When it rains heavily, flooding will happen. But natural solutions and community preparedness can minimise the impact. Be part of the change!
Across central Auckland, Urban Ark, STEPS and Friends of Oakley Creek are working in partnership with Auckland Council’s Healthy Waters on the Community Flood Resilience programme.
We are working towards safe, connected and resilient communities in neighbourhoods heavily impacted during recent flooding. We aim to support and empower communities to:
- care for our local streams
- ensure our waterways remain clean, healthy and flood-resilient
- understand flood risks and be prepared
- take informed action to reduce potential impacts on your property
Where are we working?
We are focusing on three stream catchments:
- Ōpoutūkeha / Cox’s Creek – Grey Lynn and Ponsonby
- Te Auaunga / Oakley Creek – Mt Roskill, Wesley, Ōwairaka and Mt Albert
- Waitītiko / Meola Creek – Mt Albert, Sandringham, Chamberlain Park and Pt Chevalier
Why is Urban Ark involved?
Urban Ark - Manawa Taiao, STEPS and Friends of Oakley Creek are all working towards creating healthy habitats where indigenous flora and fauna thrive, particularly along our awa - streams.
We believe that ecological restoration, adaptation and flood resilience are best done by working with communities; helping you strengthen connection to your stream and your neighbours. We hope you will:
- Get to know your local stream – walk along it, where you can
- Minimise what goes into the stream (no rubbish or earth off your property)
- Reduce invasive weeds on your property
- Plant native species (but not where they’ll impact flooding)
- Help reduce animal predators by trapping for rats and possums
What is resilience?
Resilience is the ability to anticipate and resist the effects of a disruptive event, minimise adverse impacts, respond effectively, maintain or recover functionality, and to learn and adapt in a way that allows for everyone to thrive. In an emergency, disaster resilient individuals and communities are capable of:
- keeping yourself and your family safe from harm
- adapting to changes in the physical, social and economic environment
- being self-reliant if external resources are limited or cut off
- being prepared for any future flooding events
What can you do?
There are plenty of actions you can take and opportunities to get involved:
Flood Viewer: check out the flooding risk where you are (or where you’re planning to move to) using Auckland Council’s Flood Viewer. You’ll also find excellent material on:
Activities and events: check out our flood-related nature walks, stream clean-ups, weeding bees, riparian planting sessions and flood-resilience drop-in sessions on Urban Ark’s Events pages
Social media: we’ll be sharing more actions that you can take to improve flood-resilience at home and in your community on our Facebook and Instagram
Contact: get in touch with our Flood Resilience team through [Enable JavaScript to view protected content]