A rising storm

Abstract

The need to orientate ourselves near the water’s edge has defined the foundations of the way we live. A large percentage of urban development and infrastructure in New Zealand is located either on or around its coastal edges. This alone presents an interesting argument when acknowledging their relationship to current research on sea level rise and increased vulnerability to climate change related flooding. Although a global problem, as an island state, New Zealand has a notably large number of sites that confront this problem. When large storms hit these coastal edges, higher sea levels will mean greater inundation and bigger, more powerful storm surges (IPCC, 2014).

Wellington is one of New Zealand’s most prone cities to sea level rise due to its location and relationship to the sea (Bell & Hannah, 2012). The proposed site for this design research thesis is the Kilbirnie Isthmus, enclosed between Evans and Lyall Bay, three kilometres southeast of Wellington City. This thesis recognises the site’s low lying topography, historical edge reclamations and coastal bays on both sides that were once connected through the submerged isthmus. Thus, there is a greater level of susceptibility these hazards in comparison to other current Wellington coastal sites such as Island Bay and Centre Port. It is the areas of urban and commercial development as well as crucial transportation networks such as the Wellington Airport and roading infrastructure that are most vulnerable.

The threat of infringing sea levels at both edges of the isthmus provides an opportunity to critically consider how landscape intervention can begin to engage with flooding while still integrating and accommodating land based activity. This design-led investigation proposes to systematically modify the existing fabric of the isthmus to redirect and control flow from inundation and storms in an aim to minimise damage to coastal communities and key infrastructure networks. There is a need to take action and develop an adaptive and defensive built environment, as the consequences of climate change will become increasingly evident and increasingly devastating.