Planning for tsunami evacuations: the case of the Marine Education Centre, Wellington, New Zealand

In 2007, the New Zealand Environment Court (W 082/2007) decided to uphold appeals relating to the effects of a Marine Education Centre proposed to be built on an exposed coastal site, susceptible to tsunami risk, south of Wellington city. This resulted in a significant ruling that applicants seeking resource consents for the establishment and operation of public facilities in areas susceptible to natural hazards should not overlook evacuation planning in their application.