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News | Archives The proposed Wellington waterfront developments offer a great opportunity to minimize the considerable tsunami hazard facing the city, but on the other hand uncontrolled development could aggravate the risks says Tsunami expert Dr Alastair Barnett. Dr Alastair Barnett, a Fellow of the Institution of Professional Engineers (IPENZ), says the waterfront between the raised reclamation of the container terminal and Oriental Bay is the defensive perimeter for the CBD, and as a minimum Wellington City Council needs to require that no part of the existing perimeter is actually lowered by land developers, for example by major basement excavation. “To offer reasonable protection against long distance tsunamis a profile of hardened ground levels needs to be recorded along the full length of the perimeter, and plans made to sandbag all identified low points with 12 hours notice,” said Dr Barnett. “But a more secure barrier against all tsunamis would be easy to manage by setting minimum hardened ground levels for all new developments on land along a designated perimeter line,” he said. “This would simply require Council staff with civil defence responsibilities to attend all strategic waterfront development planning meetings – hardly a major cost,” he said. Ends Notes to journalists For more information contact:
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