Mission critical data for a shaky country
Providing up-to-date, useful information for decision-makers is vital when it comes to managing Aotearoa New Zealand’s risks from seismic events.
It is a really important scientific model, widely used by industry and government to estimate the impact of this shaking on land, buildings and infrastructure, and help with planning.
He says key users include Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, Toka Tū Ake EQC, local and regional authorities, New Zealand Transport Agency, structural and geotechnical engineers, land-use planners, seismic hazard consultants and risk modelling consultants, and the insurance sector.
Dr Gerstenberger says the revised model will help us understand the expected shaking that might occur in a specific area over a certain amount of time, for example, the next 10, 50 or 100 years.
“This will provide a better picture of earthquake hazard in different parts of Aotearoa New Zealand."
This information is essential to build resilience and manage risks to safety, security, and our economy from seismic events. It underpins decisions about road and rail infrastructure development, civil defence planning, assessing risk by insurance companies, determining how buildings need to be built, and more.
The revision will reflect research knowledge gathered over the past two decades, including from the Canterbury and Kaikōura earthquakes. The scientific team developing the model includes scientists from GNS Science, University of Canterbury, University of Otago, University of Auckland, NIWA, USA, Australia, Canada, UK, Italy and Germany.
We are excited to be working with a team of local and international scientists and expert end-users, all contributing to the project over the next couple of years
The project is a joint initiative by GNS Science, MBIE and EQC. The revised National Seismic Hazard Model is expected to be completed in mid-2022 and will be freely available online.
This is mission-critical data for decision making to reduce the impact of earthquakes on New Zealand homes, communities, towns and cities.