Navigating Seismic Hazard Updates and Performance Target Changes

John Hooper

Updates to National Seismic Hazard Models (NSHM) result in changes that affect the seismic design of buildings and infrastructure.  In some cases, these changes are small and the resulting seismic design parameters are minimally affected.  However, there are occasions where new information has been developed and the resulting NSHM predicts substantial increases in the seismic design parameters.  Using the updates in the United States as a case study, this presentation will outline how these major decisions were made to accommodate these changes, which provides update options that can be adopted elsewhere, including New Zealand.

In many counties, the seismic performance targets focus on Life Safety in the design event.  In many countries, including New Zealand and the United States, focusing on performance targets to accommodate community resilience are being considered.  Many different targets can be developed to achieve this goal. The second half of this presentation will describe the approach being undertaken in the United States to better achieve community resilience through targeting Functional Recovery.