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Akaroa is what's left of an ancient volcano that forms a peninsula on the SW coast of New Zealand.

To understand the particular dynamics of the site it is best to step back and look at the global picture.

At the foot of the Southern Alps, by the fertile Canterbury plains, the peninsula sticks out in the South Pacific.

It is a manifestation of the intense, intermittent volcanic activity that rings the Pacific Ocean.

Where the Pacific Plate drives under the Australian Plate the ocean floor pushes up and forms islands.

The three main types of faults occur here in close proximity. At Akaroa the fault is the Translation type.

The landscape derives its traits from an alluvial plain at the foot of a young mountain range.

What is now a charming cove surrounded by low hills was once the towering cone of a great volcano.

In the past 12000 years as the atmosphere has warmed, the sea has been taking over from the land.

In the past 12000 years as the atmosphere has warmed, the sea has been taking over from the land.

What is left is a ring of hills around an inlet with ridges stretching out like fingers all around the outside.

$Surface geology tells us a more detailed story of upheavals, bending, fractures and compression.$ The geological map shows us mixed of rocks in the mountains, and a uniform sediments on the plain.

The geological map shows us mixed of rocks in the mountains, and a uniform sediments on the plain.

The sides of a volcano are typically very fertile, and a rich and diverse bio system can be found here.

The soils and vegetation are a product of the climatic history of the site as well as the present climate.

Air temperature is a function of latitude. It is also modulated by ocean currents and atmospheric cycles.

An ocean current flows around the Antarctic and when the wind blows from the south, it gets very cold.

The Tasman Sea currents between Australia and New Zealand warm the air on the West Coast.

A set of atmospheric cells ring the planet. NZ is North of where the temperate and polar cells meet.

When the temperate cell washes over the island, moist warm air is driven south from the North East.

A dry wind sweeps over the North rim of the crater and flows down the inlet, fanning out to the sides.

The result is a cold clear day on the West slopes of the Southern Alps and a hot muggy day at Akaroa.

Those days, the wind blows in from the Eastern rim and climbs the Western valleys as a warm breeze.

Then the cold wind comes up the inlet and fans out into the side valleys. The air is clear and its freezing.

Then the wind blows down the West slopes. It is cold, but more bearable because of the low humidity.

The 4 seasons are the winds; warm and moist from the NE, dry from E, cold and wet S and cold, dry W.

To design we need the force, frequency, direction and moisture of the winds all along the year.

The Akaroa peninsula benefits from a fairly high annual rainfall in the 1200 to 1600 mm/year range.

At the same time it gets a rather high number of hours of sunshine over the year, in the order of 2200 hours/year.

The mean temperature in January (summer Down Under) is in the 16 to 18 degrees. Good for grapes.

In July the average dips down to 6 to 8 degrees; bearable for most types of temperate vegetation.

The result is a rich and varied environment with a high biological potential and a moderate climate.

Humans arrived quite recently and never reached high densities, due to the culture of early settlers.

The aboriginal population has been largely supplanted by Europeans, mainly Scots, mostly farmers.

Environmental Study for the Akaroa Crater in NZ.