A draft plan for climate adaptation in NZ

The Government has released its draft National (Climate) Adaptation Plan. In his covering note, James Shaw commented. "As I write this, residents in Gisborne are being evacuated from their homes while rivers overflow after persistent heavy rain. Aotearoa New Zealand has always had dramatic weather. But floods such as those in Tairāwhiti, storms such as those experienced recently in Westport and droughts such as those experienced, well, just about everywhere are becoming both more severe and more frequent. More lives and livelihoods are on the line. The outlook is especially troubling, considering the potential for disproportionate effects on Māori, people with disabilities, low-income families and rural communities. So as the image of tomorrow becomes clearer and more certain, a purely reactive approach to climate impacts becomes ever less credible. Instead, we need to plan and we need to prepare. For too long we have pushed climate adaptation to the back of the cupboard. Now is the time for a real step-change in our approach. Because the sooner we start, the more effective our efforts will be".

An excellent backgrounder on the issues facing coastal property can be found on the NZ Geographical site. What storms may come which appeared in its Sept/Oct 21 magazine.