Managing water resources for fighting wildland-urban / interface fires in New Zealand : a GIS-based approach to better management in the Port Hills of Christchurch

Abstract

Wildfires are one of the most devastating and widespread natural disasters on earth. Many of today's wildfires are increasingly devastating as more people begin to inhabit fringe environments where structures are located within close proximity to wild-lands; the term Rural Urban Interface (RUI) has been coined to describe these communities. Contrary to what many believe, New Zealand is a land threatened by wildfire and the growth of an ever-expanding RUI. It is the responsibility of New Zealand's fire authorities to address the wildfire threat in New Zealand, and develop better management practises in order to prevent and suppress wildfires. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are a set of tools that assist fire managers in all aspects of fire prevention and suppression by connecting multiple layers of information through their geographic coordinates. This paper addresses the need for GIS based fire management tools in New Zealand by looking at how GIS can assist a fire manager in the maintenance, coverage and placement of water sources used for aerial fire suppression. Water is the most widely used extinguishing agent used to suppress wildfires, and its proper management is key to any fire authority's overall fire management plan. This paper aims to work within current frameworks laid out by the New Zealand Rural Fire Authority's Wildfire Threat Analysis (WTA) Project, and looks into ways for fire authorities throughout New Zealand to utilise GIS-based fire management strategies.