Deluge of calls for flood protection

AT A GLANCE

• Stronger planning rules are now in effect to better protect people and property from flooding, landslides and other natural hazards.
• The changes mean tougher checks and higher standards for building in hazard-prone areas.
• You can see what this means for your property and have your say at AK Have Your Say

New planning rules are now in effect across Auckland to better protect people, homes and communities from natural hazards such as flooding and landslides.

These updates are part of Auckland Council’s Plan Change 120 - a proposed update to the region’s planning rulebook. The plan aims to make Auckland’s neighbourhoods stronger and safer by:

• Allowing more homes to be built near public transport, jobs and town centres. (this change does not come into effect until the full process is complete and Plan Change 120 is operative).
• Tightening the rules for building in areas at risk from natural hazards.

Auckland Council has been working on these changes since the major floods of 2023. The new rules will help make sure that future development is safer and better prepared for extreme weather.

Under the Resource Management Act, any rules relating to natural hazards must take effect as soon as a plan change is notified.

What’s changing

The new rules will:

• Require stricter checks and higher standards for building, developing or renovating in hazard-prone areas.
• Make risk assessments tougher, so new buildings must clearly show they can handle severe weather.
• Limit development in the worst-affected areas to protect people and property.
• Update hazard maps so everyone can see the latest information about flooding, landslides and other risks in their area.
• Protect natural systems like floodplains and overland flow paths so they can keep doing their job of carrying away stormwater.

In some high-risk areas such as parts of Henderson, Milford and Māngere, the land may be downzoned to allow only single houses, reducing housing density and risk.

How this might affect you

You can visit the Plan Change 120 map viewer on the AK Have Your Say website to check what the changes mean for your property.

You can also use the natural hazards map on the council’s Geomaps page to see what kinds of hazards might affect your area right now.

If you’ve already lodged a resource consent application before 3 November 2025, it will still be processed under the same activity status it had when you submitted it. However, the council will also consider the new Plan Change 120 rules during its assessment.