New Zealand is being warned it is not moving fast enough to prepare communities for the growing impacts of climate change.
New research from He Pou a Rangi, the Climate Change Commission, has raised concerns that the country’s climate adaptation efforts are failing to keep pace with increasing risks from extreme weather, flooding, coastal erosion and other climate-related hazards.
Jo Hendry from the Climate Change Commission says adaptation cannot be treated as a problem for future governments, with communities already confronting the consequences of a changing climate.
The warning shifts attention beyond reducing greenhouse gas emissions to how Aotearoa prepares for climate impacts that are already occurring or can no longer be avoided.
That includes decisions around infrastructure, housing, transport, water systems and where future development should take place, as well as how communities exposed to flooding and coastal hazards will be supported.
The issue carries particular significance for Māori communities, where climate impacts can threaten not only homes and infrastructure but whenua, marae, wāhi tapu, mahinga kai and connections between whānau and their rohe.
The Commission’s concerns come amid wider debate over the Government’s climate direction, including its decision to reject recommendations from the Commission on strengthening New Zealand’s emissions reduction targets.
While emissions reduction remains critical, the latest warning highlights another challenge facing policymakers: preparing Aotearoa for the climate change impacts that are already building.
The Commission says delaying adaptation risks leaving future governments, councils, iwi, businesses and households facing greater disruption and potentially much higher costs.
The message is increasingly urgent — planning for a changing climate needs to happen before the next disaster, rather than after it.
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