Climate change

Climate change effects are accelerating, driving the need for actions informed by sound climate knowledge.

Climate change

NIWA is committed to providing the science needed to adapt to and mitigate climate change. By making informed choices now, we can reduce risks, maximise opportunities, foster climate resilience and work towards a carbon-neutral economy.

“The challenges of reducing our national greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to a changing climate are hugely important and affect all New Zealanders. The Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill provides the framework for responding to these challenges. NIWA’s role – providing research for evidence-based decision-making and science-based solutions to reduce emissions and adapt to our changing climate – is now more important than ever.”

Dr Andrew Tait, Chief Scientist, Climate, Atmosphere and Hazards

The latest climate change facts you need to know:

Latest news

A newly launched tool developed by NIWA and the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) to predict dryness and drought will help farmers and growers be better prepared for challenging weather conditions.
NIWA has launched a $5 million per year package of new projects aiming to tackle some of New Zealand’s most pressing challenges, including responding to and preparing for extreme weather events.
New maps from NIWA and the Deep South National Science Challenge show areas across Aotearoa New Zealand that could be inundated by extreme coastal flooding.
NIWA’s annual end-of-summer snowline survey has revealed continued loss of snow and ice for New Zealand’s famous glaciers.

Our work

MethaneSAT is New Zealand’s first official government-funded satellite mission. The core mission of this unique satellite is to support reductions in methane emissions around the world.
This research project aims to establish connections between weather and river flow forecasting, inundation prediction, and the associated risks to people and assets, using the RiskScape platform.

Latest videos

Our Climate is Changing

Our climate is changing - we need to act now.

Mā te haumaru ō nga puna wai ō Rākaihautū ka ora mo ake tonu: Increasing flood resilience across Aotearoa

This five-year NIWA-led research programme is developing a system to map flood hazard consistently across the whole country. It will reveal how our flood risk might change over the next 100 years because of changes to rainfall and sea level from climate change, as well as due to land-use changes. Find out more.

Glacier melt: A Time Capsule

Since 2016 enough ice has melted from the South Island’s Brewster Glacier to meet the drinking water needs of all New Zealanders for three years.

Our Climate is Changing

Our climate is changing - we need to act now.

2023: New Zealand’s second warmest year on record
Rethinking the way we adapt to climate change and flooding.
How does exploring different perspectives shape the decisions that are made about how we adapt to climate change?
This research project aims to establish connections between weather and river flow forecasting, inundation prediction, and the associated risks to people and assets, using the RiskScape platform.
When it rains it pours – extreme weather.
In this activity, you will play NIWA's online serious game, Township Flood Challenge.
Welcome to the NIWA Township Flood Challenge game.
Temperatures around Aotearoa New Zealand are increasing, and not just on land. Amid a changing climate, significant marine heatwaves have impacted Aotearoa over the past decade and are expected to become more frequent and intense.
A newly launched tool developed by NIWA and the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) to predict dryness and drought will help farmers and growers be better prepared for challenging weather conditions.
NIWA has launched a $5 million per year package of new projects aiming to tackle some of New Zealand’s most pressing challenges, including responding to and preparing for extreme weather events.
The monthly NINO3.4 Index anomaly (in the central equatorial Pacific) at the end of July was 1.11 ˚C . At the same point during the developmental phase of strong past El Niño events , it was +1.35˚C in 2015, +1.31˚C in 1997, and +0.26˚C in 1982.

In the wake of Gabrielle

Cyclone Gabrielle unleashed torrential rain and record floods across Hawke's Bay and Tairāwhiti in the second week of February. In the days that followed, river flow experts and hazard scientists rushed to the region to capture vital data showing the full fury of the storm.
New maps from NIWA and the Deep South National Science Challenge show areas across Aotearoa New Zealand that could be inundated by extreme coastal flooding.
MethaneSAT is New Zealand’s first official government-funded satellite mission. The core mission of this unique satellite is to support reductions in methane emissions around the world.
Decisions about how we adapt to sea-level rise need to be based on information about our exposure to coastal flooding, both now and in the future after a period of rising sea levels.
NIWA’s annual end-of-summer snowline survey has revealed continued loss of snow and ice for New Zealand’s famous glaciers.
River flows in New Zealand have changed dramatically over the past 50 to 90 years as the climate has varied, a new study has found.
It has been a summer to remember, but not in a good way.
Scientists from the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) have returned from a six-week voyage to Antarctica.
A research project co-led by Blue Carbon Services and NIWA will aim to provide New Zealand’s first national estimate of natural kelp-carbon sequestration in the marine environment.
Mā te haumaru ō nga puna wai ō Rākaihautū ka ora mo ake tonu: Increasing flood resilience across Aotearoa

This five-year NIWA-led research programme is developing a system to map flood hazard consistently across the whole country. It will reveal how our flood risk might change over the next 100 years because of changes to rainfall and sea level from climate change, as well as due to land-use changes. Find out more.

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All staff working on this subject

Hydro-ecological Modeller
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Marine Ecologist - Quantitative Modeller
Atmospheric Modeller
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Hazard and Risk Analyst
Principal Scientist - Marine Ecology
Principal Scientist - Climate
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Marine Biogeochemistry Technician
Freshwater Fish Ecologist
Principal Scientist-Marine Biogeochemistry
Principal Scientist - Climate and Environmental Applications
Emeritus Researcher – Atmospheric Radiation
Principal Scientist - Carbon Chemistry and Modelling
Principal Scientist - Atmosphere and Climate
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NWP/CFD Modeller and Analyst
Surface Water - Groundwater Modeller
Coastal and Estuarine Physical Processes Scientist
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Marine Physics Modeller
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Climate Scientist
Greenhouse Gas Emissions Scientist
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