The reality of our situation is that climate change is quite literally on our shores now
Arena Williams (Te Aitanga-a-Mahaki, Ngai Tahu, Ngai Tuhoe) is the Labour MP for the Auckland electorate of Manurewa. She is a lawyer and mother of two. Stuart Smith is the National MP for the South Island electorate of Kaikoura. He is a former grape grower, winemaker and inducted as a Fellow of the New Zealand Winegrowers Board for services to the wine industry. OPINION: Floods, landslides, battering winds. If this type of damaging weather becomes more frequent in future years, are there fundamental changes we need to make as a country to be better prepared? An MP from each side of the House gives their views. Stuart Smith, National MP Kaikoura We were still cleaning up from the floods from a few weeks ago, only to be hit by Cyclone Gabrielle a week later. I can only begin to imagine how distressing it must be to have your entire property underwater in many cases, with your belongings virtually unrecognisable. My condolences also go out to the families of those who lost their lives, READ MORE: * New Zealand's prices have continued to surge at a painfully fast pace * Cyclone Gabrielle may hint at a future of 'double climate disasters' * Chris Hipkins commits to 'build back better', anticipating billions needed for cyclone recovery We are less than 2 months into 2023 and already we are having to deal with two significant weather events which will change how we think about climate adaptation and mitigation. When the National Government signed up to the Paris Accord in 2015, we signed New Zealand up to becoming carbon net-zero by 2050. We stood up to the challenge of signing that agreement then, and we will stick by that decision now and right through our journey to 2050. The path forward lies with both adaptation and mitigation, not one or the other. Managed retreat in some parts of New Zealand may be required, as will building more resilience for our bridges, roads and other infrastructure. But mitigation requires more than announcements and ribbon-cutting, which is what the current Government seem focused on. They have committed to spending billions of dollars on climate change since they have been in office, yet emissions have continued to increase even with the country being locked down for large periods due to Covid-19. We need to start being open with New Zealanders about climate change. It is a massive challenge to get to net zero by 2050, but if we make the necessary changes in the most efficient and cost-effective way we can, then impacts on our households, businesses and farmers will be mitigated. The reality of this situation is that climate change is quite literally on our shores. We can throw away billions of dollars on pet projects that fail to reduce emissions, or we can put that money into adaptation by rebuilding and repurposing our infrastructure as well as mitigating future emissions in an equitable way. There is no doubt that climate change requires action, but if we do not get this balance right, we will see more and more tragedies like those we have seen in northern and eastern parts of the North Island. We owe it to those that have lost their lives and whose livelihoods have been destroyed to get this right and prevent more disasters while we can. Arena Williams, Labour MP Manurewa The scenes which have unfolded in the aftermath of Cyclone Gabrielle can only be described as utterly devastating. Tragically, 11 people have lost their lives with more fatalities possible, and countless others have been displaced. Lives have been turned upside down - many people have had their homes and possessions completely destroyed. My heart goes out to everyone affected. Our attention has been focused on the initial emergency response, rescuing those stranded, restoring lifelines and removing hazards. In some areas, recovery is starting to get underway. We know that recovery will come with a big price tag and we will have to once again reprioritise and refocus our efforts and resources. We will build back better and more resilient than before. Some tough calls will need to be made, and this Government is absolutely committed to doing that. On Monday, we announced an interim support package of $50 million to deliver interim emergency business and primary sector support, $250 million to help Waka Kotahi and local councils to assess and fix roads, and Inland Revenue support - this comes on top of a range of monetary assistance already provided. We also announced the establishment of a cyclone recovery taskforce and a dedicated cyclone recovery Minister. Cyclone Gabrielle is bigger and more severe than anything we have seen this century, and its intensity is clearly the result of the changing climate the climate pollution weve caused. We have to cut our climate pollution to stop things getting worse, and we have to get our communities ready to cope with the effects of the pollution already caused. We are doing both. As a country, we need to look at the resilience of our infrastructure, and do that with a much greater sense of urgency. In May last year, we released the Emissions Reduction Plan setting out our plan to meet our first emissions budget, and in August we released the National Adaptation Plan preparing for what is to come (or what has already arrived). Every sector is playing its part across transport, waste, food production, manufacturing, building and construction, and with He Waka Eke Noa, agriculture will join the fold as well. We cant opt out of the effects of climate change, as weve seen over the last few weeks, so we cant opt out of taking action. I hope New Zealanders have seen from us in recent years that when we're confronted with big challenges, we rise to the occasion, and that's absolutely what we will be doing.