental compliance

Environmental monitoring

Regulatory knowledge

Project management

Communication skills

Driver's licence

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent in Science, Law, Environmental Resource Management, or Agriculture

Job description

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Environmental Compliance Officer - Rural

Hawke's Bay Regional Council – Napier City, North Island

$75,650 - $89,000 a year

Full time, Permanent

14d ago , from Hawke's Bay Regional Council

Published: 10 August 2026

Te Whakapakari Tahi I Tō tātau Taiao – Enhancing our environment together.

Our vision is a healthy environment and a resilient and prosperous community.

About The opportunity | Ko te āheinga:

We are looking for an Environmental Compliance Officer – Rural to join our Compliance Team. This is full-time, permanent opportunity based in Napier.

The Compliance team plays a critical role in promoting, monitoring, and investigating compliance with the Resource Management Act (RMA) and associated regulations and takes appropriate action when required.

As an Environmental Compliance Officer - Rural, you will be responsible for monitoring activities authorised through resource consents. The Rural Compliance team monitors Forestry NES, Farm Dairy Effluent discharge, Structure and Civil works consents, Winery Wastewater discharge and Water takes. This exciting and varied role involves actively monitoring consents, liaising with consent holders, and reporting on outcomes. You will also investigate environmental offences, prepare documentation for enforcement actions, and contribute to maintaining the Council's Selected Land Use Register. With your specialised knowledge of pollution issues, compliance, and enforcement processes, you will ensure deadlines are met, collaborate effectively with Council teams, and support the continuous improvement of business processes.

You will also participate in council’s 24-hour pollution response roster, offering a unique opportunity to be at the forefront of incident response and environmental protection. As part of our commitment to staff wellbeing and maintaining operational readiness, this role includes annual health monitoring.

About you | E pā ana ki a koe:

You will be a proactive and solutions-focused professional with strong analytical skills and a commitment to achieving positive environmental outcomes. Comfortable working both independently and collaboratively, you will bring sound judgement, excellent communication skills, and the confidence to engage with a wide range of stakeholders. You will also have practical knowledge of land-use activities and environmental management practices, including irrigation systems, farm dairy effluent management, earthworks, construction activities, and sediment control measures that support environmental protection. You will ideally have a relevant Bachelor's degree or equivalent tertiary qualification in Science, Law, Environmental Resource Management, or Agriculture.

You will also have:

• Strong knowledge of compliance processes, environmental monitoring, auditing practices, and resource management legislation.
• Proven skills in conflict resolution, project management, and effective relationship building.
• Flexibility, sound judgement, and the ability to work under pressure while maintaining quality outcomes.
• In depth knowledge of the Resource Management Act.
• A full valid driver’s licence is required for this role.

What we offer | Nga huanga mōu:

The salary range for this role is between $75,650 to $89,000 per annum and will depend on the qualifications and experience of the successful candidate.

Other benefits of working for our team include:

• 5 weeks annual leave after 3 years
• Life insurance and income protection
• Subsidised eye tests and lenses, flu vaccinations, and other well-being initiatives
• Strong commitment to developing and upskilling people within a supportive working environment.

As an equal opportunity employer, we are dedicated to creating a welcoming and inclusive environment. We recognise that collaborative and innovative organisations depend on having a workforce made up from a diverse range of perspectives and experiences. We're all about excellence, and we encourage open communication – if you need any specific support, just let us know! Our main goal is to empower each person to share their unique talents to contribute to the outcomes for our community. This commitment ensures that our workplace is a dynamic and progressive space where everyone can flourish.

HBRC is responsible for Civil Defence emergencies and as such, all staff may be called upon to support the response.

Applicants must have existing rights to work in New Zealand.

About us | E pā ki a mātou:

At Hawke’s Bay Regional Council our purpose is to work with our community to protect and manage the region’s precious taonga of rivers, lakes, soils, air, coast and biodiversity for health, wellbeing and connectivity. Our organisation is diverse and our work is varied. Our structure comprises of six key business units; Corporate Services, Integrated Catchment Management, Asset Management, Māori Partnerships, Policy & Regulation, and the Executive Advisory Group which also consists of the Civil Defence and Emergency Management.

We focus on prioritising:

Te kounga o te wai, te haumarutanga me te mārohirohi ā-āhuarangi o te whakamarutanga| Water quality, safety and climate-resilient security.

Kia koi, kia toitū hoki te whakamahinga o te whenua|Climate-smart and sustainable land use.

Kia ora, kia āhei, kia mārohirohi ā-āhuarangi hoki te rerenga rauropi |Healthy, functioning and climate-resilient biodiversity.

Kia toitū, kia mārohirohi ā-āhuarangi hoki ngā ratonga me ngā hanganga ā-whare |Sustainable and climate-resilient services and infrastructure.