NZ’s new flood maps are missing a hidden threat – the water quietly rising from below

Kerry Marshall/Getty Images The latest update of nationwide flood maps, to be released next year, will give communities across New Zealand the clearest picture yet of the regional risk of flooding. But as it stands, this state-of-the-art tool leaves out a critical piece of the puzzle: the water table in shallow coastal aquifers, which fluctuates with the seasons and, over the long term, rises with sea levels. As our recent research shows, coastal groundwater responds to sea level rise in…