Datasets

  • Current wetland extent, 2013

    Ministry for the Environment
    "Wetlands support unique biodiversity and provide important services. They clean water of nutrients and sediment, help dampen floods, provide habitat, and act as carbon sinks. They are also valued for their spiritual and cultural significance and as important sources of food and materials, such as flax. Draining them for agricultural and urban development...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • River Environment Classification Catchment Order 6 (2010)

    Ministry for the Environment
    The REC groups rivers and parts of river networks that share similar ecological characteristics, including physical and biological. Rivers that share the same class can be treated as similar to one another and different to rivers in other classes. The REC classification system groups rivers according to several environmental factors that strongly...
    Created 1 January 2023 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Prediction of wetlands before humans arrived

    Ministry for the Environment
    "Wetlands support unique biodiversity and provide important services. They clean water of nutrients and sediment, help dampen floods, provide habitat, and act as carbon sinks. They are also valued for their spiritual and cultural significance and as important sources of food and materials, such as flax. Draining them for agricultural and urban development...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • River Environment Classification New Zealand (2010)

    Ministry for the Environment
    The New Zealand River Environment Classification (REC) organises information about the physical characteristics of New Zealand's rivers. Individual river sections are mapped according to physical factors such as climate, source of flow for the river water, topography, and geology, and catchment land cover eg, forest, pasture or urban. Sections of river...
    Created 1 January 2023 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Extreme wind, state, 1980 - 2022

    Ministry for the Environment
    This dataset measures the strength of extreme wind at 30 sites across Aotearoa New Zealand from 1980 to 2022. For individual sites, we provide data for the highest maximum wind gust, average maximum wind gust, and the number of days with wind gusts extreme for a location. The average of the daily maximum wind gust provides information on windiness, while...
    Created 1 February 2024 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • River flows

    Ministry for the Environment
    "River flow refers to the quantity of water passing a point in the river over a certain amount of time. Different rivers have different flow patterns, such as sharp peak flows following rain with low flows in between, or high spring flows from snow melt. These flow characteristics affect how much water is available for irrigation, drinking water,...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • LUCAS NZ Land Use Map 2020 v003

    Ministry for the Environment
    The LUCAS NZ Land Use Map 2020 v003 is composed of New Zealand-wide land use classes (12) nominally at 31 December 1989, 31 December 2007, 31 December 2012, 31 December 2016, and 31 December 2020. These date boundaries are dictated by the Paris Agreement and former Kyoto Protocol. The data can therefore be used to create a map at any of the nominal...
    Created 3 June 2024 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Standardised soil moisture deficit 1996-1997

    Ministry for the Environment
    Soil moisture is important for plant growth. A lack of moisture content over a growing season is a good indicator of drought, which can have social, environmental, and economic impacts. Increasing temperatures and changes in rainfall patterns are expected to increase the frequency and intensity of drought in many regions. Growing season soil moisture...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Growing season soil moisture deficit, 2000-2001

    Ministry for the Environment
    Soil moisture is important for plant growth. A lack of moisture content over a growing season is a good indicator of drought, which can have social, environmental, and economic impacts. Increasing temperatures and changes in rainfall patterns are expected to increase the frequency and intensity of drought in many regions. Growing season soil moisture...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Growing season soil moisture deficit, 1997-1998

    Ministry for the Environment
    Soil moisture is important for plant growth. A lack of moisture content over a growing season is a good indicator of drought, which can have social, environmental, and economic impacts. Increasing temperatures and changes in rainfall patterns are expected to increase the frequency and intensity of drought in many regions. Growing season soil moisture...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Sunshine hours 1991

    Ministry for the Environment
    "Sunshine is important for our health and recreation, and for the environment. It is also important for our agriculture-based economy, for example, for plant growth. This layer shows annual sunshine hours across New Zealand for 1991 as part of the data series for years 1972 to 2013. Data is for a calendar year (January-December). The National Institute of...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Annual sea surface temperature difference from normal, 2012

    Ministry for the Environment
    The ocean waters surrounding New Zealand vary in temperature from north to south. They interact with heat and moisture in the atmosphere and affect our weather. Long-term changes and short-term variability in sea-surface temperatures can affect marine processes, habitats, and species. Some species may find it hard to survive in changing environmental...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Sunshine hours 1974

    Ministry for the Environment
    "Sunshine is important for our health and recreation, and for the environment. It is also important for our agriculture-based economy, for example, for plant growth. This layer shows annual sunshine hours across New Zealand for 1974 as part of the data series for years 1972 to 2013. Data is for a calendar year (January-December). The National Institute of...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Sunshine hours 1973

    Ministry for the Environment
    "Sunshine is important for our health and recreation, and for the environment. It is also important for our agriculture-based economy, for example, for plant growth. This layer shows annual sunshine hours across New Zealand for 1973 as part of the data series for years 1972 to 2013. Data is for a calendar year (January-December). The National Institute of...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Units: percentage of normal sunshine hours 2009

    Ministry for the Environment
    "Sunshine is important for our health and recreation, and for the environment. It is also important for our agriculture-based economy, for example, for plant growth. This layer shows percentage of normal sunshine hours across New Zealand for 2009 as part of the data series for years 1972 to 2013. Data is for a calendar year (January–December). The...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Annual rainfall Units: percentage of normal, 1998

    Ministry for the Environment
    Annual rainfall is the total accumulated rain over one year. Rain is vital for life, including plant growth, drinking water, river ecosystem health, and sanitation. Floods and droughts affect our environment, economy, and recreational opportunities. This layer shows the annual rainfall as a percentage of normal across New Zealand for 1998 as part of the...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Standardised soil moisture deficit 1977-1978

    Ministry for the Environment
    "Soil moisture is important for plant growth. A lack of moisture content over a growing season is a good indicator of drought, which can have social, environmental, and economic impacts. Increasing temperatures and changes in rainfall patterns are expected to increase the frequency and intensity of drought in many regions. Growing season soil moisture...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Standardised soil moisture deficit 2011-2012

    Ministry for the Environment
    Soil moisture is important for plant growth. A lack of moisture content over a growing season is a good indicator of drought, which can have social, environmental, and economic impacts. Increasing temperatures and changes in rainfall patterns are expected to increase the frequency and intensity of drought in many regions. Growing season soil moisture...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Growing season soil moisture deficit, 1981-1982

    Ministry for the Environment
    Soil moisture is important for plant growth. A lack of moisture content over a growing season is a good indicator of drought, which can have social, environmental, and economic impacts. Increasing temperatures and changes in rainfall patterns are expected to increase the frequency and intensity of drought in many regions. Growing season soil moisture...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025

  • Trends in ozone concentrations, 1978–2017

    Ministry for the Environment
    NIWA supplied ozone data in two forms, with different starting dates: - measurements made using a Dobson spectrophotometer (number 72), from 1987 - data assimilated from satellite measurements recalibrated against the global Dobson network, from 1978. NIWA takes measurements using the Dobson spectrophotometer 72 under clear-sky, direct sunlight conditions...
    Created 2 February 2020 • Updated 3 May 2025