Paying for the reality of climate change

When it comes to damage from serious weather events, the days of big pay-outs to property owners are coming to an end

The 100-year floods are rolling in on a regular basis; the rain doesn't let up; no one wants a cliff-top property anymore.

Climate change is no longer just about things you can't see or touch. It's about running from rising water and bailing out the basement.

"I think there has been a lot of emphasis both in reporting and in people's understanding of climate change ... and the science behind that and how it's getting worse," says RNZ In Depth reporter Kate Newton.

"We're now starting to shift our focus because of these severe weather events that we're seeing more frequently, and at a greater level of severity, to what that actually means for us now, and the fact that climate change is no longer this far-off, distant prospect, but something that is affecting real people and real lives, at this very moment."

Today on The Detail we look at how we adapt to this new normal, and who will pay for it, after a report by an Independent Reference Group recommended essentially that the days of property buy-outs have a limited life.

The reference group included economists, iwi, bankers, insurance and local government representatives and was set up by the Ministry for the Environment.

Newton goes through the findings on climate mitigation and adaption, which she says are politically unpalatable, and extremely expensive.

"There's a whole lot that goes into it and every step of it is complex and every step of it is expensive. But we also need to remember that even if we do nothing, it's still expensive.

"I think the top estimates of costs involved with cyclone Gabrielle was $14.5 billion - it's a huge amount of money.

"But you're looking at things like, even just understanding where the risk is, and how severe that risk is, and how it might change in the future - it's a huge amount of work."

The government wants bipartisan support on decisions because future certainty is required but also, Newton points out, because of the bleak message it's likely to send - in the words of one critic: "you are on your own".…

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details