Cyclone Gabrielle on Tararua's Rural Sector
Tararua District Council is teaming up with our accounting firm to dive deep into the long-term economic effects of Cyclone Gabrielle and other pressures on the Tararua District farming community. With nearly 70% of our land classified as rural, agriculture is a key lifeline of our district, so it’s vital to understand how this sector is holding up after the cyclone. The goal of this project isn’t just to understand the economic impact of Cyclone Gabrielle on our rural sector but also to raise awareness and find local solutions that can better support our farming communities moving forward.
Alongside Tararua District Council, we are committed to supporting our region in its recovery, and together are co-funding this project. We will be gathering six years’ worth of data (2019-2025) from the cyclone-affected areas in Northern and Eastern Tararua. This will help us get a clear picture of the challenges our rural sector continues to face, make informed decisions, apply for relevant funding opportunities, and advocate for support in our rural sectors.
Mayor Tracey Collis emphasised the importance of this work, stating, "This initiative goes hand in hand with a macroeconomic report produced by Infometrics. Together they will provide us with a true insight into the economic state of the district. We can use this work to get a snapshot of what our farmers are doing and what challenges they face from year to year.”
The report is created anonymously and confidentially. TDC won’t be receiving any raw data, and everything provided is averaged across the area. These reports are expected in February 2025 and February 2026 and will help Council, regional, and partner agencies be better informed and make decisions moving forward.
We’ll be looking at a broad range of financial indicators—things like spending on repairs, fuel, wages, interest payments, and gross farm revenue. Plus feedback from about 80 farms through annual interviews, focusing on cyclone-related repairs and how budgets have been stretched to accommodate these unexpected costs.
