Climate Change Adaptation Guideline for the Waikato Region

Report: TR 2025/26

Authors: Sophie Marsh, Lisa Armstrong, Tutahanga Douglas, Christo Rautenbach, Whitney Mills (Waikato Regional Council), Waverley Jones (Traverse Environmental)

Waikato Regional Council (WRC) is committed to supporting communities, protecting the environment, and strengthening the region’s economy by taking meaningful action on climate change.

This Climate Change Adaptation Guideline offers the latest policy guidance, scientific information, and frameworks to help the Waikato region prepare for climate impacts and promote a coordinated approach. It includes guidance on climate risks for Māori and working with our iwi partners.

Who is it for?

This guideline is for anyone preparing for the impacts of climate change, including:

• Councils and planners: Scientific and regulatory information and guidance for climate risk assessments, policies, and plans.
• Community groups, iwi/hapū, and industry: Understand the information available to help prepare your community or sector.

How to use it:

The guideline is technical and not meant to be read cover to cover. Start with Sections 1 and 2 (Introduction and Key Concepts), then focus on the parts most relevant to your work.

This resource is part of a wider set of Waikato climate strategies. It does not cover greenhouse gas mitigation or provide site-specific details. Further work is needed to provide focused guidance for key users such as iwi, planners, community groups and developers.

We welcome your feedback!

Please email your feedback to info@waikatoregion.govt.nz and reference the Regional Resilience team or phone 0800 800 401 to be put in touch with a member of the team.