The unprecedented rainfall that hit Auckland on January 27 was, for many, a shock introduction to the city's old streams and waterways.
Before urbanisation Auckland was a complex system of streams, rivers and wetlands - and the January flooding brought some to the surface with a vengeance.
With climate change likely to bring more severe rain events, is now the time to think seriously about building up rather than spreading out into more green space, and daylighting more of the city's streams?
Matthew Bradbury is a landscape architect, an associate professor at Unitec and author of Water City: Practical Strategies for Climate Change.
Photo: Supplied
