Weekly Update from the Cyclone Recovery Unit - 10 July 2023

Update from the Cyclone Recovery Unit

Latest news

Government backing cyclone recovery for farmers and growers

The Government has announced further support for farmers and growers affected by the North Island severe weather events. It is contributing an additional $500,000 to the Post Your Support initiative, a community fundraising campaign aimed at helping farmers and growers repair cyclone-damaged fences and growing structures.

The funding will primarily go towards replacing essential infrastructure such as posts and wires. This financial support supplements the Government's previous investment of $100,000 to initiate the recovery work. Overall, the Government's assistance to cyclone-affected primary producers now totals $74 million in recovery grants.

Government increases funding for rural support trusts to aid farmers and growers

The Government is allocating over $2.4 million in funding to aid farmers and growers affected by severe weather events in the North Island. The Rural Support Trusts, which provide free and confidential assistance to those facing challenges, will receive $517,000 as baseline funding, with an additional $1.9 million to support recovery efforts.

This funding will enable the trusts to coordinate local recovery services, organise wellbeing events, offer specialised support, and develop regional recovery plans. The increased support follows the $35.4 million allocated in Budget 2023 to assist rural communities impacted by North Island weather events.

The Rural Support Trusts play a crucial role in helping farmers and growers navigate difficult times.

Local authorities make progress on their regional recovery plans

The Cyclone Recovery Unit this week received indicative recovery plans from regions affected by the North Island extreme weather events. These plans mark the next step for many regions in their recovery efforts.

Under the CDEM Act 2002, local authorities need to plan specifically for recovery. This requirement reflects the need to plan for recovery at a strategic level, involving people across local authorities, the community, iwi, business, organisations as well as Government.

Guides

Guide to the Future of Severely Affected Locations

In a guide published by the Cyclone Recovery Unit, key aspects of the Future of Severely Affected Locations programme are explained including the general roles and responsibilities of agencies, the risk categorisation framework, the process and the Kaupapa Māori Pathway. The guide is intended to help local authorities communicate to stakeholders the Future of Severely Affected Locations programmes.

Guide to response and recovery support for the North Island Extreme Weather Events

A new guide from the Cyclone Recovery Unit highlights the services, funds, and helplines available to support communities affected by the North Island Extreme Weather Events. The guide is useful for people working in the community to help understand what support is still available to aid their response and recovery efforts. It outlines how the following services and organisations can support communities:

  • Temporary Accommodation Service
  • Helplines
  • Mana Ake
  • Insurance Council of New Zealand
  • General Practices
  • Animal Welfare
  • Farmstrong
  • Inland Revenue
  • First Steps
  • New Zealand Claims Resolution Service
  • Cyclone Recovery Visa
  • Community Connectors
  • Direct support for disabled people
  • Mental health training for emergency-affected communities
  • Feed Coordination Service
  • Duty relief for cyclone-affected businesses

Updates across government

Waka Kotahi

The cyclone damaged Hikuwai no.1 bridge on State Highway 35 north of Gisborne will be completely dismantled and transported away this month. To do this, the Hikuwai Bailey bridge will be closed from 7am Monday 17 July 2023 to 5am Thursday 27 July 2023. During this time, the Pourau road bypass will remain open. During the closure, the crane will be disassembled and moved to the northern side of the river to remove the existing 31-metre-long beams from the old bridge. This will remove the risk of the Bailey bridge being damaged in future weather events. At the same time, surfacing works will be completed on the approaches at either end of the Bailey bridge.

Ministry for Primary Industries

Funds

MPI is still receiving Expressions of Interest from primary industries and rural communities to the NIWE Time-critical (TCN) and NIWE Isolated Rural Communities (IRC) funds.

Sediment and debris management fund for whenua Māori

The Government has announced $30 million funding to support the management of sediment and debris for whenua Māori in Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay. Funding will help whenua Māori owners with the clean-up of sediment and debris.

North Island Weather Events Loan Guarantee Scheme

North Island Weather Events Loan Guarantee Scheme will provide relief to highly affected businesses seeking commercial loans. This scheme will leverage the Crown’s financial strength to enable lenders to reduce interest rates and provide more flexible terms. Terms and conditions of the guarantee scheme will be finalised with lenders over the next few weeks.

Primary Producer Finance Scheme

The Primary Producer Finance Scheme is designed for land based, primary sector businesses that have a reasonable chance of returning to viability with additional support. It will be administered by Kānoa, Regional Economic Development & Investment Unit.

One-page summaries


Published: Jul 10, 2023, 4:56 PM