New Zealand is refocusing on its earthquake-prone building system to reduce repair costs and reinvigorate communities.
In a media statement New Zealand building and construction minister Chris Penk said, “While well intentioned, the current system for assessing and managing seismic risk in buildings places an overwhelming financial burden on building owners.
“For many buildings, the price of strengthening runs from hundreds of thousands to several million dollars. As a result, these buildings are often left empty and become derelict, making them even more dangerous to bystanders in an earthquake.”
He said, “Cities and regions are losing the businesses, churches, town halls and classrooms that are central to their local economies and community spirit. On top of this, apartment and small business owners who cannot afford the fixes demanded by the current laws have faced years of stress and sleepless nights, as their most valuable asset has become unsaleable through no fault of their own.”
The minister said the government is now changing to a fairer, risk-based system that will bring enormous relief by lowering costs for building owners, while keeping Kiwis safe.
He said, “The Government is removing the New Building Standard (NBS) ratings currently used by engineers to determine whether a property is earthquake-prone. The NBS rates how an existing building is expected to perform in an earthquake compared to a new building and has proven too broad and inconsistent.
“A building’s overall risk status is determined by its weakest part, meaning even a small defect can result in an entire building being classified as earthquake-prone.”
Mr Penk said, “The new earthquake-prone building (EPB) system will capture only buildings that pose a genuine risk to human life in medium and high seismic zones. This category includes concrete buildings three storeys or higher, and those constructed with unreinforced masonry.”
Auckland, Northland and the Chatham Islands will be removed from the regime entirely to reflect the low seismic risk in those areas.
“Unreinforced masonry buildings under three storeys in small and rural towns will no longer require remediation or warning notices, but owners must secure the façade before the building can be removed from the earthquake-prone register.
This refocused earthquake-prone building system is expected to save New Zealanders more than NZ$8.2 billion in remediation and demolition costs. The changes give effect to recommendations from an independent review led by the ministry of business, innovation and employment.