Research collaboration works towards timely coastal flood adaptation
A research collaboration between Victoria University of Wellington and NIWA is working towards a better method for adapting to coastal flooding as sea levels continue to rise due to climate change.
The research, published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, outlines a system of “signals” and “triggers” that will warn communities when to act to avoid flooding from sea-level rise.
This new research is part of a project led by Dr Judy Lawrence from Victoria University of Wellington’s Climate Change Research Institute, with NIWA and Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research.
Dr Scott Stephens and Dr Rob Bell at NIWA with Dr Lawrence have designed a system for monitoring how frequently storm tides will flood coastal areas on the back of rising sea level. It uses sea-level measurements to date and sea-level rise projections to better pinpoint when storm-tide flooding events will occur too often. The researchers say their system covers a range of scenarios to allow communities to plan ahead to avoid and minimise flooding damage by adapting well before flooding damages affect them.
The researchers are also working on signals and triggers that reflect social, economic, and cultural aspects of flooding as they develop the system further.
“The need for planning to avoid coastal flooding is urgent,” says Dr Stephens. “Our research will help communities to take adaptive action before flooding from rising seas becomes unbearable.”
“The next step is to work with councils and communities directly to apply our method,” says Dr Lawrence. “Housing and infrastructure decisions that are being made now will be impacted by climate change-related coastal flooding, so it is important for communities to be able to consider different coastal flooding scenarios in their planning processes.”
This research contributes to the Deep South Challenge Project ‘Supporting Decision Making in a Changing Climate: Tools and Supporting Measures’. This project is led by Dr Lawrence with Dr Bell and Dr Stephens, as well as Dr Paula Blackett and Dr Daniel Collins from NIWA, and Dr Nick Cradock-Henry at Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research. The research group is also working with Deltares research institute in the Netherlands, who are undertaking complementary research with the Dutch Delta Commission and for sites in Florida. Further papers on this research will be published over the coming year, and the latest paper can be read here.