The Hurunui District Council developed a Coastal Adaptation Plan for Amberley Beach in 2023. The Plan sets out how the community will adapt to the impacts of climate change, rising groundwater and sea levels, coastal erosion, coastal inundation, flooding and changing risk over the next 100 years. Managed retreat is identified as an option to address the increasing risk to the Amberley Beach community.
Buddle Findlay has provided legal advice to the Hurunui District Council regarding the feasibility and best process to implement managed retreat through a land-swap arrangement. Our advice has focused on the legal mechanisms to facilitate the initial stages of the managed retreat proposal from a contractual and property perspective. Further advice will be sought regarding the planning framework, plan changes, and other legislative processes to implement managed retreat in the future.
The Coastal Adaptation project for Amberley Beach has been recognised for its innovative approach and has won several awards, including the NZPI Best Practice Award for Climate Change, the Nancy Northcroft Planning Practice Award, and the Taituarā Excellence Award for Community Engagement.
Buddle Findlay is Hurunui District Council's sole legal advisor and assists the Council with a wide-range of resource management and local government issues, including plan making, plan interpretation, resource consenting, and compliance and enforcement matters.