NZ could face $19bn property loss from climate change

Climate change could damage or destroy more than 43,000 homes in New Zealand’s coastal cities, according to a leaked government report.

It estimates that increased flooding, violent storms and coastal erosion are likely to cause property losses estimated at around $19 billion, and affect more than 2,000 km of roads.

The areas that will be worst affected are Canterbury and Otago in the South Island and Hawke’s Bay, Wellington and Waikato in the North Island.