Coasts

Latest news

Small sea-level rises to drive more intense flooding, say scientists

Media Release
14 April 2020
A little can mean a lot – especially when it comes to the relationship between sea level rise and coastal flooding.

New reports highlight flood risk under climate change

Media Release
21 August 2019
Two reports released today by NIWA and the Deep South National Science Challenge reveal new information about how many New Zealanders, how many buildings and how much infrastructure could be affected by extreme river and coastal flooding from storms and sea-level rise.

When the sea gives back – a story of luck and decency

Media Release
15 May 2017

NIWA puts a lot of things in the ocean—instruments tied to moorings, floats that dive up and down measuring what’s going on in the water, and video cameras that monitor fish.

Massive mudslides in Kaikōura Canyon destroy seabed life

Media Release
27 February 2017

Huge mudslides from November’s earthquakes have wiped out all organisms living in the seabed of the Kaikōura Canyon.

 

Our work

Aquaculture-environment interactions

Coastal aquaculture provides one of New Zealand’s biggest opportunities to generate new wealth from the primary production sector.

Historical changes in juvenile fish habitats

NIWA is looking for people who have had a long association with the Hauraki Gulf or Marlborough Sounds to help them with a research project on juvenile fish habitats.

Coastal adaptation to climate change

NIWA is developing guidelines and advice to help coastal communities adapt to climate change.

Plastic pollution processes in rivers

Most of the plastic in the ocean originates on land, being carried to the estuaries and coasts by rivers. Managing this plastic on land before it reaches the river could be the key to stemming the tide of marine-bound plastics. The aim of this project is to understand the sources and fate of plastic pollution carried by urban rivers using the Kaiwharawhara Stream as a case study.
 

Latest videos

Shifting Sands - Tsunami hazard off Kaikoura, NZ

Shifting Sands

Dr Joshu Mountjoy discusses NIWA's work in assessing the tsunami hazard just south of Kaikoura. 

Find out more about this research. 

Antarctic Coastal Marine Life in a Changing Climate

Antarctic Coastal Marine Life in a Changing Climate

NIWA marine ecologist Dr Vonda Cummings discusses the likely effects of climate change on marine invertebrates living on the seafloor of the Ross Sea coast.

Next Stop Antarctica

Next Stop Antarctica

Our Far South is an expedition that aims to raise New Zealanders' awareness of the area south of Stewart Island. Gareth Morgan, Te Radar, scientists and 50 everyday Kiwis are onboard to learn and then share their experience. This is the first video produced by them, showing some of the highlights of the trip so far.

 

Compact weather station - NIWA Tier2

A low-cost weather station for gathering accurate weather data. Wind speed and direction, air temperature, relative humidity, barometric pressure and rainfall data can be accessed from a server, via the internet.

Smart Rain Intensity Gauge - NIWA SRIG

This measures rain by the drop as well as by the tradional 'tip'. We can configure it either with an SDI12 serial data interface or an integral logger with cellular communications.

Salinity Buoy - NIWA SB1

A self-contained telemetered inshore buoy capable of being equipped with a wide range of marine sensors.

Estuarine water quality: the CLUES estuary tool

Many of New Zealand's rivers fail to meet national guidelines for nutrient levels. NIWA has developed the Catchment Land Use & Environmental Sustainability (CLUES) estuary tool to predict the effects of land use on estuarine nutrient concentrations.

Coastal adaptation to climate change

NIWA is developing guidelines and advice to help coastal communities adapt to climate change.

Wave and storm-surge projections (WASP)

NIWA is working on a ministry-funded project to produce a model, validated by 40 years of historic data, to project future wave and storm surges off the coast for two climate change scenarios.

Sustainable Aquaculture - Key Outcomes to June 2009

Here we provide a detailed summary of key outcomes from the Sustainable Aquaculture programme to 30 June 2009.

Coasts Update 02, September 2010

In this issue we bring you news of recently completed research on: Tauranga Harbour sediments, the Separation Point fishing exclusion zone, the Bay of Islands Coastal Survey, and mapping coastal environmental values.

Beach Profile Analysis Toolbox

NIWA’s Beach Profile Analysis Toolbox (BPAT) has been developed to provide an easy to use, integrated package for the input, quality checking, analysis and archiving of beach datasets.

High Performance Computing Facility

The High Performance Computing Facility (HPCF) is supercharging New Zealand science—powering scientists working at the forefront of New Zealand’s greatest science challenges.

Summer Series 8: The science of sand

For many of us, summer isn’t summer without getting some sand between our toes. But did you ever wonder what that sand is made of, and how it got there?

Background

About tidal energy in the Cook Straight.

Our quality management system

Our Quality Management System is our commitment to quality, productivity, consistency and customer satisfaction.

NIWA holds ISO9001:2008 certification.

About Instrument Systems

The Instrument Systems group is located at NIWA in Christchurch, New Zealand. Our 16 staff have a diverse range of technical, engineering and science skills, and we have extended capability from being part of a wider team.

Training

We provide training in the use and maintenance of our instruments, software and data collection systems.

Service contracts

We offer service contracts to minimize downtime if an instrument fails. We keep a full range of spares in our Christchurch store and can courier a spare to the contract holder on receiving a request.

Evaluation

We evaluate new products to ensure that they're 'fit for purpose' before we approve them for widespread use.

Calibration

We calibrate environmental sensors, at our Christchurch laboratory, using reference instruments that are themselves calibrated to traceable standards by an independent organization.

Pages

 

All staff working on this subject

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Dr Michael Allis

Coastal Engineer
Email Dr Michael Allis
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Dr Tara Anderson

Marine Ecologist
Email Dr Tara Anderson

Dr Rob Bell

Principal Scientist - Coastal and Estuarine Physical Processes
Email Dr Rob Bell
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Dr Jaret Bilewitch

Molecular Biologist
Email Dr Jaret Bilewitch
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Dr Cyprien Bosserelle

Hydrodynamics Modeller
Email Dr Cyprien Bosserelle

Dr Niall Broekhuizen

Principal Scientist - Ecosystem Modelling
Email Dr Niall Broekhuizen
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Dr Richard Gorman

Coastal and Estuarine Physical Processes Scientist
Email Dr Richard Gorman

Dr Rachel Hale

Marine Ecologist
Email Dr Rachel Hale

Dr Sean Handley

Marine Biologist
Email Dr Sean Handley

Dr Emily Lane

Hydrodynamics Scientist
Email Dr Emily Lane
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Dr Drew Lohrer

Principal Scientist - Marine Ecology
Email Dr Drew Lohrer

Dr Alison MacDiarmid

Senior Regional Manager - Wellington
Email Dr Alison MacDiarmid

Dr Joshu Mountjoy

Marine Geologist
Email Dr Joshu Mountjoy
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Dr Darren Parsons

Marine Ecologist
Email Dr Darren Parsons
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Dr Rachael Peart

Marine Invertebrate Systematist
Email Dr Rachael Peart

Dr Ashley Rowden

Principal Scientist - Marine Ecology
Email Dr Ashley Rowden

Dr Alexandre Schimel

Fisheries Acoustics Scientist
Email Dr Alexandre Schimel

Dr Kareen Schnabel

Marine Biologist
Email Dr Kareen Schnabel
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Dr Fabrice Stephenson

Marine Ecological Modeller
Email Dr Fabrice Stephenson
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Dr Philip Sutton

Physical Oceanographer
Email Dr Philip Sutton

Dr Andrew Swales

Principal Scientist - Coastal and Estuarine Physical Processes
Email Dr Andrew Swales
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Dr Leigh Tait

Marine Biologist (Biosecurity)
Email Dr Leigh Tait
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Dr Shaun Williams

Hazard Analyst
Email Dr Shaun Williams

Dr Chris Woods

Marine Ecologist
Email Dr Chris Woods
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Chris Eager

Coastal Technician
Email Chris Eager
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Barry Greenfield

Marine Ecology Technician
Email Barry Greenfield

Richard Measures

Hydrodynamics Scientist
Email Richard Measures
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Keith Michael

Fisheries Scientist
Email Keith Michael
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Andrew Miller

Marine Ecology Technician
Email Andrew Miller

Arne Pallentin

Principal Technician - Marine Geology
Email Arne Pallentin
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