We adopted the official height standard for New Zealand called Vertical Datum 2016 (NZVD2016) on 19 August 2024.
Official Christchurch height measurements
In surveying terminology, a vertical datum is a starting point or a reference point for measuring heights and depths. Just as latitude and longitude help us locate places on the Earth’s surface, vertical datums help us measure elevations and depths.
We have used a local vertical datum height standard called Christchurch Drainage Datum (CDD) since 1876.
Christchurch Drainage Datum in turn is based on the Lyttelton 1937 (Lyt37) datum, with Christchurch Drainage Datum having a standard offset of 9.043m higher than Lyt37. This offset allows you to quickly convert any CDD point to a Lyt37 point and from there use a converter to translate the Lyt37 values to NZVD2016. Land Information New Zealand online coordinate converter(external link).
We have adopted the NZVD2016 standard introduced in 2016 by Land Information New Zealand (LINZ)(external link).
Adopting the new standard
By using NZVD2016, we are ensuring Christchurch projects match other examples from around the country to the latest quality levels.
The new standard also makes it easier to exchange height information used in:
- Geographic products (for example, elevation datasets).
- Infrastructure.
- Planning.
- Consents.
Consistency in height standards is essential for:
- Managing water resources.
- Assessing hazards.
- Completing large-scale engineering works.
Changes in geospatial data collections
Most of our geographical datasets containing height information, for example, 3-waters assets, were updated on 19 August 2024.
Other historic datasets will be changed over time.
Data supplied to Christchurch City Council should only be in NZVD2016.
More information
Visit NZVD2016 information for councils(external link) for more information