Midday Report

News from the business sector

As Auckland cleans up, ideas about how to cope with increasingly intense rainfall have been pouring in.

Experts have been calling for - for example - a so-called sponge city to soak up water using wetlands, porous cement and green rooves; basics such as making sure pumping stations are waterproof so the electrics don't fry again; and just not rebuilding homes and infrastructure in flood-prone places.

Canterbury University political science professor Bronwyn Hayward co-led the cities and infrastructure chapter of last year's IPCC report and focuses on harnessing community ideas...

A waterlogged Auckland will this afternoon find out whether its local state of emergency will be extended. (NB: it has been extended)

As at 8 am, building assessors had issued 209 red, 1085 yellow, and 1901 white placards. 

Renters are worried they'll also be competing against homeowners needing to move out for repairs. 

The Auckland Property Investors Association has already warned rents will likely increase.

Community organisations and the Green Party want a six-month rent freeze in Auckland, to allow flood-affected people to get back on their feet.

Auckland Central MP Chlöe Swarbrick spoke to Max Towle.

MetService has issued severe weather warnings for heavy rain in Western Bay of Plenty, Tauranga, and south Westland today.

There are also heavy rain watches for parts of Northland, Auckland, Coromandel, Taranaki, and Fiordland.

MetService meteorologist Lewis Ferris spoke to Māni Dunlop.

Residents living along the banks of the Waimoko Stream in Swanson, West Auckland, say they need to be urgently zoned for managed retreat.

Homes have been red and yellow stickered after being severely flooded when the stream rose rapidly last Friday. 

The same properties were also swamped in August 2021. The MP for Te Atatu Phil Twyford commissioned a report to find out why the stream had come up so quickly. 

The former Waitakere District Council stormwater manager Tony Miguel is now a consultant and was the co-author of the report for Mr Twyford. 

He spoke to Māni Dunlop about the possible next steps.

News from the rural farming sector

Midday sports News for 2 February New Zealand football's preferred candidate for the All Whites coaching job has rejected the offer.

News from the business sector

As things start ramping up in the North with Waitangi commemorations soon underway - dozens gathered at a significant, but nationally less known site to remember a key battle in the New Zealand wars.

Earlier this week, officials declared a pre-emptive state of emergency amid heavy rain, risking event cancellations - but the region escaped the worst of the weather, and everything's going ahead as planned. 

State Highway One from the Brynderwyns to Waipu is closed until further notice - meaning a detour is in place - making the route north much longer than usual for those hoping to head up. 

The chair of the Waitangi National Trust Board Pita Tipene spoke to Māni Dunlop.

Some West Auckland residents whose properties have repeatedly flooded say their homes should not be repaired or rebuilt - and they should get compensation to buy somewhere else. 

Residents say the normally placid Waimoko Stream running through their backyards rose at least two metres above the top of the riverbank in just 20 minutes last Friday. 

They say the water then receded just as quickly, leaving a foul-smelling sludge through the homes. 

Derek Judge has been living near the intersection of Candia and Pooks Roads for 12 years, and he told Māni Dunlop people should not live on those flood-prone properties any longer.