By Erin Bradnock, Local Democracy Reporter
Nelson Airport’s exposure to sea level rise has been highlighted after new data shows it could happen at twice the rate previously expected.
Nelson Airport. Photo: Supplied/ Local Democracy Reporting – Nelson Weekly file.
Nelson Airport’s chief executive says it is “reassessing” its coastal inundation plan following the release of the data detailing what could be expected from sea level rises and land subsidence.
The recent calculations show sea levels are rising twice as fast as previously thought in some parts of Aotearoa, with Richmond and surrounding Nelson areas projected to subside at a rate of 5mm a year.
The information comes from a new programme which has input from dozens of local and international scientists, called NZ SeaRise.
Victoria University of Wellington professor and NZ SeaRise programme co-leader Tim Naish singled out Nelson Airport and Richmond as areas of concern early last week.
“That whole area there has been a lot of development, new subdivisions, housing … the airport is very exposed, and that road around [the coast to Richmond] is vulnerable,” he said.
Nelson Airport chief executive Mark Thompson said the impact of sea-level rise in the area had been on their radar for “a while”.
“This latest information just exasperates the speed of change,” he said.
The airport had commissioned an internal report of coastal inundation impacts through Tonkin & Taylor which he said will need to be reassessed in light of this new data.
“Now we’ve got to reassess things if we’re sinking as well as experiencing rising sea levels.”
Actions outlined to mitigate the risk of future flooding include deepening a pond connected to neighbouring waterway Jenkins Creek.
During a storm in early 2018, Jenkins Creek rose and flooded the airport’s car park during a king tide. This was while the airport’s $32 million raised terminal build was under construction.
Thompson said they are still in the planning stage in terms of deepening the Jenkins Creek pond and other mitigation proposals.
“How we mitigate this, it’s a challenge for all of Aotearoa, there’s a whole lot of levers to pull,” he said.
He maintained that the terminal build and runways are not areas of risk and the airport’s proposed runway extension, which is currently out for public consultation, would be “carefully planned” around this sea-level rise scenario.
And he said they are confident the airport was “here to stay”, despite the release of the alarming data.
“As you can imagine this is new information and we’ve got to take a breath, digest it and be sure our planning aligns with it,” he said.
Local Democracy Reporting is Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air
Copyright © 2022, Radio New Zealand
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