Wellington is a low-lying coastal city, already experiencing physical impacts from climate change in the form of more intense rainfall events, coastal storms, flooding in low-lying areas, and slips after heavy rain.
With many of our critical assets situated at or near sea level, the future functioning of our city depends on our infrastructure adapting and being resilient to climate change. Over time we will need to increase our resilience to water, by accommodating the water, reducing our vulnerability, or relocating infrastructure. For this we will need to embed climate resilience in urban planning.
Central and regional government policy settings
The Regional Policy Statement and District Plan currently discourage development in locations susceptible to high hazard risk, including inundation from sea level rise, unless there is a functional necessity to locate in those areas. Upcoming changes to the Resource Management Act will introduce new direction on managing natural hazard risks, including climate change. Further reform has been signalled for late 2025, where new planning law will seek to enable development while also adapting to the effects of climate change.
The Council’s role
The Council is embedding climate adaptation into a range of plans and strategies with a focus on our key physical risks. Preparing to withstand and adapt to climate change is a key priority of the 2024-2034 Long-term Plan (LTP) and the 2024 Infrastructure Strategy. The 2024 District Plan now also includes new rules to reduce future climate risks. In the coming year, integration of climate adaptation will continue with a focus on the Coastal Reserves Management Plan and the updated Spatial Plan.
Over time we will need to increase our resilience to water, by accommodating the water, reducing our vulnerability, or relocating infrastructure. For this we will need to embed climate resilience in urban planning.
Investing in infrastructure
While much attention has recently been focused on the supply of freshwater to the city, stormwater is also a key area of focus and investment, through our shared ownership of Wellington Water. Increased rainfall, flooding and sea level rise are putting more pressure on the city’s stormwater network.
There are already a number of areas around the city that are impacted by flooding in high rainfall events, this will be exacerbated by higher tides associated with sea level rise. The Wellington Water Stormwater Strategy outlines an approach for Sub-Catchment Management Plan.
Protecting resilience of assets
As a steep coastal city with many of our roads and other critical assets situated at or near sea level, the functioning of our city depends on adapting our infrastructure to be resilient to climate change. Our historical approach to protecting public coastal assets is to build seawalls but in the future the Council will explore natural solutions. One of our most at-risk assets is our roading network, particularly coastal roads. In the years ahead there may be locations where we will need to relocate or stop managing assets