Cyclone Recovery Minister Grant Robertson has laid out three categories for flood-affected properties to be assessed against, to determine whether they can be rebuilt or not.

The categories are low, managed and high risk. Low risk properties will be permitted to rebuild, while high risk ones will not. Properties in the managed risk category will require community or property-level interventions to manage future severe weather event risk, such as raising stop banks or improving drainage. More detail is provided in the table below.

Robertson said communities would be consulted before any decisions were made, and discussions would begin as soon as assessments and quality assurance had been completed.

“The Government’s intention is to complete assessments for low risk properties in Category One quickly so people in those homes can settle with their insurance companies and get on with their recovery. Decisions on properties in Categories Two and Three will take a bit longer – but will be completed as soon as they are possible.

“We know it is stressful for residents waiting to hear about the future of their properties and I want to assure people we are doing all we can to move through this process as quickly and effectively as we can.

“The worse thing would be for us to announce a property or community was in one category, only to change that shortly thereafter. We need to make the right decision not the quick one.”

The region’s mayors, however, are pleading for things to move more quickly and for attention to be paid to community sensitivities. They say a process and timeline for how Government will engage with those affected to inform them of which category they fall into, ought to be a priority.

To date, no one knew when consultation would begin, but Government had promised to involve communities, Hastings Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst said. “We are strongly advocating for meaningful consultation which gives every affected person the chance to be involved.”

Wairoa Mayor Craig Little pointed out that relocating communities after decisions had been made would not be easy, either. He noted the “hundreds of years of history in some locations; marae, urupa and generations of connection to their whenua. It will be the start of another long journey for those communities.” 

Central Hawke’s Bay Mayor Alex Walker said Government needed to get very clear on processes for those people who would not be allowed to rebuild. What would the future options for their land be, and how would the Government go about purchasing the land and determining the appropriate compensation?

The lack of details and timelines were causing stress for residents, Napier Mayor Kirsten Wise said. “They are desperate for information, and it’s information we can’t give them until Government makes its decisions, and the longer that process takes the more distressing it is for those living in limbo.”

Regional Council chair Hinewai Ormsby said people in the middle category, facing a rebuild only after flood protection systems could be strengthened, would face some difficult decisions.

“We want people to be safe in their homes, but the big challenge may be money. We want central government to invest alongside the region in strengthening and building our stop banks back better. If we aren’t supported to rebuild our flood protections systems better, then the reality is we won’t have enough money and the risk of Cyclone Gabrielle 2.0 is even greater,” she said.

Initial risk categories and definitions:

Category	Definitions	Examples
1	Repair to previous state is all that is required to manage future severe weather event risk.	Minor flood damage to repair but no need for significant redesign/retrofitting.
2C	Community level interventions are effective in managing future severe weather event risk.	Local government repairs and enhances flood protection schemes to adequately manage the risk of future flooding events in the face of climate change effects.
2P	Property level interventions are needed to manage future severe weather event risk, including in tandem with community level interventions.	Property specific measures are necessary e.g., improved drainage, raising houses is necessary. Benefits accrue to property owners but some may face affordability issues.
2A	Potential to fall within 2C/2P but significant further assessment required.	Interventions may be required / possible but insufficient information to provide initial categorisation (these may subsequently move between “2” categories or to categories 1 / 3).
3	Future severe weather event risk cannot be sufficiently mitigated. In some cases some current land uses may remain acceptable, while for others there is an intolerable risk of injury or death.	In the face of enhanced climate risks the property may face unacceptable risk of future flooding. Other property could be subject to unstable land that poses an ongoing risk.

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