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A coastal suburb in Christchurch that was among the worst hit areas of the Canterbury earthquakes is at risk of losing insurance cover if a plan to amend the Christchurch District Plan pushes through, it has been alleged.
South Brighton Residents’ Association (SBRA) has opposed the removal of a key section from the district plan that it believes is crucial to maintaining the High Flood Hazard Management area in Christchurch. The removal of the section would, it believes, raise flood risk by allowing rebuilding at lower floor levels.
“If there is no protection against the future hazards, insurance cover and mortgages will become unavailable,” Hugo Kristinsson, chairman of SBRA, told Scoop. “We already have people living in containers, tiny houses and buses. If this trend continues, we will see a steady degradation in the standard of housing in coastal areas.”
Kristinsson claims that houses were allowed to be rebuilt based on future assessments on flood protection measures assumed by the city council. What’s more, Scoop reports the city council have apparently provided insurers with inaccurate maps that show a break in flood risk in South Brighton.
“In South Brighton, there have been repeated examples of regulations being completely ignored based on imaginary protection measures, such as a seawall and a stop bank,” said Kristinsson. “It is clear from our experience here that the authorities have no wish to learn anything.”
SBRA has written to Minister for Greater Christchurch Regeneration Megan Woods to oppose the amendment and call for engineered protection for the Brighton Peninsula to guard against flooding and erosion.
