Coasts

Latest news

New research shows that in some cases, lifting houses may be a cost-effective way to reduce intermittent flooding risk.
Long-term protection of Otago’s coastal habitats took a step closer to reality after more than 100 marine Significant Ecological Areas (SEA) were identified as part of a research project led by NIWA.
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.
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.

Latest videos

Dive into the alien world of plankton in the Ross Sea

Plankton are the base of the oceans food web and are vital to our survival. But as our world changes will they be able to continue to play this essential role? Join us as we follow a group of NIWA scientists investigating various aspects of this question in the ocean around Antarctica.

Shifting Sands - Tsunami hazard off Kaikoura, NZ

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

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.

These organisms have evolved in a very stable environment and are adapted to an extremely narrow range of sea conditions. Relatively large increases in sea temperatures and acidity predicted by the end of this century may outstrip their ability to adapt. Laboratory experiments with common Antarctic shellfish suggest that predicted increases in ocean acidity may threaten shellfish populations. 

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.


The right time to focus on coasts & oceans

Ocean colour helps fishers

Monitoring Auckland's intertidal zones

A research vessel for all seasons

Vessels rise to Argo challenge

Tide advice for rescue centre

Picture perfect for port

Sounds surveyed

How green's the bay?

Big marine farm zone; small effect

Free workshop coming up

Marine Environment Classification launched

Building better offshore mussel farms

Where are the offshore minerals?

Modelling aquaculture effects in the Firth of Thames

To San Diego, via Chile

Habitat map for taiapure

When paua seek a home

Hear world experts on seafloor mapping

Ocean Survey 20/20 gets underway

What happens to nutrients in estuaries?

Sophisticated sonar for marine habitat mapping

Ashley Estuary in good shape

Bounty and Antipodes Islands surveyed

Up until November 2008, this was a joint quarterly update from the National Centre for Coasts and the National Centre for Oceans. The publication facilitates public, industry, and governmental access to NIWA's expertise and knowledge in coastal and ocean research.

Better tools mean improved knowledge and services

Smart buoy for coastal monitoring

A flexible way to model sediment dispersal

Getting intimate with aquatic sediments

GeoEel sees beneath the seafloor

Verifying the wave model
The results from the model hindcast have been compared with data from wave buoys deployed at various times in the past at several sites around New Zealand (shown below).

Foveaux Strait Buoy
This was located in 100 m water depth. Model results were corrected for the effects of limited fetch to the coast before comparison with the data (shown below, click to enlarge).

Mangawhai Buoy
This was located in 30 m water depth, in a site sheltered by surrounding land, and affected by refraction of waves over the seabed topography the variable depth.

NIWA coordinates a network of remote video cameras, called Cam-Era, which regularly monitors coastal and river behaviour in real-time.

Sumatra tsunami recorded at 1-minute sampling intervals at 9 sites:
a) Date/time in NZ Standard Time (UTC+12), with earthquake (EQ) time shown.
b) Elapsed time in hours since the earthquake occurred.

Sumatra tsunami recorded at 5-minute sampling intervals at 19 sites:
a) Date/time in NZ Standard Time (UTC+12), with earthquake (EQ) time shown.
b) Elapsed time in hours since the earthquake occurred.

Tsunami run-up height reached up to 12 m in Khao Lak (Thailand) as shown by damage to tiles on roof.

Solar semidiurnal tide (S2) as an animation.

Waves from Satellites
Waves are available from a number of satellite sensors, including radar altimeters and synthetic aperture radar (SAR).

A radar altimeter aims a narrow beam directly downwards. From the spread in the return signal, the wave height can be measured.

Solar Semidiurnal Tide (S2)
Tidal and surface currents - besides tidal height, the NIWA tide model of New Zealand's EEZ also produces tidal currents. For the first time, a detailed overall picture has emerged of the strength (speed) and direction of tidal flows on the continental shelf and around various islands, headlands and straits.
Diurnal Tide (K1)

Hazard planning, awareness and building resilient communities

Sea level on the move?
Effect of global warming
Educational CD-ROM “New Zealand’s Sandy Coasts”
Coastal & Storm Hazards Workshop

Sea level on the move?

Long-term sea level varies at timescales of years, decades and centuries. Before the long-term trend in sea-level rise can be obtained from any sea-level record, we must understand the fluctuations that occur over years and decades. The longest sea-level record in New Zealand is from the Port of Auckland (click to see accompanying figure).

Foveaux Strait M2 Tidal Component

This animation shows the chief tidal current in Foveaux Strait. Tidal currents on the west coast of Stewart Island are small, but around the northern and southern coasts of the island and in Bluff Harbour and Oreti Estuary there are strong tidal currents. Overall currents (not shown here) in Foveaux Strait however, are strongly wind-driven with the prevailing wind being from the west. The Southland current, which carries water from the subtropical convergence west of New Zealand, flows through Foveaux Strait.

Cook Strait M2 Tidal Component

Currents in the Cook Strait are made up of many different components, chiefly the tidal and storm driven currents.

The tidal current shown here is the main component of currents around Banks Peninsula.

The study team is interdisciplinary and includes sedimentologists, physicists, oceanographers, and modellers working on a range of research projects within the programme.
Publications from the physical hazards team.

New Zealand's icy visitors - past and present

New Zealand's icy visitors - past and present

Scour marks of the seabed were probably made by an iceberg measuring between 2 and 5 km long.

November saw some unusual visitors to New Zealand waters, with several icebergs reaching the South Island’s east coast. NIWA oceanographer Dr Mike Williams estimated that the bergs probably came from the Ronne Ice Shelf on the other side of Antarctica.

Estuary health check

Estuary health check
Scientists from NIWA and Canterbury University are developing a diagnostic toolkit to assess the health of the Avon-Heathcote Estuary before and after a new wastewater outfall is installed.
Treated wastewater has been discharged into the estuary for about 40 years. The high levels of nutrients it contains may be responsible for problem blooms of sea lettuce in summer.

Customary Coastal Management Workshop

Customary Coastal Management Workshop

Karengo harvest at Mahia. (Photo: Sheryl Miller, NIWA)

21–22 June, Te Papa, Wellington.
NIWA’s National Centres for Coasts & Oceans and Fisheries & Aquaculture will host a workshop to highlight how increased scientific knowledge can advance customary management of the coastal environment.
Increasingly, iwi and managers of taiapure and mātaitai (traditional fishing grounds) have regulatory responsibilities for customary management of the coastal environment and kaimoana resources.

A flexible way to model sediment dispersal

A flexible way to model sediment dispersal

Water depth in the Middle Waitemata Harbour, represented on a flexible grid.

NIWA has recently upgraded its modelling software for simulating the dispersal of sediments and contaminants in coastal waters.
The new software represents water depth on a ‘flexible grid’. This allows the user to zoom in on water flow and sediment transport in areas that are complicated or of particular interest, such as valuable habitats or near stormwater discharges.

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All staff working on this subject

Coastal Marine Ecologist
Principal Scientist - Ecosystem Modelling
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Hazard and Risk Analyst
Principal Scientist - Marine Ecology
Principal Scientist - Natural Hazards and Hydrodynamics
Strategy Manager - Coasts & Estuaries
Principal Scientist - Marine Ecology
Senior Regional Manager - Wellington
Strategy Manager - Oceans
Principal Scientist - Marine Geology
Principal Scientist - Marine Ecology
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Marine Invertebrate Systematist
Coastal and Estuarine Physical Processes Scientist
Principal Scientist - Marine Ecology
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Physical Oceanographer
Principal Scientist - Coastal and Estuarine Physical Processes
Fisheries Scientist
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Marine Ecology Technician
Marine Geologist, Marine Data Manager
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