Tougher rules for shaky high-rises

By SIMON COLLINS

The owners of up to one in 10 New Zealand high-rise buildings face huge bills to meet higher earthquake engineering standards.

Costs could run into billions of dollars, and some buildings may have to be demolished.

Commerce Minister Lianne Dalziel said the Building Act would be changed to toughen provisions for earthquake-prone buildings.

And the minister put the construction industry on notice to lift its performance.

Ms Dalziel said a report by structural engineer John Scarry in March had exposed "clear examples of sloppy practices" in some modern Auckland high-rise buildings.

His scathing report said leaky buildings were "only the tip of an iceberg" of declining standards right across the building industry and that building standards in Auckland were consistent with a "Third World country".

A study by engineers Sinclair Knight Merz, ordered by the Building Industry Authority in response to the Scarry report, has found "significant concern" about some pre-cast flooring systems, excessively thin concrete walls and other elements in recent buildings.

Further research on these issues has been commissioned from researchers at Auckland and Canterbury universities.

Ms Dalziel said she was "comforted" that the Institution of Professional Engineers had found it had not been made aware of any specific buildings that might pose a major threat or immediate risk in an earthquake.

"There are, however, clear examples of sloppy practices in the industry, and the performance of certain types of construction are questionable," she said.

" This report confirms that the building industry must significantly improve its performance."

She said many buildings, particularly those built before the earthquake code was tightened in 1976, did not meet engineering standards.

The Building Act would be changed to include tougher provisions for earthquake-prone buildings.

The act is already being revised after the leaky buildings scandal to require the licensing of all builders, architects and building engineers and to certify that new buildings comply with the building code.













Under new earthquake standards, about 10 per cent of buildings in Wellington of three storeys or more would officially be "earthquake-prone". One and two-storey buildings would not be affected.

The cost of extending these standards nationally is estimated to run to several billion dollars.

Property Council national director Chris Simpson said building owners would seek compensation if they were forced to upgrade their buildings.

"That cost would have to be absorbed by the property owner or passed on to the tenant, or you'd have to sit down with local and central government to properly investigate the issue on a building-by-building basis and see what resources are available," he said.

In Wellington, where older buildings have been forced to upgrade over the past 10 years, the city council contributes to the costs of engineering designs and other work under its policy of conserving heritage buildings.

Ms Dalziel said it was too early to talk about compensation in other parts of New Zealand for buildings designated as earthquake-prone.

She said the proposed Building Act changes would be introduced to Parliament next month.

They would then go to a select committee, and would be open for public submissions.

Mr Scarry said last night that he fully agreed with the measures that the Government was taking to tighten controls on the building industry.

He said it was a "false economy" to object to the slight increase in building costs that would be required to meet higher standards.

"Doing it right the first time is very cost-efficient."

Earthquake proofing:



The Government's new earthquake-proofing measures for buildings include:

Requiring earthquake-prone buildings to be upgraded to comply "as near as reasonably practicable" with the building code.

Abolishing a definition of earthquake-prone buildings as being built from unreinforced concrete or masonry. Some buildings built with reinforced concrete and other materials are believed to be earthquake-prone.

Requiring local bodies to develop policies to require remedial work on earthquake-prone buildings.

Giving building owners rights of appeal.