“We are pleased with and support Treasury and MBIE’s review of weather forecasting announced by Minister Webb.
We believe that it’s time, for all the reasons mentioned in the Minister’s statement and the terms of reference for the review, to take a broader look at the combined capabilities of NIWA and MetService, and consider how they might deliver better outcomes for New Zealand, which could include putting the organisations back together again.
As the nation builds its resilience to a changing climate, particularly in the face of increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather, it makes sense to integrate climate and weather research with short, medium and long-term forecasting. This would enable better prediction of impacts, such as floods and drought, coastal inundation and erosion, and forest fires, thereby improving adaptation, mitigation, response, and recovery.
We look forward to the outcome of the review.”
NIWA Chief Executive John Morgan