Flooding, landslips, rockfalls, ground shaking - they are among a variety of hazards the township of Glenorchy is susceptible to, an Otago Regional Council report says.
Although councillors at last Wednesday's engineering and hazards committee meeting noted there was nothing new in the "Natural Hazards at Glenorchy" report, it was important it did not just sit on a shelf, they said.
Cr Michael Deaker said the information in the report was a concern and although Glenorchy was a seductively beautiful place, it was also at high risk.
"The only thing it doesn't have is an Icelandic volcano and a bikie gang."Environmental engineering and natural hazards director Dr Gavin Palmer said the investigation drew on other studies collated by the council on hazards such as alluvial fans and seismic events, and brought them all together.
While the risk of lake flooding had been known for some time, the hazard from the Dart and Rees Rivers was more subtle, he said.
The township was located on an alluvial fan and development had encroached on the lower part of the fan which had more of a flood risk, he said.
It was information the Queenstown Lakes District Council could use to inform documents such as its district plan, but it was up to that council as to how it chose to use it.
Cr Bryan Scott said one would expect the district council to use the information to "bring some teeth to future growth and development" in Glenorchy.
"Surely to goodness, the ORC has some responsibility to drive though its use for the good of the community long term.
I hope it will not be another report to sit on the shelf."Cr Duncan Butcher said he wanted to ensure the document was included in the district council's systems so a "light flashed" whenever work was planned for the area, as it had failed to in the past, such as in the 1999 floods.
Cr Deaker said populations, both actual and potential, in the district were just as dynamic as the landscape and might not be aware of the high level of hazard in the area.
"We need to do our best to pass [awareness] on to as many people as possible."
Chairman Stephen Cairns said the regional council had been working closely with the district council, as well as at a national level, on the issues, as they were a problem facing every local authority.
"At the end of the day it comes down to personal responsibility. If you chose to live in this community you have got to accept the risks."
Glenorchy was included in the joint flood strategy between the councils, he said.
Regional council chief executive Graeme Martin said if people were well informed, when things went wrong their grief should not be transferred to the public purse in calls for structures to be built to protect them.
The first step with the report was to discuss it with the district council, and then both organisations would take it to the community, he said.
