Climate change is already affecting New Zealand.
The national average temperature has risen 0.9˚C over the past century.
The effects that have already been measured by the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) include:
The effects that have already been measured by the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) include:
- fewer frosts in areas like Canterbury and Marlborough
- retreat of South Island glaciers – ice volume in the Southern Alps is down 11% in the past 30 years
- rise in sea level by 16cm – average rise over the four major ports in the past 100 years
- rise in insurance industry levies to cover the costs of increased incidence of extreme weather events such as floods
Future Threats
Over the next 30 – 100 years, temperatures will continue to rise. In the future, projected impacts include:- more droughts: for areas like the East Cape and Northland, climate change means increased droughts
- more floods: for other areas, particularly the West Coast, it means increased extreme rainfall
- greater erosion – and possibly inundation– of coastal areas
- introduction of new pests and disease, affecting both health and agriculture.
