“Quiet” earthquake faults that could cause severe damage in the southern New Zealand city of Dunedin are the early focus of a research project funded by the Earthquake Commission (EQC).

University of Otago Chairman of Earthquake Science Mark Stirling says previous research on the Akatore Fault revealed potential risks, with the fault showing a period of calm for at least 100,000 years before three quakes over a relatively short spell.

“The biggest danger in an area such as Otago is that we don’t think there is going to be an earthquake on one of these “quiet” faults, so we don’t prepare as much as we would in somewhere like Wellington,” he said.

A “hit list” of fault lines to be studied starts with those most likely to affect Dunedin that have not previously been examined.

“First up is the Hyde Fault, which created the Rock and Pillar Range a long time ago, and would greatly affect Dunedin if it ruptured again,” Professor Stirling said.

The EQC has provided NZ$68,000 ($62,689) for the research, which will feed into the National Seismic Hazard Model, used to develop standards for building strength. In 1974 the EQC received 3000 claims after a magnitude-five earthquake struck offshore from Dunedin.