New Zealand has created a National Landslide Database to capture all current and future landslide information from local and regional councils, government entities and geotechnical consultants.

The Earthquake Commission (EQC) has been working closely with the Auckland Council, GNS Science, NZTA and Kiwirail to develop the database.

Earlier this month, the North Island city of Napier was struck by flooding and landslips after torrential rain, forcing dozens of people out of their homes and hundreds more without power.

“The landslides in Napier demonstrated again that landslips are a major risk to people and property in New Zealand, which we need to understand and manage,” EQC Chief Resilience and Research Officer Jo Horrocks said.

GNS Science research has identified around 1800 fatalities from landslides in New Zealand over the past 160 years – significantly more than earthquakes casualties over the same period – and landslides cost the country an average of $NZ250 million to $NZ300 million ($237 million to $284 million) each year.

No single entity has had overall responsibility for managing landslide information.

“This will give us a much better understanding of vulnerable land, which is the deciding factor for damage from natural hazards,” Ms Horrocks said. “To build more resilient buildings, we need to know where landslides exist and where they may occur in the future.”