Why we need to adapt
Wellington’s coast, slopes, and low-lying areas are home to many people, communities, and activities. With more intense rain, flooding, and rising seas, our homes and daily lives will face significant challenges. It’s crucial to consider how we can prevent and plan for climate disruption.
Adaptation involves actions that help manage, moderate, and cope with the effects of climate change. Adaptation planning offers us the chance to collectively reimagine our city’s future and take bold climate actions to achieve a better life for our community, where both people and nature thrive.
Visit Climate change in Wellington to learn more about how climate change will impact Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington.
How we can adapt
He waka eke noa
We're all in this together
As we work towards becoming a carbon zero city, we must adapt to the unavoidable impacts of climate change. Deciding how to adapt to climate change is complex, and there is no single solution.
As a community, we need to come together to decide where and how we will grow as a city and live with our changing environment.
The process of our adaptation would likely naturally occur over time, however, we need to take strategic, proactive action now. Adaptation plans need to be dynamic to respond as the climate risks increase.
Adaptation options for sea level rise can include:
- avoiding development in vulnerable areas
- redesigning infrastructure and services to accommodate climate change impacts
- constructing protection of assets and services, for example, sea walls, sand dune revegetation
- retreating from vulnerable areas over time.
To manage heavier rainfall, we will need to avoid additional growth in flood-prone areas, increase vegetation cover and upgrade our water network.
What we're doing to support adaptation
The Council already started to implement a range of actions to adapt to climate change to help us with the challenges to come.
Our climate adaptation work programme builds on its Resilience Strategy. Over the past few years, actions have been implemented to reduce exposure to climate risks including:
- improvements to stormwater infrastructure
- maintenance of seawalls
- better access to information about future risks
- community engagement with high-risk communities to begin planning for climate change.
To learn more, read our Climate Adaptations Options catalogue (1MB PDF).
We've also recently updated research to better understand the risks and hazards associated with climate change locally.
See our District Plan for more information about how climate change risks will be considered in future planning decisions for Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington.
Next steps
The Community Adaptation Planning Programme (CAPP), led by Wellington City Council, aims to proactively address climate change impacts in the city’s highest-risk areas, ensuring resilience and sustainability over the next 100 years.
In addition, a regional approach will be undertaken, collaborating with other local authorities, mana whenua, and the Central Government to ensure a consistent adaptation strategy. This will be integrated into the Regional Growth Framework. The initial stage involves assessing the impacts to develop a regional adaptation plan.
What the Government is doing to support adaptation
The National Adaptation Plan sets out how Aotearoa New Zealand can adapt to the impacts of climate change, and is a response to the National Climate Change Risk Assessment. The legislation and the plan will be key to providing local authorities with the powers and guidance necessary to ensure a robust response.
Visit the Ministry for the Environment website to find out more about climate change adaptation at the national level.
What you can do
As our plan for adaptation evolves, Wellingtonians will have a chance to share their ideas and give feedback.
Your voice will be essential throughout this process so make sure you sign up to Kōrero Mai Let's Talk to receive notifications.
Visit Action area: Wellington City Council