The Preconference Workshops provide an opportunity to engage deeply with the critical stormwater and resilience challenges facing Aotearoa New Zealand.
From shaping the Water Services Authority’s oversight role and future stormwater work programme, to unpacking the legislative and practical requirements of Stormwater Network Risk Management Plans under the Local Government (Water Services) Act 2025, and exploring how we live with and adapt to “baked-in” flood risk in established communities, these sessions are designed to be practical, forward-looking and highly interactive.
Bringing together sector leaders, council practitioners and policy specialists, the workshops will foster robust discussion, shared learning and collaborative solutions to strengthen stormwater management, risk reduction and community resilience across the country.
Venue: NZICC, Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland
Date: Monday, 11 May 2026
Times: 10:30am – 12:00pm, 1:00pm to 2:30pm and 3:30pm – 5:00pm
Prices
- Preconference workshop member registration $103.50 per session*
- Preconference workshop non-member registration $161.00 per session*
*prices include GST. Sessions must be booked separately.
10:30am – 12:00pm
SHAPING STORMWATER SOLUTIONS: YOUR VIEW ON THE WATER SERVICE AUTHORITY’S STORMWATER OVERSITE ROLE
This workshop will focus on:
- Testing the problems and drivers for change in how urban stormwater is managed in Aotearoa New Zealand; and
- Discussing how the Authority’s stormwater tools and system oversight functions (for example, National Engineering Design Solutions, capability building and systems reporting) should be used and sequenced to address these issues, and how the Authority should work with other agencies.
This session would inform development of the Authority’s stormwater work programme, and complement broader engagement with the sector about how the Authority should use its stormwater tools and functions.
1:00pm – 2:30pm
STORMWATER NETWORK RISK MANAGEMENT PLANS: LEGISLATIVE REQUIREMENTS AND PRACTICAL METHODOLOGIES
This workshop explores the practical steps and challenges in developing Stormwater Network Risk Management Plans (SNRMPs) required by Section 201 of the Local Government (Water Services) Act 2025. Auckland Council is leading by preparing its plan early to align with the 2027 Long-Term Plan, aiming to define community risk appetite and investment priorities. Join us to discuss technical approaches and share insights across the industry.
Key Topics:
- Defining stormwater service zones (Section 199)
- Identifying critical stormwater infrastructure, including streams and overland flow paths (Section 200)
- Managing critical assets on private land
- Mapping hazards and integrating environmental performance standards
- Aligning bylaws and inter-agency agreements
Objectives:
- Clarify legislative requirements and implications for councils
- Share methodologies for risk assessment and infrastructure prioritisation
- Identify gaps where national guidance or templates are needed
- Foster collaboration for consistent implementation across New Zealand
Presenters: Andrew Chin, Craig McIlroy, Janet Kidd – Auckland Council.
3:30pm – 5:00pm
LIVING WITH WATER: MANAGING BAKED-IN FLOOD RISK IN ESTABLISHED SETTLEMENTS
Extreme weather events a re exposing a fundamental challenge for the stormwater and resilience sector. Much of New Zealand’s flood risk sits within existing settlements, where homes and infrastructure were built decades ago and were not designed to withstand the increasing impacts of climate change. New planning rules will guide future development away from hazard-prone land, but these rules will have limited influence on the risks to the existing housing stock.
Auckland’s recover from the 2023 North Island Weather Events brought this challenge into sharp focus. More than 1,200 private residential properties that were identified as facing intolerable risk to life will be purchased by Auckland Council. Many thousands more properties remain at risk of flooding, with no prospect of a buy-out limited opportunities for flood risk reduction through infrastructure upgrades.
With crown funding, we are supporting around 140 ‘Category 2P’ homes to implement property-level risk mitigations, such as lifting or shifting their homes on-site. Through the Making Space for Water programme, we’re also providing advice and tools for homeowners to understand and manage flood risk for themselves.
These programmes offer rich data to understand the national opportunities for property-level solutions, including designs, costs and homeowner needs.
The panel discussion will explore what resilience looks like when risk is already “baked in” to the urban environment. Drawing on recover experience and national perspectives, the panel will examine the limits of current tools, the equity and affordability implications of legacy risk, and the role of the stormwater and resilience sector in delivering, scalable solutions. It will explore where effort needs to be applied for risk reduction, resilient homes, and resilient communities, all with a view to ultimately reducing the impact of future severe weather events.