Excessive tides and swells are rapidly eroding sandbanks on Port Waikato’s Sunset Beach, destroying the carpark and threatening homes. Video / Mike Scott
New Zealand isn’t moving fast enough to prepare communities for the multibillion-dollar risk climate change poses, the country’s watchdog says.
The Climate Change Commission’s first report into our adaptation efforts, released this afternoon, found that work wasn’t happening at the pace or scale needed – and that the status quo was “unsustainable”.
Modelling suggests some 750,000 people, 500,000 buildings and billions of dollars of infrastructure are already at risk of extreme flooding.
“In the 2022-2023 financial year, we saw almost $4 billion in insurance claims due to extreme weather events,” said the commission’s chairman, Dr Rod Carr.
“It’s estimated the cost of damage to physical assets from the Auckland Anniversary weekend floods and Cyclone Gabrielle will be up to $14.5 billion.”
How to prepare our vulnerable communities for a warmer and wilder world has proven a tricky issue for policymakers – with New Zealand largely still taking an ad hoc, council-by-council approach to managed retreat and property buy-outs.
The Government has been working toward legislation around climate adaptation, but it’s not clear whether that will result in a national policy statement, or a new dedicated law, as the former government attempted to introduce.
The commission’s report, meanwhile, highlighted a catalogue of shortcomings in efforts to date.
Despite positive steps like a new Parliamentary inquiry, New Zealand still lacked adequate legislative frameworks and a national funding strategy.
The commission called for a clear legislative mandate that empowered local councils to make risk-informed decisions while ensuring adaptation costs were fairly distributed.
“It’s never too late to start, and the sooner we do, the more money we will save and the more heartache we will avoid," Climate Change Commission chairman Dr Rod Carr says of adaptation. Photo / Mark Mitchell
It stressed the importance of defining the roles of all players involved – from authorities and agencies to banks, property owners and iwi – and supporting Māori-led efforts that aligned with cultural values.
“Adapting to a changing climate is different for each individual community – it is an inherently local issue,” Carr said.
“Central government can provide a way forward by giving communities the tools they need to make their own choices.”
Carr said investing in adaptation now would ultimately reduce harm and damage to lives and livelihoods.
“It’s never too late to start, and the sooner we do, the more money we will save and the more heartache we will avoid.”
The report comes days after a major poll found Kiwis overwhelmingly favoured less development in risky areas – and more investment in making buildings and infrastructure more resilient.
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts said the Government was putting “significant focus” on adaptation and recently invested $200m to support climate resilience projects.
Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee was continuing its inquiry into adaptation and was expected to turn in its final report next month.
“We are also engaging with industry, banks and insurers on the impacts on potential pathways.”
Jamie Morton is a specialist in science and environmental reporting. He joined the Herald in 2011 and writes about everything from conservation and climate change to natural hazards and new technology.
