Report shows tough future for Auckland
Climate change, increasing inequality, a swelling population and recovering from ‘‘significant financial challenges’’ caused by Covid-19 are being flagged as major hurdles the future Auckland mayor and council will face.
Auckland Council’s Pre-Election Report presented the task ahead, with its aim to promote public discussion around the ‘‘challenges and opportunities’’ for Auckland ahead of upcoming mayoral and council elections.
Responding to climate change is positioned as the biggest issue for the city and required substantially increased funding, fundamental reprioritisation of existing spending and policy changes.
The average annual temperature in Auckland increased by about 1.6C over the past century, with a 3.5C warmer world expected by 2050, the report said.
Auckland Council has started accelerating its response by declaring a climate emergency, adopting the
Auckland Climate Plan and proposing a $574m fund from a targeted 10-year rate.
Auckland was still not on track to achieve its 2030 or 2050 emission goals, with the city’s net greenhouse gas emissions expected to increase by about 19% by mid-century without ‘‘urgent action’’, it said. With ‘‘ambitious action’’ in the next council term, it was possible to implement the immediate and transformational changes needed to achieve Auckland’s emission reduction targets, the report said. ‘‘The scale of change is huge and will require substantial additional funding.’’
A rapidly growing population – expected to swell to 2.4 million by 2050 – and widening socio-economic disparity within the city also needed to be addressed. Climate change and Covid-19 would likely have ‘‘disproportionate ongoing impacts’’ on Auckland’s most vulnerable communities, which if not addressed, would ‘‘further exacerbate current inequities.’’
Auckland’s Māori population was over-represented in many measures of socio-economic deprivation, it said. ‘‘Delivering an equitable economic recovery will require targeted and meaningful efforts for communities and sectors most at risk of being disadvantaged by social inequities such as limited access to resources or services.’’
Auckland Council chief executive Jim Stabback said the city’s ageing infrastructure was ‘‘already struggling to cope’’, while meeting the demand and mitigating the effects on the environment was ‘‘enormous’’.
The council’s 10-year budget provided $32 billion of capital investment, but Stabback said ‘‘many more billions’’ were needed. Responding to this rapid growth presented ‘‘significant financial challenges’’ for Auckland Council, the Pre-Election report said. ‘‘On top of these challenges, recent events are increasing the financial pressures facing the council.’’
Covid-19 resulted in an estimated $900m revenue loss, and costs had been ‘‘rapidly rising’’ with inflation at a threedecade high, record-level fuel prices, increasing interest rates and ongoing disruption to global supply chains, Stabback said.
Planned and forecast council revenue was not adequate to deal with the financial pressures the council was facing as costs were increasing faster than money was coming in, the report said. Meeting Auckland’s future needs would require ‘‘significant decisions’’ about what services the council provided and where it focused its investments, it said.
Steering a path through these uncertain times would be demanding and challenging, Stabback said. “The good news is that if we tackle these challenges then we can make a meaningful difference in terms of maintaining and improving the quality of life for Aucklanders, our communities and our whānau.’’
The scale of change is huge and will require substantial additional funding.