Two South Island schools have been identified as having concerning rates of erosion that might threaten their futures.
Newshub begins with Granity School on the West Coast, which sits mere metres from the ferocity of the Tasman Sea.
Granity School has a coastal view of the wild West Coast ocean but that outlook is creeping ever so closer to comfort.
The sea tosses small boulders aside, leaving the school even more exposed.
"It's getting really close to the edge of our building," said principal Gemma Rout.
"The concern is that the erosion is happening at a far greater pace than what anyone anticipated," Rout said.
As a result, large chunks of the earth are eaten away.
Small tasks like mowing the lawn are a problem too. Rocks litter the sports field - spat up by the force of the sea.
"Last time when it happened we had a bit of school thing and we had all the children throwing all the rocks back where they belonged, so [we] need to get them back out here to do it again," Rout told Newshub.
Marine life can be thrown up as well.
"The seawater actually went halfway up our field in the aftermath we were left not just stones and rocks but there were jellyfish on the lawn."
A promise has been made by the Ministry of Education to keep the full primary school open. The ministry is working with the school to develop plans for its future.
"It would be a real shame to lose Granity where it stands," Rout said.
"If there has to be shifting it will be done because our tamariki and staff need to be kept safe."
Granity School, with its 30 students, serves as the only education provider for six surrounding townships.
"This school is an integral part of this community. It's been here since 1939."
Watch the full story above.
