Roads in Wairarapa, including Mataikona Rd in Masterton, and Cape Palliser Rd and Te Awaiti Rd in South Wairarapa, have suffered serious damage following severe weather in recent years.

Work on the damaged roads can require millions of dollars worth of remediation.

A report on infrastructure and assets for the Masterton District Council meeting on Wednesday included a description of recent repair work on Mataikona Rd.

“Some crown funding has been confirmed,” the report said, adding the scope was to widen the road in parts with work scheduled to start later this year or early next year.

“River work continues in the lower part of the Mataikona River.”

Additional work listed included the river groyne, and infill rock riprap, which help protect against erosion.

The report said that retaining wall anchoring and rock rip-rap works on the Mataikona River slip were nearing completion.

A report last year said millions of dollars of government funding had been allocated to the road.

“In Masterton, $2.34 million of Crown Resilience Programme funding would be allocated to the Mataikona road resilience, coastal erosion, and scour protection project. Masterton District Council would contribute the remaining $660,000 to complete the $3m project,” it said.

The Government’s framework, released last year, aims to provide a roadmap to address climate-related risk.

Climate Minister Simon Watts referenced the issue of addressing climate-related cost and damage at an framework event in Auckland last week.

At the event, he described a Wairarapa road, that was ‘basically crumbling into the sea.’

“The cost to fix that could be over $100 million,” he said at the time, adding the local council didn’t have the money.

“We're going to have to have some tough conversations, you know. We can't continue to fix that road,” he said.

Watts told Local Democracy Reporting that local roads were generally cost shared between local government and NZTA, so the responsibility for maintenance was with them.

"The impacts of climate change are significant, and New Zealand will need an enduring framework that will address questions around the roles and responsibilities for adaptation management and who bears the cost of adaptation,“ he said.

“Already, the government has announced it will introduce precise requirements on councils to guide their adaptation planning and a national flood map to give communities the best information on climate risk.”

He said further work on the adaptation aimed to address, in a bipartisan way, how New Zealand can pay for and adapt to the impacts of climate change.

“This will include reviewing any cost-sharing and assessing the value and intervention in a changing climate. This work is ongoing and not yet finalised.

"Our aim is for that work to provide clarity on the government's approach to such coastal roads.”

At last week’s meeting the Minister touched on financing issues relating to damage, including insurance.

In the last five years home insurance had increased by just under 62%, he said.

“About 25% of the cost of living challenge is down to insurance premiums,” Watts said.

An IAG spokesperson said they continued to provide insurance applying general principles.

“There are no blanket exclusions or withdrawal of insurance for properties in the Wairarapa region, and we are continuing to provide cover,” they said.

“New insurance applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis, as is usual practice throughout New Zealand.

“Our intention is to continue providing insurance to as many New Zealanders as possible, while also reflecting the risk.”

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.