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Articles, Christchurch uncovered

In 1861, the city of Christchurch would have been virtually unrecognisable to a 21st century resident. Buildings were scattered sparsely throughout what is now the central business district and dirt roads and low fences traversed a landscape that was more grassland … Continue reading →

Audio, Radio New Zealand

As a cemetary near her home is cordoned off, fears for Blessie Gotingco intensify. In Christchurch, there's questions over asbestos and potential danger in the earthquake rebuild and a sub zero wake up for the south, as temperatures plummet.

Articles, UC QuakeStudies

A copy of a letter from Hugo Kristinsson which was sent to Helen Beaumont, Manager of the Natural Environment and Heritage Unit at the Christchurch City Council, on 17 June 2014. The letter was sent on behalf of Empowered Christchurch. It is about legislation which, according to Kristinsson, determines land below the mean high water spring to be public land. Kristinsson is concerned that this legislation will cause 'hundred or even thousands' of people to lose their assets. He urges the Council to 'have the land surveyed and to redefine the CMA [Crown Minerals Act] before land claims are settled'.

Images, UC QuakeStudies

A photograph of Graeme Kershaw, Technician at the University of Canterbury Department of Physics and Astronomy, sitting among the damaged parts of the Townsend Telescope. The telescope was damaged during the 22 February 2011 earthquake, when the Observatory tower at the Christchurch Arts Centre collapsed. Kershaw has been given the task of restoring the telescope. In this photograph he is holding the telescope's clock drive. In the foreground there is a plaque reading, "The equatorial telescope and accessories in this observatory were presented to Canterbury College by James Townsend Esq. 1891. A large contribution towards the erection of the tower was made by the Canterbury Astronomical Society".

Images, UC QuakeStudies

A photograph of Graeme Kershaw, Technician at the University of Canterbury Department of Physics and Astronomy, sitting among the damaged parts of the Townsend Telescope. The telescope was damaged during the 22 February 2011 earthquake, when the Observatory tower at the Christchurch Arts Centre collapsed. Kershaw has been given the task of restoring the telescope. In this photograph he is holding the telescope's clock drive. In the foreground there is a plaque reading, "The equatorial telescope and accessories in this observatory were presented to Canterbury College by James Townsend Esq. 1891. A large contribution towards the erection of the tower was made by the Canterbury Astronomical Society".

Research papers, University of Canterbury Library

This is an interim report from the research study performed within the NHRP Research Project “Impacts of soil liquefaction on land, buildings and buried pipe networks: geotechnical evaluation and design, Project 3: Seismic assessment and design of pipe networks in liquefiable soils”. The work presented herein is a continuation of the comprehensive study on the impacts of Christchurch earthquakes on the buried pipe networks presented in Cubrinovski et al. (2011). This report summarises the performance of Christchurch City’s potable water, waste water and road networks through the 2010-2011 Canterbury Earthquake Sequence (CES), and particularly focuses on the potable water network. It combines evidence based on comprehensive and well-documented data on the damage to the water network, detailed observations and interpretation of liquefaction-induced land damage, records and interpretations of ground motion characteristics induced by the Canterbury earthquakes, for a network analysis and pipeline performance evaluation using a GIS platform. The study addresses a range of issues relevant in the assessment of buried networks in areas affected by strong earthquakes and soil liquefaction. It discusses performance of different pipe materials (modern flexible pipelines and older brittle pipelines) including effects of pipe diameters, fittings and pipeline components/details, trench backfill characteristics, and severity of liquefaction. Detailed breakdown of key factors contributing to the damage to buried pipes is given with reference to the above and other relevant parameters. Particular attention is given to the interpretation, analysis and modelling of liquefaction effects on the damage and performance of the buried pipe networks. Clear link between liquefaction severity and damage rate for the pipeline has been observed with an increasing damage rate seen with increasing liquefaction severity. The approach taken here was to correlate the pipeline damage to LRI (Liquefaction Resistance Index, newly developed parameter in Cubrinovski et al., 2011) which represents a direct measure for the soil resistance to liquefaction while accounting for the seismic demand through PGA. Key quality of the adopted approach is that it provides a general methodology that in conjunction with conventional methods for liquefaction evaluation can be applied elsewhere in New Zealand and internationally. Preliminary correlations between pipeline damage (breaks km-1), liquefaction resistance (LRI) and seismic demand (PGA) have been developed for AC pipes, as an example. Such correlations can be directly used in the design and assessment of pipes in seismic areas both in liquefiable and non-liquefiable areas. Preliminary findings on the key factors for the damage to the potable water pipe network and established empirical correlations are presented including an overview of the damage to the waste water and road networks but with substantially less detail. A comprehensive summary of the damage data on the buried pipelines is given in a series of appendices.

Videos, UC QuakeStudies

A video of a tractor on a farm near River Road in Lincoln. The tractor is making several passes over a liquefaction blister with a rotary hoe. This was one of several soil-remediation techniques tested on farms affected by the 4 September 2010 earthquake.

Videos, UC QuakeStudies

A video of a tractor on a farm near River Road in Lincoln. The tractor is making a second pass over a liquefaction blister with a power harrow. This was one of several soil-remediation techniques tested on farms affected by the 4 September 2010 earthquake.

Articles, UC QuakeStudies

A poster produced by All Right? titled, Starting a community conversation about wellbeing in post-earthquake Christchurch. The poster outlines the three different phases of All Right, and how it is making a difference to people in Canterbury.

Videos, UC QuakeStudies

A video of a tractor on a farm near River Road in Lincoln. The tractor is making a several passes over a sand volcano with a rotary hoe. This was one of several soil-remediation techniques tested on farms affected by the 4 September 2010 earthquake.

Videos, UC QuakeStudies

A video of a tractor on a farm near River Road in Lincoln. The tractor is passing over a large sand volcano with a power harrow. This was one of several soil-remediation techniques tested on farms affected by the 4 September 2010 earthquake.

Audio, Radio New Zealand

A review of the week's news including... Laila Harre says she is returning to politics to lead the Internet Party because young people, in particular, have been ignored by politicians, Kim Dotcom's US lawyer says a bid by Hollywood's movie studios to have the Internet businessman's assets frozen here is a bid to ensure Mr Dotcom can't win in court in the United States, Fiordland's controversial 240 million dollar monorail is scrapped by the Conservation Minister, documents show WorkSafe New Zealand was still grappling to get on top of asbestos dangers in the Christchurch rebuild nearly two years after the February 2011 earthquake, a train smashes into a concrete barrier at a Lower Hutt station, the New Zealand First leader accuses a South Auckland Maori trust of mis-spending of hundreds of thousands of dollars of taxpayers money, the associate Immigration Minister stands by her decision not to intervene to allow a Fijian man with kidney failure who has since died in Fiji to stay in New Zealand for treatment, a British writer and academic's use of creative writing to help rehabilitate young offenders and sheep on a farm in Queenstown are being covered in a repellent spray to stop them being eaten alive by Kea.

Research papers, University of Canterbury Library

We present the initial findings from a study of adaptive resilience of lifelines organisations providing essential infrastructure services, in Christchurch, New Zealand following the earthquakes of 2010-2011. Qualitative empirical data was collected from 200 individuals in 11 organisations. Analysis using a grounded theory method identified four major factors that aid organisational response, recovery and renewal following major disruptive events. Our data suggest that quality of top and middle-level leadership, quality of external linkages, level of internal collaboration, ability to learn from experience, and staff well-being and engagement influence adaptive resilience. Our data also suggest that adaptive resilience is a process or capacity, not an outcome and that it is contextual. Post-disaster capacity/resources and post-disaster environment influence the nature of adaptive resilience.