Extreme Weather Events

Climate change is making extreme weather events more powerful and more frequent.

Climate change is fueling extreme weather events, such as those leading to floods and slips in Auckland and Tairāwhiti, storms in Westport and Nelson, and droughts across the country. The outlook is clear for Aotearoa New Zealand: stronger cyclones, hotter heatwaves, more frequent droughts and wildfires, and increasingly serious flooding — sometimes one on top of the other.

Extreme weather events cause loss and damage to te taiao (environment) and people. They can make some of our taonga (treasured) species disappear locally and drive large die-offs of plants and animals on our whenua (land), in our awa (rivers), and our moana (ocean), endangering our unique ecosystems. Extreme weather events also threaten us: our safety and security, the places we live and play, our livelihoods and economy, and our wellbeing.

As our weather events become more extreme, turning into droughts, floods, and wildfires more often, there will be less time for te taiao and our communities to recover between events.

Stronger cyclones

Tropical cyclones in the South Pacific are happening less often, but when they do, they're much more powerful. This is because  they draw their energy from warm ocean waters .

Hotter heatwaves

 Eight out of the 10 warmest years ever recorded  in Aotearoa have been within the last decade. Rising temperatures directly contribute to worsening both air and marine heatwaves. That means more scorching hot days, in more places, over longer period of time. For more information see the link below.

Frequent droughts and floods

Higher temperatures and lack of rain lead to drier conditions and more frequent droughts in some parts of Aotearoa. Regions of Aotearoa that have historically received a lot of rain will by contrast become even wetter. Both will significantly impact our primary industries.

Increasing wildfire risk

Wildfires are growing in number, size, and ferocity in many parts of Aotearoa.

Working with nature