Feedback on the Draft Coastal Hazards Plan Change (PC12) closed on 13 May 2022.

The Council is proposing to notify the Coastal Hazards Draft Plan Change in 2024.

Coastal hazards were to be considered as a Qualifying Matter as part of the Housing and Business Choice Plan Change PC14(external link), but Christchurch City Council voted against notifying the proposed plan change at its 8 September 2022 meeting (reconvened on 13 September 2022).

Check the Housing and Business Choice Plan Change (PC14)(external link) page for the latest information.

Read the Draft Coastal Hazards Plan Change consultation document [PDF, 1.4 MB].

Christchurch is more exposed to coastal hazards than any other metropolitan area in New Zealand, including Auckland and Wellington. Across the Christchurch District, approximately 25,000 properties are exposed to coastal hazards risks over the next 120 years. The National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) estimates that with 1 metre of sea-level rise, the replacement value of buildings is approximately $6.7 billion, the majority of which are residential properties.

As a region, Canterbury has around $1 billion of local government-owned infrastructure exposed to coastal hazards, the majority of which is in Christchurch.

We need to make changes to our District Plan to avoid subdivision, development, and land use being exposed to an increased risk of harm from coastal hazards such as flooding, tsunami, and erosion. We also need to ensure we’re meeting our statutory responsibilities to implement national and regional direction in the New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement and the Regional Policy Statement.

Coastal hazards were included as part of the notified District Plan review in 2014/2015. However, the Canterbury Earthquake (Christchurch Replacement District Plan) Order in Council 2015 recognised that coastal hazards were not a recovery matter that required an expedited process. The amendment removed coastal hazard provisions from the District Plan review and directed that the Council address this matter separately and as soon as practicable.

The current District Plan does not define the full extent of areas at risk of coastal hazards and only manages some activities in defined areas. Instead, it relies on the more generic Natural Hazards objective 3.3.6 and policies with activities only managed within areas defined as Flood Management Areas (FMA) and High Flood Hazard Management Areas (HFHMA).

For these areas, there are rules to manage subdivision, development, and land use over and above some legacy provisions from the Christchurch City Plan and Banks Peninsula District Plan. These gaps mean we aren’t effectively managing risks, and development could occur without appropriate controls in place to minimise risk.

What we're proposing

This proposed plan change sets out a risk-based approach that involves managing activities according to the level of risk in that location, acknowledging the uncertainty (of when land may be affected by rising sea levels) and the vulnerability of the activity to risk. It reflects the approach taken to other hazards in the District Plan and is consistent with international risk management best practices.

The proposed plan change gives effect to the Resource Management Act’s purpose of enabling people and communities to provide for their social, economic, and cultural well-being and for their health and safety.

It recognises that the level of risk is not the same in every location and enables a responsive approach to the management of subdivision, development and land use within areas of potential coastal hazards.

This proposed plan change has been shaped by community feedback. From 8 October to 6 December 2021 we engaged on an Issues and Options Paper for the Coastal Hazards Plan Change. Read the consultation report and feedback received.

The objectives we are seeking to achieve from this Plan Change reflect those from the Resource Management Act, New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement and Regional Policy Statement:

  • Development, subdivision and land use do not increase the risk of coastal inundation, coastal erosion, rising groundwater or tsunami causing physical, social, economic or environmental harm.
  • Existing communities potentially affected by coastal hazards are able to continue to develop and use land, natural and physical resources where the risk of adverse effects from coastal hazards is not increased and the level of risk can be managed to an acceptable level.

The proposed plan change also introduces new policies, rules and methods.

Webinar recording and supplementary information

We held an online session about the Draft Coastal Hazards Plan Change as part of our feedback period:

More information

Other useful links