Rotota geothermal attractions and the Taupo Volcanic Zone
Rotota is located within the Taupo Volcanic Zone, or TVZ. The TVZ is a zone of crustal extension, in which the crust is pulling apart and forming normal (extensional) earthquake faults like the Paeroa and Orakei Korako Faults (closest faults to Rotota), geothermal activity (e.g. Orakei Korako), and major volcanoes. It is common around the world for zones like the TVZ (referred to as back-arc spreading centres) to form close to where a tectonic plate is actively subducting (diving) beneath another.
The Pacific Plate is currently subducting beneath the Australian Plate in the North Island. The TVZ forms a roughly triangular shape that begins just south of Mt Ruapehu and opens out into the Bay of Plenty. The most recent major eruption was the explosive Taupo eruption, which happened about 1800 years ago. The eruption covered about 20,000km of the North Island with thick and damaging ash, and produced effects that were recorded overseas.
Taupo and Okataina (Rotorua area) are the two main volcanic centres of the TVZ, and there have been a number of smaller eruptions in and around these centres in historic time. The most significant of these was the 1886 Tarawera eruption, which destroyed the famous Pink and White Terraces. The TVZ is a dynamic environment, in which earthquake faulting, volcanism and geothermal activity have collectively provided suitable environments for recreational pursuits (e.g. skiing, tramping, boating and fishing), and economic applications (e.g. farming, forestry, hydroelectric power, and geothermal power).