Waihi Fault Zone
| Waihi fault zone | |
|---|---|
| Waihi North fault, Waihi South fault | |
| Volcanic arc/belt | Taupō Volcanic Zone |
| New Zealand geology database (includes faults) | |
The Waihi Fault Zone is a seismically active area of the central North Island of New Zealand whose earthquakes have been associated with significant loss of life.
Geology
The intra-rift Waihi Fault Zone extends at least 38 kilometres (24 mi) from Little Waihi at Lake Taupō towards
Poutu fault zone to the east, by about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi), is parallel to the Waihi fault.[3] The active Taurewa and Rotopounamu faults that have been separately named by some are now assigned to the two fault zones.[2][4] To the west of the Waihi Fault Zone the National Park Fault is the current western wall fault for the modern Taupo rift.[4]
Risks
Large landslides have occurred in the Hipaua Steaming Cliffs area of the Waihi fault escarpment and it is likely that some the large historical loss of life by New Zealand standards from these landslides has been related to earthquake activity on the fault.[5]
References
- ^ New Zealand Active Fault database
- ^ doi:10.1130/B31657.1.
- ^ .
- ^ a b c "Active fault mapping in the south western bays (Pukawa, Omori, Kuratau) of Lake Taupō: Response to requests 2021" (PDF). Retrieved 19 April 2023.
- ^ Severne, C.M.; Hochstein, M.P. (1994). "Heat and mass transfer of the Hipaua thermal area (Tokaanu – Waihi geothermal area) Lake Taupo, New Zealand" (PDF).