Following the zone change announcement, a community meeting was organised by CERA on Friday 9th September. Hosted by Dr Jan Kupec, and the team of geologists who have been working in the port hills area since 22 February 2011, comprehensive explanations of the issues for residents including rock fall, land movement and life risk were discussed.

More than 9,700 residential properties in the Christchurch Port Hills area have been rezoned from white to green. About 3,700 properties remain in the white zone as further investigation is needed.  The issues in the Port Hills are different to those in the low lying plains areas where there has generally been widespread land damage from liquefaction and lateral spreading.

The New Zealand Government today released information that many home owners across the Christchurch and Canterbury region have been anxious to see.  Following geotechnical reports and consultation with seismologists, the Christchurch central region has now been mapped according to four main colours – Red, Orange, Green and White [DOWNLOAD MAP].  These zoned areas apply only to residential land parcels, and excludes parks, reserves, schools, commercial or crown land.