New Zealand releases its first national plan to protect against climate-driven disasters

Climate minister says the aim is to equip people so that when climate events occur their lives can continue'

New Zealand has released its first national plan to prepare for the floods, fires and rising seas it expects to be unleashed by the climate crisis in the coming years.

Climate minister James Shaw, releasing the plan on Wednesday, said that while New Zealand would do its best to start reducing emissions, it was also preparing for a likely scenario of enormous climate disruption, and said it was crucial" the country was prepared.