Survey marks must not be removed without first obtaining written approval from the Surveyor-General pursuant to s55(5) Cadastral Survey Act 2002.
This interim standard provided the Surveyor-General’s approval, along with conditions, for the removal of survey marks for the purposes of reconstruction work after the Canterbury earthquakes. The standard has now been withdrawn.
This standard has helped ensure that the post-earthquake positions of numerous survey marks placed before the earthquakes were recorded on mark protection CSDs. Many of these marks have since been destroyed but the record of them provides valuable evidence for determining the post-earthquake location of property boundaries.
As earthquake reconstruction work has mostly been completed, the standard has served its purpose. From now on in Canterbury, LINZ will regulate survey mark protection and approval to remove survey marks on a case by case basis; as it does for the rest of NZ. An exception to this is provided under rule 20.8 for old boundary marks that no longer mark a boundary point in Greater Christchurch – see Removing boundary marks – Rule 20.8
Any person or organisation intending to remove a survey mark not covered by Rule 20.8 (including Licensed Cadastral Surveyors undertaking mark protection surveys) should contact the LINZ Survey Protection Advisory Officer via beforeudig@linz.govt.nz or customersupport@linz.govt.nz
For more information, see Survey mark protection:
For information about at-risk marks in a proposed construction zone, registered users of the before U dig service can submit an enquiry to beforeUdig
For further information about geodetic mark protection, see Geodetic control network development, maintenance and protection