Greater Christchurch Group Whole of Government Report Lessons from the Canterbury earthquake sequence 1 Contents 1. Minister’s Foreword ................................................................................................................................................... 5 2. Executive Summary .................................................................................................................................................... 6 2.1. Summary of the chapters .................................................................................................................................. 6 3. Context ..................................................................................................................................................................... 13 3.1. The Canterbury earthquake sequence ............................................................................................................ 13 3.2. Value of identifying lessons ............................................................................................................................. 14 4. Methodological Approach ....................................................................................................................................... 14 5. Recovery Governance Arrangements ..................................................................................................................... 16 5.1. Context .............................................................................................................................................................. 16 5.1.1. Civil defence emergency management framework ................................................................................ 16 5.1.2. Local governance in Canterbury .............................................................................................................. 18 5.2. Findings ............................................................................................................................................................. 18 5.3. Governance arrangements after the 4 September 2010 earthquake .......................................................... 19 5.3.1. Civil Defence Emergency Management response and early recovery .................................................. 19 5.3.2. Establishment of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Commission ................................................... 19 5.3.3. Challenges with the governance arrangements after 4 September 2010 ............................................ 20 5.4. Governance arrangements after the 22 February 2011 earthquake ............................................................ 20 5.4.1. Civil Defence Emergency Management response and early recovery .................................................. 20 5.4.2. Establishment of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority ........................................................ 21 5.4.3. Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority’s roles and responsibilities .............................................. 22 5.4.4. Setting up from scratch ............................................................................................................................ 24 5.5. Ensuring collaboration across the recovery sector ........................................................................................ 24 5.5.1. Working with recovery partners .............................................................................................................. 24 5.5.2. Confusion and tensions about roles and responsibilities ....................................................................... 26 5.6. Public participation and community engagement ......................................................................................... 27 5.6.1. Engagement on the Recovery Strategy ................................................................................................... 27 5.6.2. Engagement on the Christchurch Central Recovery Plan ....................................................................... 29 5.7. Transition to new governance arrangements ................................................................................................ 32 5.7.1. Development of a plan for transition ...................................................................................................... 32 5.7.2. Moving into the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet ......................................................... 32 5.7.3. Disestablishment of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority................................................... 33 5.7.4. Governance arrangements 2016-2021 ................................................................................................... 33 5.8. Effectiveness of the governance arrangements ............................................................................................. 34 5.8.1. New Zealand’s governance arrangements in the international context ............................................... 34 5.8.2. Public perception of effectiveness .......................................................................................................... 35 5.9. Summary of lessons on Recovery Governance Arrangements ...................................................................... 36 6. Recovery Legislation ................................................................................................................................................ 38 2 6.1. Context .............................................................................................................................................................. 38 6.1.1. Canterbury Earthquake Response and Recovery Act 2010 .................................................................... 38 6.2. Findings ............................................................................................................................................................. 38 6.3. The Effectiveness of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Act 2011 ........................................................... 39 6.3.1. The Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Act 2011 ..................................................................................... 39 6.3.2. Overall operation of the Act .................................................................................................................... 40 6.3.3. Input into decision-making under the Act ............................................................................................... 41 6.4. Special Powers under the Act .......................................................................................................................... 43 6.4.1. General use of the special powers .......................................................................................................... 44 6.4.2. Use of the power to amend other legislation (Orders in Council) ......................................................... 44 6.4.3. Challenges to the use of special powers in the Act and decision-making ............................................. 47 6.5. Summary of Lessons on Recovery Legislation ................................................................................................ 48 7. Land Decisions .......................................................................................................................................................... 49 7.1. Context .............................................................................................................................................................. 49 7.2. Findings ............................................................................................................................................................. 50 7.3. Land Zoning Decisions ...................................................................................................................................... 50 7.3.1. Assessing the Damage .............................................................................................................................. 50 7.3.2. Developing options for damaged land .................................................................................................... 50 7.3.3. Initial land zoning decisions ..................................................................................................................... 51 7.3.4. Review of ‘flat land’ zoning decisions ...................................................................................................... 53 7.3.5. Land zoning decisions in the Port Hills .................................................................................................... 53 7.4. Offers to Purchase Properties in the Most Damaged Areas .......................................................................... 54 7.4.1. Insured red zone properties..................................................................................................................... 54 7.4.3. Vacant, Insured commercial and uninsured improved red zone properties ........................................ 58 7.4.4. Rāpaki red zone properties and Te Ture Whenua Māori Act 1993 ....................................................... 60 7.4.5. Management of red zone land ................................................................................................................ 60 7.5. Summary of Lessons on Land Decisions .........................................................................................................