Introduction to the 'Naki

Mount Taranaki, otherwise known as Mount Egmont, dominates the skyline of a great deal of the region which bears the name of the mountain. The region is known by New Zealanders to be a major centre of the country's energy industry, with a great quantity of New Zealand's crude oil and natural gas extracted here. The flat yet tilted plain around the foot of the volcano is a patchwork of agriculture, with a great number of the farms being dairy farms. The region is well known for its dairy industry. The region is wet. Very wet. Much of the northern part of the region can expect 2000mm of rain a year, with only some coastal portions of the southern part of the region expecting less than 1500mm a year (Chappell, 2014). So the dairy farms flourish, with the rains constantly watering the pastures year round. According to a local saying: "If you can't see the mountain, it's raining; if you can see it, it's going to."

Mt Taranaki is located right in the centre of the Taranaki region. The circle of vegetation around the volcano is the Mt Taranaki National Park. The extinct Kaitake and Pouakai volcanoes can be seen to the northwest of the main cone. The area around the volcano is well known for its dairy farming (Lambert, 2016).



Mount Taranaki viewed from the south. Fantham's Peak is in the foreground on the volcano's southern flank. The remains of the ancient, extinct Kaitake and Pouakai volcanoes are in the background (GNS-Science, 2013).              New Plymouth is almost directly due north of the volcano on the region's coast.

I have a personal connection to the Taranaki Region. This is the region where my father was born and grew up. It is also the region where much of my whānau live. Although I was born and raised in the South Island, I have spent a fair amount of time in the Taranaki Region during most of the occasions when I have been in the North Island. I find the mountain to be quite fascinating. There is a definite air of mystery to it. To view the mountain from the towns of Stratford or Inglewood sometimes gives me the shivers, especially when its summit is hidden by a thick bank of clouds. Every time I look at the mountain in person, I can't help but think that although it lies silent right now, it could easily show its potential energy in an awesome, explosive display.

(Puke Ariki, 2012)

Taranaki is not an extinct volcano. This means that it could once again spring to life sometime in the future. A volcanic eruption of Mount Taranaki would be a momentous and potentially devastating event. Lava flows are just one of the many hazards to be considered. There is another hazard that has the potential to cause more widespread damage, both environmentally and economically, than lava flows could cause.

This hazard is volcanic ash. This material is made up of tiny, crystalline shards of rock. It is released into the atmosphere in tonnes during volcanic eruptions. Once airborne, the ash can be carried by the wind for enormous distances.Volcanic ash is dangerous both when it is airborne and when it settles down on the ground. It is a very disruptive hazard and has the potential to shut down transportation systems, to contaminate water supplies, to disrupt electrical and telecommunication services and to destroy or damage buildings, crops and pasture.

This blog will outline the wide range of effects that ash can have on many different things. Seeing as Taranaki has not had an eruption recent enough to be analysed by sophisticated geological methods and equipment, this blog will cite volcanic events from around the world which have had significant impacts on all sorts of different parts of life, from agriculture to aviation, from water supplies, to electrical grids.