I welcome the Government’s weekend announcement of $5 million for a rain radar for our region. Councils’ Principal Hydrologist Martin Doyle has long sought this technology to help manage the devastating weather events that are hitting us too frequently.
I have been lobbying Government for this investment for years, repeatedly raising it with Ministers and the media. My most recent plug was when briefing Prime Minister Christopher Luxon by phone last week. It is to his credit that he made it happen so quickly. This funding enables procurement to start immediately. It will be operational early 2027.
MetService currently has six rain radars in the North Island and four in the South Island. The Wellington radar is 125km away but shadowed by the Marlborough Sounds and Richmond Ranges. The next closest is in Westland, 300km away. Our councils installed a cheap second-hand marine radar at Māpua in 2023 out of frustration at having the worst coverage in the country.
The topography of our region with so many valleys means each can be affected differently during weather events. Torrential rain hit the central city in May, Motueka Valley in June and Tadmor and Wai-iti in July. The data from river flow gauges comes too late, as by then people are already flooded.
This rain radar will provide better information for mayors and emergency staff making crucial decisions such as when to declare states of emergency, when to activate mobile phone emergency alerts and where to deploy emergency services and contractors. The radar will also help farmers, businesses, householders and recreationalists make better decisions during bad weather.
There is so much to do in the wake of these devastating storms. Infrastructure needs fixing. Families and farmers need financial and practical help to clean up. Flattened forests will need to be cleared. We also need to improve the resilience of our highways such as Rocks Road and strengthen our flood protection, such as the work we have announced for the Maitai River.
There is no panacea to these storms, but the rain radar will help keep people safe and reduce harm.
