Earthquake-prone building regulations and methodology

Summary

We are consulting on the regulations and a methodology that set the new approach for identifying and managing earthquake-prone buildings.

Please note

The methodology includes proposals to require the use of The Seismic Assessment of Existing Buildings: Technical Guidelines for Engineering Assessments (the Engineering Assessment Guidelines) when assessing buildings under the earthquake-prone buildings provisions. This is a new document being prepared by the New Zealand Society for Earthquake Engineering (NZSEE), the Structural Engineering Society (SESOC) and NZ Geotechnical Society (NZGS), in conjunction with MBIE and the Earthquake Commission. It is the result of a full revision of the earlier (and current) guidance produced by NZSEE titled Assessment and Improvement of Structural Performance of Buildings in Earthquakes.

A draft version of the Engineering Assessment Guidelines was released in June 2016 for your consideration during the consultation period. A more advanced draft was released in October 2016 to further aid your submissions on the proposals for the methodology and the regulations. The draft versions are available free of charge at http://www.eq-assess.org.nz/(external link) or in person at MBIE, located at 15 Stout Street in Wellington. The Engineering Assessment Guidelines will be finalised in time for the commencement of the Amendment Act.

If you have feedback on the content of the Engineering Assessment Guidelines rather than or in addition to the proposals being consulted upon, you can provide this via the website: http://www.eq-assess.org.nz(external link).

Extension of consultation period to 10 February 2017

The consultation period has been extended from 15 December 2016 to 10 February 2017. While consultation is open to all members of the public, the consultation period was extended to allow engineers, councils and others involved in responding to the Kaikoura earthquake extra time to prepare submissions. The Building (Earthquake-prone Buildings) Amendment Act 2016 is still expected to come into effect on 1 July 2017.