“We must capture knowledge and learn from this experience if we are to build resilience in the face of future emergencies and extreme weather events.”
Those were the words of Research, Science & Innovation Minister Ayesha Verrall when she spoke about the nearly $11 million that was made available for urgent research and science services aimed at supporting New Zealand’s response and recovery in the wake of the recent extreme weather events in the country.
“There is a high demand for evidence to address immediate needs and inform recovery decisions following devastating weather events such as Cyclone Gabrielle,” said Verrall.
“To help with the response and recovery, we have set aside funding to support a wide range of research and science activities, such as assessing the risk of stop bank damage, monitoring air and water quality, and advanced mapping of the landscape changes.”
It was cited that, of the funding, $5.76 million has so far been allocated. Nine research institutes have been granted monetary backing for their projects. A portion of the sum is also provided to Māori communities.
Among those awarded financial support is GNS Science, which takes about $1.7 million of the pie.
“Before the events occurred, GNS was providing forecasts of landslide probabilities and impacts (on residential housing, state highways, and railways) to NEMA (National Emergency Management Agency) using NIWA (National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research) rainfall forecasts, delivered via RiskScapeTM modelling,” noted the Crown research institute.
“Immediately after the events, our teams undertook rapid assessments of landslide damage from Northland to Wairarapa and provided near real-time information to emergency management and infrastructure providers. We hindcasted the landslide risk models using MetService actual rainfall data to target areas for rapid reconnaissance. GNS provided advice using a response framework based on the Co-ordinated Incident Management System.
“As the regions transition into recovery, we are providing advice on the contamination of drinking water boreholes (in collaboration with [the Institute of Environmental Science and Research]) and stability of landslide dams and landslide impacted areas to local authorities. We are mapping (with our University of Canterbury, Auckland University, and Manaaki Whenua partners) landslides using remotely sensed data and making the maps available to inform decision-making.”
Meanwhile, GNS-hosted Resilience to Nature’s Challenges separately got $84,863 in funding for its coastal mapping project.
“Through the Resilience to Nature’s Challenges National Science Challenge, hosted by GNS, rapid science is being co-ordinated across the sector to support national and regional recovery,” highlighted GNS. “This includes developing summaries of key lessons for different stages of recovery management and assessing the impact of the extreme weather on coastal areas (the latter work undertaken by University of Auckland).
“With NIWA, we are co-leading the accelerated development of a RiskScape user interface to enable agencies and researchers access to standardised and regularly updated risk models and information. With Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research and NIWA, we are rapidly developing a data portal for sharing science information related to the response.”
Verrall couldn’t be happier about the ongoing collaboration.
“While we are allocating funding to the most urgent and potentially impactful projects, I am pleased to see many science organisations, institutions, and researchers re-prioritising their existing funding to support research and science activities relevant to the response,” she declared. “I know that the sector will continue to be flexible to changing needs and demands as our communities recover.
“Once again the science community has come together during an emergency, just like it did to support the COVID-19 response. It’s encouraging to see the science community working together and being so responsive to the needs of New Zealand. This is how a well-functioning research, science, and innovation system can work.”
Earlier this year, Tower Limited chief executive Blair Turnbull pointed to the need, as a country, to adapt and protect Kiwi communities.
“Tower has been advocating for greater transparency around risks for several years now,” asserted the CEO. “When we launched our flood risk tool in late 2021, we wrote to relevant Ministers as well as every council and MP in the country offering to share our model and insights into their communities’ flood risks…
“In the wake of the Auckland and Upper North Island event and Cyclone Gabrielle, this offer remains open… as we add coastal erosion and inundation, as well as landslide risks, to our model. Tower is committed to acting in the public interest, doing what we can to help inform good decision-making and building back better.”
What do you think about science’s role in New Zealand’s extreme weather response and recovery? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
