domes passed structural testing in California, no structural information was extracted from tests of the inherently stable shapes. Builders borrowed guidelines for adobe to recommend plan details, but code developed in low seismic risk New Mexico does not address issues for higher risk areas. California's seismic risk levels are almost three times as high as New Mexico's, and risk worldwide rises much higher. Earthbag is often tried after disasters in the developing world, including Sri Lanka's 2004 tsunami, Haiti's 2010 earthquake and Nepal's 2015 earthquake. CE walls fail in shear tests when barbs flex or bend back or (with weak soil fill) by chipping cured bag fill. CS walls or uncured CE walls fail differently, by slitting bag fabric as barbs move through loose fill. Because no earthbag buildings were seriously damaged by seismic motion up to 0.8 g in Nepal's 2015 quakes, Nepal's building code recognizes earthbag, although the code does not discuss soil strengths or improved reinforcement. Nepal requires buildings to resist 1.5 g risk although hazard maps show higher values. Better trainers assume the use of cohesive soil and barbed wire, and recommend vertical rebar, buttresses, and bond beams, but rule of thumb earthbag techniques should be differentiated from contained earth that follows more complete guidelines. CE compared to New Zealand wall strengths Earthquake damage results confirm the validity of New Zealand's detailed standards for non-engineered adobe and rammed earth which allow unreinforced buildings to 0.6 g force levels. Although earthbag without specific guidelines may often be this strong, conventional adobe can have severe damage at levels below 0.2 g forces. Non-traditional earthbag built with barbed wire, barely cohesive soil and no rebar can have half the shear strength of NZ's unreinforced adobe. Somewhere between 0.3 and 0.6 g forces, CE guidelines become important. Based on static shear testing (Stouter, P. May 2017): The following approximate guidelines assume a single story of wide walls with 2 strands of 4 point barbed wire per course. Check NZS 4299 for bracing wall spacing and size of bracing walls and/ or buttresses. Vertical rebar must be spaced on center average and embedded in wall fill while damp. Follow NZS 4299 restrictions on building size, site slope, climate, and uses. Discuss foundation concerns with an engineer, since NZS 4299 assumes a full reinforced concrete footing. For comparison to NZS 4299 the following risk levels are based roughly on 0.2 second spectral