Doc #16 — NZ Topographic and Infrastructure Atlas

COMPUTED DATA: INFRASTRUCTURE INDEX AND ATLAS

View the Infrastructure Index → — Cities, ports, airports, power stations, hospitals, and industrial sites with coordinates and distance matrix.

View the generation script → — Python source code for generating tables and map overlays.

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RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

Immediate (Days 1–7)

1. Secure digital copies of all LINZ Topo50 vector data on at least three independent storage media. The Topo50 dataset is freely available under the LINZ Data Service and totals roughly 3–4 GB in vector format.¹
2. Secure Transpower’s GIS dataset of the national transmission grid — tower locations, conductor routes, substation coordinates, HVDC terminal locations. Transpower publishes simplified versions publicly; request the full operational dataset under emergency authority.²
3. Secure NZTA’s state highway and local road centreline data. Available through the NZTA Open Data portal.³
4. Identify GIS-capable personnel. LINZ, regional councils, universities, and engineering consultancies all employ staff with ArcGIS or QGIS skills. This is not a rare skillset.

Short-term (Days 7–30)

5. Design the atlas sheet layout and legend (see Sections 3–5 below).
6. Compile infrastructure layers from source datasets into a single GIS project.
7. Generate print-ready A3 PDF sheets for all regions.
8. Begin printing. Coordinate with overall printing schedule (Doc #5). The atlas totals approximately 110–120 sheets — a modest demand on printing resources relative to its value.

Medium-term (Months 2–6)

9. Distribute atlas sets to all Civil Defence Emergency Management Groups (16 CDEM Groups), regional councils, Transpower, NZTA, NZDF, police districts, and major hospitals.
10. Establish an annotation protocol (Section 7) so field reports of infrastructure damage, road closures, and facility status changes can be systematically recorded on atlas copies.

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1. DATA SOURCES

All data required for this atlas already exists within NZ government holdings. No new surveying or data collection is needed.

1.1 Topography and land cover

LINZ Topo50 Map Series. The Topo50 series consists of 451 sheets at 1:50,000 scale, covering all of New Zealand on the New Zealand Transverse Mercator 2000 (NZTM2000) projection using the New Zealand Geodetic Datum 2000 (NZGD2000).⁴ Vector data includes contours at 20 m intervals, spot heights, coastline, rivers, lakes, vegetation boundaries, and built-up areas. This is the authoritative topographic dataset for NZ and the foundation layer for the atlas.

NZSoSDEM (NZ School of Surveying Digital Elevation Model) and the LINZ 8 m DEM provide high-resolution elevation data for generating hill-shaded relief and elevation tinting.⁵

1.2 Transport

NZTA: State highway centrelines with route numbers, lane counts, and bridge locations. Local authority road centrelines. The full network totals approximately 94,000 km of road.⁶

KiwiRail: Rail network centrelines, station locations, marshalling yards, and port rail connections. NZ’s rail network totals approximately 3,730 km of track.⁷

Waka Kotahi / NZTA bridge data: Location, type, and weight rating of all road bridges — essential for routing heavy loads.⁸

1.3 Energy infrastructure

Transpower: The national grid consists of approximately 12,000 km of transmission lines at 220 kV, 110 kV, and 66 kV, linking generation to 155 substations (as of 2024).⁹ The HVDC link between Benmore (South Island) and Haywards (North Island) is a single critical asset.

Electricity Authority / MBIE: Generation site locations, type (hydro, geothermal, wind, gas, co-generation), and installed capacity. NZ has approximately 70–90 generation stations with capacity above 1 MW.¹⁰

Regional councils and lines companies: Distribution network data (33 kV and below) for local infrastructure mapping.

1.4 Ports, airports, and logistics

Maritime NZ / port companies: Locations, berth depths, crane capacity, and fuel storage at NZ’s 13 major commercial ports and numerous smaller harbours.¹¹

Civil Aviation Authority: Airport locations, runway lengths and surface types, fuel storage. NZ has approximately 25 airports with sealed runways over 1,000 m.¹²

Warehousing and distribution: Major distribution centres for fuel (Refining NZ / Channel Infrastructure at Marsden Point, bulk fuel terminals), food (Foodstuffs, Woolworths distribution centres), and general freight. Locations are commercially documented and known to regional councils.

1.5 Industrial and civic infrastructure

Key industrial sites: NZ Steel Glenbrook, Tiwai Point aluminium smelter, Methanex Motunui (methanol), Ballance Agri-Nutrients Kapuni, major dairy processing plants (Fonterra’s 28+ sites), major sawmills and timber processing (Red Stag Waipa, Kaingaroa complex), meat processing plants, cement works (Golden Bay Cement, Portland).¹³

Hospitals: All major public hospitals (approximately 40, including 6 tertiary centres) and regional hospitals. Locations available from Te Whatu Ora (Health New Zealand).¹⁴

Water supply: Major dams, treatment plants, and reservoir locations. Available from regional councils and Watercare (Auckland).¹⁵

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2. PROJECTION AND DATUM

All atlas sheets use the New Zealand Transverse Mercator 2000 (NZTM2000) projection on the New Zealand Geodetic Datum 2000 (NZGD2000) — the same system used by Topo50 and all modern NZ government mapping.¹⁶ This ensures that coordinates read from the atlas are directly compatible with any GPS receiver set to NZGD2000 (the default for GPS units sold in NZ) and with all other NZ government maps.

NZTM2000 is a conformal projection with a central meridian at 173 degrees East and a scale factor of 0.9996 at the central meridian. Grid convergence varies across the country but is documented on each sheet. A graticule of latitude/longitude at 30-minute intervals is overlaid on the NZTM grid for cross-reference with geographic coordinates.

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3. ATLAS ORGANISATION AND SHEET LAYOUT

3.1 Regional coverage sheets (1:500,000)

The atlas divides NZ into regional sheets at 1:500,000 scale on A3 paper (420 mm x 297 mm). At this scale, the printable area of an A3 sheet (approximately 380 mm x 260 mm, allowing for margins) covers roughly 190 km x 130 km per sheet.

Estimated sheet count:

Region	Sheets
Northland / Auckland	8–10
Waikato / Bay of Plenty	8–10
East Cape / Hawke’s Bay	6–8
Taranaki / Manawatu / Whanganui	6–8
Wellington / Wairarapa	4–6
Nelson / Marlborough	6–8
West Coast	6–8
Canterbury	8–10
Otago	6–8
Southland	4–6
Chatham Islands	2
Subtotal	~70–85

Sheets overlap by 10% at edges to allow continuous reading across sheet boundaries.

3.2 Urban and industrial inset sheets (1:100,000)

Detailed inset sheets at 1:100,000 for areas with dense infrastructure:

Area	Sheets	Key features shown
Auckland metropolitan	4	Ports of Auckland, Wiri oil terminal, Glenbrook, Penrose industrial area
Wellington / Hutt Valley	3	CentrePort, Haywards substation, Gracefield industrial area
Christchurch / Lyttelton	3	Port of Lyttelton, Islington substation, Hornby industrial area
Hamilton / Waikato	2	Huntly power station, dairy processing cluster
Tauranga / Mount Maunganui	2	Port of Tauranga, Kawerau industrial area
Dunedin / Port Chalmers	2	Port Otago, Hillside Engineering
Invercargill / Bluff	2	Tiwai Point smelter, South Port
New Plymouth / Taranaki	2	Port Taranaki, Motunui, Kapuni
Napier / Hastings	2	Napier Port, food processing cluster
Marsden Point / Whangarei	2	Refinery, Northport
Manapouri / Te Anau	2	Manapouri power station, tailrace tunnel
Waitaki valley	2	Benmore, Aviemore, Waitaki hydro chain
Wairakei / Taupo	2	Geothermal complex, Kinleith mill
Subtotal	~30

3.3 Index and reference sheets

• National overview sheet (1:2,500,000): Both islands on a single A3 sheet showing the national grid backbone, state highway network, major ports, and generation sites. Functions as an index to the regional sheets.
• Sheet index diagram: Shows the coverage area of each regional and inset sheet.
• Legend sheet: Full legend and symbology reference (Section 5).
• Annotation protocol sheet: Instructions for recording updates (Section 7).

Total atlas: approximately 105–120 A3 sheets.

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4. MAP LAYERS

Each regional sheet carries the following layers, printed in the colour scheme described in Section 5:

1. Topography: Hill-shaded relief with elevation tinting at 200 m intervals. Contours at 100 m intervals (regional sheets) or 20 m intervals (inset sheets). Spot heights for major peaks and passes.
2. Hydrography: Rivers, lakes, coastline, dam locations.
3. Road network: State highways (numbered), key local roads, bridges with weight ratings.
4. Rail network: Operational lines, stations, marshalling yards.
5. Power generation: Hydro dams (with installed capacity in MW), geothermal plants, wind farms, gas-fired stations, co-generation.
6. Transmission lines: 220 kV, 110 kV, and 66 kV lines. HVDC link. Major substations.
7. Ports and harbours: Commercial ports (with berth depth), coastal shipping facilities, boat ramps.
8. Airports and airstrips: Runway length and surface type.
9. Hospitals: Public hospitals with bed count category (small / medium / major).
10. Industrial sites: Steel, aluminium, petrochemical, dairy processing, meat processing, timber, cement, fertiliser.
11. Fuel storage: Bulk fuel terminals, Marsden Point facility.
12. Water infrastructure: Major dams, treatment plants, reservoirs.

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5. LEGEND AND SYMBOLOGY

The following symbology is designed for black-and-white printing with limited colour. If colour printing is available, the colour scheme below improves readability. If only black-and-white is available, line weights and dash patterns provide differentiation.

LEGEND — NZ Topographic and Infrastructure Atlas

TOPOGRAPHY
  ░░░░░░░  Elevation tinting (200 m bands, lightest = sea level)
  ───────  Contour line (100 m interval, brown/grey)
  ▲ 2518   Spot height (metres above mean sea level)

TRANSPORT
  ═══ 1 ══  State Highway (red/heavy black, numbered)
  ────────  Local road — sealed (black, medium weight)
  - - - -   Local road — unsealed (black, dashed)
  ┣━━━━━━┫  Rail line (black, cross-hatched)
  ○         Rail station
  ◊  12t    Bridge (with weight rating in tonnes)

ENERGY
  ◆  250MW  Hydro dam (blue, with capacity)
  ●  55MW   Geothermal plant (orange/dark grey, with capacity)
  ✦  36MW   Wind farm (green/light grey, with capacity)
  ■  200MW  Thermal / gas plant (black, with capacity)
  ══════    220 kV transmission line (red/heavy dashed)
  ──────    110 kV transmission line (orange/medium dashed)
  ------    66 kV transmission line (light dashed)
  □         Substation (with voltage level)
  ≋≋≋≋≋≋   HVDC link (double line)

PORTS AND AIRPORTS
  ⚓  8.5m   Port (with maximum berth depth in metres)
  ✈  1800m  Airport (with runway length)

INDUSTRIAL AND CIVIC
  ★         Major industrial site (labelled)
  +         Hospital (with bed count category)
  ▽         Fuel terminal / bulk storage
  ◇         Water treatment plant / major reservoir

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6. PRINT SPECIFICATIONS

Paper: A3 (420 mm x 297 mm), landscape orientation. Standard 80 gsm office paper is adequate for working copies. For field use, lamination or 120+ gsm card stock is preferred.

Printing: Colour laser printing is strongly preferred for layer differentiation. If colour is unavailable, the symbology above is designed to remain legible in black-and-white using line weight and pattern variation.

Binding: Ring binding or loose-leaf in a folder allows individual sheets to be removed for field use and replaced when updated.

Print run estimate: A minimum of 30 complete sets for national distribution — 16 CDEM Groups, Transpower, NZTA, KiwiRail, NZDF (3 service branches), police national headquarters, Ministry of Health, two archive copies. Each set is approximately 110 sheets. Total: approximately 3,300 A3 sheets for the initial run, plus additional sets as printing capacity allows.¹⁷

Printing time: At a typical A3 colour laser printer speed of 15–20 pages per minute, one complete atlas set takes roughly 6–8 minutes of print time. The bottleneck is not speed but toner and drum consumption. Laser printer toner cartridges and photoconductor drums are entirely imported — NZ has no domestic manufacturing capability for either. Toner is a precision-manufactured polymer powder (typically styrene-acrylate copolymer with iron oxide or carbon black pigment, wax, and charge control agents) that cannot be substituted or refilled to original quality with locally available materials. Drums degrade with use and eventually produce print artefacts; typical drum life is 20,000–60,000 pages depending on the unit.¹⁸ Once existing stocks of cartridges and drums are exhausted, laser printing ceases — making early atlas production a time-critical use of a non-renewable resource (see Doc #5 for overall printing resource allocation). Thirty sets consume approximately 3,300 A3 sheets — a manageable fraction of printing resources allocated under Doc #5.

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7. ANNOTATION AND UPDATE PROTOCOL

The atlas is a snapshot of infrastructure as of its print date. Post-event changes — road closures, bridge failures, power station outages, facility damage — must be recorded systematically.

7.1 Standard annotation marks

Symbol	Meaning
✕ (red)	Destroyed / non-functional
⊘ (orange)	Damaged / partially functional
✓ (green)	Confirmed operational (post-assessment)
── ✕ ──	Road or line blocked at marked point
Date + initials	All annotations must be dated and attributed

7.2 Annotation procedure

1. Field teams annotate their copy based on direct observation.
2. Regional coordinators compile field reports onto a master regional copy, updating daily during the initial weeks.
3. National planners compile regional updates onto a master national set, held at the national coordination centre.
4. Revised sheets may be reprinted if changes are extensive enough to render the original unreadable, but only while printing resources remain available.

7.3 Situation reporting

The atlas sheet numbering system provides a common spatial reference for situation reports. A report reading “Bridge on SH1 at sheet N-AKL-03, grid ref E1758200 N5923500, destroyed — 40t rating, no bypass within 15 km” conveys precise, unambiguous location.

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8. RELATIONSHIP TO EXISTING MAP PRODUCTS

This atlas does not replace the LINZ Topo50 series. Topo50 provides far greater topographic detail at 1:50,000 — essential for fieldwork, route-finding in rough terrain, and detailed engineering. But the Topo50 series runs to 451 sheets, does not include infrastructure overlay data (power lines, generation sites, industrial facilities), and is designed for general-purpose topographic reference rather than infrastructure logistics.

The atlas also does not replace NZ nautical charts (maintained by LINZ’s hydrographic authority) or aeronautical charts. It is specifically an infrastructure logistics product.

Existing printed Topo50 sheets held by DOC offices, tramping clubs, libraries, and military should be secured and catalogued as part of the broader document preservation effort. They are complementary to this atlas, not duplicated by it.

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9. SUPPLEMENTARY GEOGRAPHIC DATA LAYERS

Government GIS databases capture surveyed infrastructure and topography. They do not capture several categories of geographic knowledge that become operationally important under recovery conditions: locally-known travel routes not on any road map, productive wild food sites, sensitive areas that field teams should avoid, and governance boundaries that matter when formal state capacity is stretched. This section specifies supplementary data layers that should be compiled from local knowledge holders and incorporated into the atlas.

9.1 Dual-language place names

New Zealand’s landscape carries two parallel naming systems. English-language names — often descriptive, commemorative, or simply transliterations — are used in LINZ data. Māori ingoa wāhi (place names) frequently encode geographic, ecological, and historical information that is directly relevant to recovery logistics:

• River crossings, spring locations, and seasonal water sources are often embedded in place names (e.g., Waipā — water of the Pā; Waitematā — obsidian waters, reflecting the volcanic geology of Tāmaki Makaurau).
• Terrain character — cliffs, swamps, dense bush — is often encoded in names (Whanganui — great harbour/bay; Tararua — two peaks side by side, useful for wayfinding).
• Resource locations — mahinga kai (food-gathering places), stands of useful timber, medicinal plants — are frequently preserved in Māori geographic terminology where the landscape has not been extensively modified.

English place names also encode useful information, though less systematically: “Swamp Road” tells you the terrain; “Coalgate” (Canterbury) tells you what was mined there; “Goldfields Road” identifies mineral resources. Both naming systems contribute to a richer geographic reference.

Atlas sheets should include Māori place names alongside English names for all significant geographic features: rivers, mountains, harbours, ranges, and valleys. Where a feature has both an official English name and an established Māori ingoa wāhi, both should be shown. This makes the atlas more useful to all field teams — Māori-speaking coordinators can use it directly, and English-speaking users gain access to geographic information encoded in Māori names that has no English equivalent.¹⁹

The New Zealand Geographic Board Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa (NZGB) maintains the official database of Māori place names, many of which are already incorporated in LINZ Topo50 data. However, LINZ’s coverage of te reo Māori names is incomplete, particularly for minor features. Regional councils and local iwi hold more complete local records.

9.2 Local travel routes and access knowledge

As fuel constraints tighten (Phase 3 onward) and road maintenance capacity declines, movement by foot, horse, and bicycle on routes not shown on standard road maps becomes increasingly relevant. Several sources of route knowledge exist in NZ:

Māori ara (traditional travel routes). Māori ara were established over centuries of movement between settlements, seasonal resource areas, and regions. Many follow terrain logic — ridge lines, river valleys, passes — that remains valid for non-motorised travel. Some ara have been documented by historians and tribal knowledge holders; others remain in living memory with kaumātua (elders). Where this knowledge can be recovered and mapped, it should be incorporated as an additional layer on atlas sheets.²⁰

Tramping and backcountry routes. The Department of Conservation, Federated Mountain Clubs, and regional tramping clubs maintain detailed knowledge of backcountry tracks, routes, hut locations, river crossings, and terrain hazards. DOC’s track network (approximately 14,000 km of maintained tracks) is partially mapped in LINZ data, but local tramping clubs hold knowledge of informal routes, alternative river crossings, and terrain conditions that is not in any database. This knowledge becomes operationally useful when roads are impassable or fuel-constrained.

Farm access and stock routes. Rural NZ has an extensive network of farm tracks, stock routes, and informal roads that do not appear on LINZ maps. These routes are known to local farmers and often provide the only practical access to remote hill-country communities. Regional councils and Federated Farmers branches can assist in compiling this information.

Atlas regional supplements should incorporate locally-sourced route information from all three categories, clearly labelled by source and reliability.

9.3 Wild food sites and resource locations

Under food-constrained conditions (Phases 2-3), knowledge of productive wild food sites becomes directly relevant to survival. Several categories of site information should be compiled:

Māori mahinga kai. Traditional mahinga kai locations — coastal fishing grounds, eeling streams, fernroot areas, berry-gathering sites, seabird colonies — represent established, tested sources of nutritional resources that are not mapped in any infrastructure database. This knowledge is held by iwi and hapu communities. Regional supplements to the atlas, compiled in partnership with local iwi, should mark known mahinga kai where permission has been granted for inclusion.²¹

Recreational fishing and gathering sites. NZ’s recreational fishers, whitebaiters, and shellfish gatherers hold detailed knowledge of productive sites — specific rock platforms for paua, river reaches for trout, coastal areas for surfcasting, whitebaiting stands on particular rivers. Fish & Game NZ, local fishing clubs, and regional councils hold partial records; the rest is community knowledge. Unlike mahinga kai, this knowledge is generally not culturally restricted and can be compiled more readily.

Foraging sites. Knowledge of productive watercress streams, blackberry patches, mushroom areas, and other edible wild plant locations is held informally by rural communities and foraging enthusiasts. While individually minor, these sites collectively contribute to nutritional supplementation.

Other resource locations. Locations of useful natural resources not mapped in government databases — clay deposits suitable for pottery or brick-making, natural abrasive stone outcrops, stands of timber species with specific useful properties — are known to local communities and should be compiled where practical.

9.4 Sensitive sites

Recovery operations — clearing debris, rebuilding structures, routing supply lines — may inadvertently disturb sites of significance. Two categories warrant atlas notation:

Wāhi tapu — Māori sacred and culturally significant sites. Urupā (burial grounds), tūāhu (shrines), and other wāhi tapu are not systematically mapped in LINZ data, though some are recorded in regional council GIS databases and on the Heritage New Zealand register. The atlas should provide a wāhi tapu overlay layer (in consultation with relevant iwi) that marks known sensitive sites, allowing field teams to avoid unnecessary disturbance. This is both a matter of cultural respect and practical harm reduction — disturbing wāhi tapu during a recovery crisis will generate justified community opposition that undermines coordination.²²

Heritage and archaeological sites. NZ has registered heritage sites — historic buildings, archaeological sites, pioneer cemeteries, early industrial sites — recorded by Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga. While less politically charged than wāhi tapu, damage to heritage sites during recovery operations wastes irreplaceable historical resources. A heritage site layer, drawn from the existing Heritage New Zealand database, should be included on atlas inset sheets for urban and peri-urban areas where construction and earthworks are most likely.

9.5 Governance and community boundaries

Rohe — iwi and hapū territorial boundaries. Rohe are the traditional territorial boundaries of iwi (tribes) and hapū (subtribes). They reflect centuries of occupation, resource management, and inter-tribal negotiation. Rohe boundaries are relevant to recovery planning in several ways:

• Coordination. In a scenario where formal government capacity is stretched, iwi governance structures may be the most effective mechanism for organising resource allocation, mutual aid, and public order within rohe. Knowing which iwi holds mana (authority) over a given geographic area helps recovery coordinators engage with the appropriate decision-makers (see Doc #150 for governance implications).
• Consent and legitimacy. Infrastructure operations within a rohe — establishing supply depots, routing convoys, accessing specific resources — will be more effective if conducted in partnership with the relevant iwi. Coordination failure on this dimension in previous NZ emergencies has produced significant delays.
• Resource knowledge. Iwi hold knowledge of resources within their rohe that no government database contains.

Te Arawhiti (the Office for Māori Crown Relations) and the Waitangi Tribunal hold documented rohe boundaries. These should be included as a clearly labelled reference layer on atlas regional sheets.²³

Other community boundaries. In addition to rohe, the atlas should show boundaries of existing administrative structures that become important coordination units under recovery: Civil Defence Emergency Management Group boundaries (16 groups nationally), regional council boundaries, territorial authority boundaries, and — for rural areas — Federated Farmers branch boundaries and catchment-based community groupings. These layers allow field teams and coordinators to identify the appropriate local authority for any geographic area.

9.6 Supplementary layer production

The atlas specification in Section 3 should be extended to include the supplementary layers described above:

• Dual-language place names on all regional sheets, drawing on NZGB records and supplemented by iwi-supplied names for features not in the NZGB database.
• Route overlays (ara, tramping routes, farm access) on regional sheets, particularly for areas where road access is vulnerable.
• Wild food site notation (mahinga kai, recreational fishing sites, foraging areas) on regional sheets where knowledge holders have consented to inclusion.
• Sensitive site indicators (wāhi tapu, heritage sites) on regional and inset sheets, marked at a level of specificity that allows avoidance without creating a guide to sensitive site locations.
• Rohe boundary layer with iwi names in te reo Māori, plus CDEM Group and regional council boundaries.

Compiling these supplementary layers requires engagement with multiple knowledge-holding communities — iwi and hapū, tramping clubs, fishing clubs, farming communities, Heritage New Zealand — during the atlas compilation process, not after. The LINZ data compilation (recommended action 1) and the community engagement process should run in parallel, not sequentially. The Māori engagement component requires direct iwi-by-iwi consultation and must respect the authority of each iwi over what knowledge is shared; other community sources can be engaged through existing organisational structures (DOC, Fish & Game, Federated Farmers, NZART branches).

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CRITICAL UNCERTAINTIES

• Data currency. The atlas reflects the state of databases at the time of compilation. Infrastructure built or modified after the last database update will be absent. For most datasets, updates are annual or more frequent, so the gap is small.
• Printing capability. The atlas is only useful if it can be printed. If large-format colour printing is unavailable, black-and-white A3 copies are still functional but significantly less readable: layer differentiation drops from colour-coded identification (near-instant) to line-weight and dash-pattern discrimination (requires close inspection and legend reference). In areas with dense infrastructure overlay — urban inset sheets especially — black-and-white copies may become difficult to interpret without training.
• GIS software and personnel. Compilation requires GIS software (QGIS is open-source and available) and a skilled operator. If no GIS-capable personnel are available, a simplified version could be compiled from existing printed maps with manual overlay, but the performance gap is substantial: manual compilation would take weeks rather than days, positional accuracy degrades from metre-level (GIS) to hundreds of metres (manual tracing), and systematic layer alignment across sheet boundaries becomes error-prone. The resulting product would still be far more useful than no atlas, but would require field verification of critical coordinates.
• Post-event accuracy. The atlas cannot predict what infrastructure survives the initial event. It documents what existed beforehand. Systematic field assessment (Section 7) is required to establish current state.

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CROSS-REFERENCES

Document	Relevance
Doc #5 — National Printing Capability	Printing schedule and resource allocation for atlas production
Doc #156 — Skills Census	Skills identification for GIS operators; infrastructure inventory feeds atlas updates
Doc #22 — NZ Geological and Mineral Resource Atlas	Companion atlas product — mineral resources rather than infrastructure
Doc #28 — NZ Water Resources Atlas	Companion atlas product — detailed water infrastructure
Doc #53 — Fuel Allocation Model	Transport network data from the atlas informs fuel distribution routing
Doc #67 — Transpower Grid Operations	Detailed grid operations; atlas provides the spatial reference for grid planning
Doc #89 — NZ Steel: Glenbrook Operations	Industrial site shown on atlas; detailed operations in dedicated document
Doc #150 — Treaty of Waitangi and Māori Governance	Iwi governance structures and rohe territories relevant to recovery coordination; rohe layer on atlas sheets
Doc #160 — Heritage Skills Preservation	Traditional knowledge (mahinga kai, ara, resource locations) provides geographic intelligence to supplement LINZ data; atlas is spatial framework for traditional geographic knowledge held by iwi and hapū

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FOOTNOTES

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1. Land Information New Zealand (LINZ), “Topo50 Map Series.” The Topo50 series is NZ’s primary topographic map product, consisting of 451 sheets at 1:50,000 scale on the NZTM2000 projection. Vector data is freely available through the LINZ Data Service (https://data.linz.govt.nz). Accessed 2025.↩︎

2. Transpower New Zealand, “Transmission Network.” Transpower operates approximately 12,000 km of high-voltage transmission lines and 155 substations, including the HVDC Inter-Island link between Benmore and Haywards. See https://www.transpower.co.nz. Grid asset data is partially available through Transpower’s public maps; full operational data would require direct provision under emergency authority.↩︎

3. Waka Kotahi / NZ Transport Agency, “State Highway and Local Road Network Data.” NZ’s road network totals approximately 94,000 km. Open data available at https://opendata-nzta.opendata.arcgis.com. Accessed 2025.↩︎

4. Land Information New Zealand (LINZ), “Topo50 Map Series.” The Topo50 series is NZ’s primary topographic map product, consisting of 451 sheets at 1:50,000 scale on the NZTM2000 projection. Vector data is freely available through the LINZ Data Service (https://data.linz.govt.nz). Accessed 2025.↩︎

5. LINZ provides digital elevation model data at various resolutions through the LINZ Data Service. The national 8 m DEM is suitable for hill-shaded relief generation. Higher resolution LiDAR-derived DEMs are available for some regions.↩︎

6. Waka Kotahi / NZ Transport Agency, “State Highway and Local Road Network Data.” NZ’s road network totals approximately 94,000 km. Open data available at https://opendata-nzta.opendata.arcgis.com. Accessed 2025.↩︎

7. KiwiRail, “Our Network.” NZ’s rail network totals approximately 3,730 km of track, predominantly 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) narrow gauge. See https://www.kiwirail.co.nz. Includes the North Island Main Trunk, Main South Line, and various branch lines.↩︎

8. Waka Kotahi / NZ Transport Agency, “Bridge Data.” NZTA maintains a national bridge database including location, structural type, design loading, and posted weight limits. Available through the NZTA Open Data portal at https://opendata-nzta.opendata.arcgis.com. NZ has approximately 4,500 road bridges on the state highway and local road network.↩︎

9. Transpower New Zealand, “Transmission Network.” Transpower operates approximately 12,000 km of high-voltage transmission lines and 155 substations, including the HVDC Inter-Island link between Benmore and Haywards. See https://www.transpower.co.nz. Grid asset data is partially available through Transpower’s public maps; full operational data would require direct provision under emergency authority.↩︎

10. Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), “Electricity Generation Data.” MBIE publishes generation station data including location, fuel type, and installed capacity. NZ’s installed generation capacity is approximately 9,500–10,000 MW across approximately 70–90 stations above 1 MW capacity (the count varies depending on whether co-located units are counted as single or separate stations). See https://www.mbie.govt.nz/building-and-energy/energy-and-n...↩︎

11. Maritime NZ and individual port companies. NZ has 13 major commercial ports: Whangarei (Northport), Auckland, Tauranga, Napier, New Plymouth, Wellington (CentrePort), Nelson, Picton, Lyttelton, Timaru, Port Chalmers (Port Otago), Bluff (South Port), and Marsden Point (primarily fuel). Berth depths and facilities vary; the Port of Tauranga is NZ’s largest by cargo volume.↩︎

12. Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand. Major airports with sealed runways exceeding 1,000 m include Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Queenstown, Dunedin, Hamilton, Palmerston North, Napier, New Plymouth, Rotorua, Tauranga, Nelson, Blenheim, Invercargill, Hokitika, and several others. Runway specifications are published in the NZ Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP).↩︎

13. Individual company sources. NZ Steel (https://www.nzsteel.co.nz) operates the Glenbrook works south of Auckland. New Zealand Aluminium Smelters Ltd operates the Tiwai Point smelter near Bluff. Methanex (https://www.methanex.com) operates the Motunui methanol plant in Taranaki. Ballance Agri-Nutrients (https://www.ballance.co.nz) operates the Kapuni urea plant. Fonterra (https://www.fonterra.com) operates 28+ dairy processing sites nationally. Golden Bay Cement operates NZ’s sole Portland cement clinker plant at Portland, Whangarei. Site locations are documented in regional council GIS databases and MBIE industrial records.↩︎

14. Te Whatu Ora (Health New Zealand), established July 2022, replacing the 20 District Health Boards. Hospital locations and service levels are publicly documented. NZ has approximately 40 public hospitals of varying size, including 6 major tertiary hospitals (Auckland, Middlemore, Waikato, Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin). See https://www.tewhatuora.govt.nz.↩︎

15. Regional councils hold consented water supply infrastructure data under the Resource Management Act 1991. Watercare Services Ltd (https://www.watercare.co.nz) manages Auckland’s water supply infrastructure including the Hunua and Waitakere dams, treatment plants, and reservoir network. Other major metropolitan water suppliers include Wellington Water, Christchurch City Council, and the various entities under the (since-restructured) Three Waters reform programme.↩︎

16. LINZ, “New Zealand Geodetic Datum 2000 and New Zealand Transverse Mercator 2000.” NZGD2000 is a geocentric datum aligned with the International Terrestrial Reference Frame (ITRF96) at epoch 2000.0. NZTM2000 has a central meridian of 173 degrees E and a scale factor of 0.9996 at the central meridian. See https://www.linz.govt.nz/guidance/geodetic-system/coordin...↩︎

17. Print volume estimate assumes 110 sheets per set at A3. Thirty sets = 3,300 sheets. At approximately 5–15% toner coverage per sheet (maps vary widely depending on terrain shading and colour layers — 5% for sparse sheets, up to 15% for densely featured urban insets), toner consumption is moderate to significant. Colour toner consumption will be higher than for text documents but lower than for photographic printing.↩︎

18. Laser printer drum and toner specifications vary by manufacturer. Typical photoconductor drum life: 20,000–60,000 pages for standard units; high-yield drums may reach 100,000 pages. Toner yield per cartridge varies from approximately 3,000 pages (standard) to 15,000 pages (high-yield) at 5% coverage. At the higher coverage rates typical of map printing (5–15%), effective yield per cartridge decreases proportionally. These are entirely imported consumables with no NZ manufacturing capability. See Doc #5 for overall consumable inventory and allocation.↩︎

19. New Zealand Geographic Board Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa (NZGB). “New Zealand Gazetteer of Official Geographic Names.” https://gazetteer.linz.govt.nz — The NZGB is responsible for determining and recording official geographic names in New Zealand, including Māori ingoa wāhi. Many Māori place names have been incorporated into LINZ Topo50, but coverage is incomplete for minor features. Regional iwi and hapū hold more complete records for their rohe. King M. “The Penguin History of New Zealand.” Penguin Books, 2003, provides historical context on the naming conventions and their geographic significance.↩︎

20. Reed AW. “Place Names of New Zealand.” A.H. and A.W. Reed, 1975. Also: Best E. “The Pa Maori.” Dominion Museum Bulletin No. 6, 1927 (reprinted 1975). Traditional Māori ara (trails) have been partially documented in historical and ethnographic literature and in iwi oral traditions. Many ara used terrain logic — ridge travel, river fords, passes — that remains valid for non-motorised movement. The knowledge of specific ara is held variably by iwi and is not consolidated in any national database.↩︎

21. Bielski U. “Mahinga Kai — The Customary Gathering of Food: A Literature Review.” Prepared for Environment Canterbury, 2013. Mahinga kai — the customary gathering of food and the places where food is gathered — encompasses coastal fisheries, freshwater eeling and fishing, bird-snaring areas, and plant-gathering sites. These locations reflect centuries of ecological knowledge and remain productive where habitats have not been heavily modified. Their documentation is held by iwi and hapū and is not consolidated in any government dataset. Any mapping of mahinga kai locations requires explicit consent from the relevant iwi.↩︎

22. New Zealand Heritage List / Rārangi Kōrero. Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga. https://www.heritage.org.nz — Some wāhi tapu are protected under the Historic Places Act 1993 and recorded in the Heritage New Zealand database, but coverage is far from comprehensive. Regional council GIS databases hold additional records. Full wāhi tapu mapping requires direct engagement with iwi, who determine what information can be shared and at what level of specificity.↩︎

23. Te Arawhiti / Office for Māori Crown Relations. “Iwi Rohe.” https://www.tearawhiti.govt.nz — Te Arawhiti maintains reference mapping of iwi rohe boundaries for government coordination purposes. These boundaries reflect historical occupation and Treaty settlements. Under Doc #150 (Treaty of Waitangi and Māori Governance), iwi governance structures have a recognized role in post-event coordination that is grounded in both legal and practical foundations.↩︎