UNESCO and its contribution to volcano risk mitigation at the international scale
Roberto ScarpaKristine Tomvasyan
Volcano Observatory Best Practice Workshop - Near Term Eruption Forecasting
Erice, Sicily (IT), 11 - 15 September 2011
• United• Nations• Educational• Scientific: natural, social, human sciences • Cultural: culture, communication,information
• Organization
World Meteorological Organization
WORLD BANK
The United Nations system engaged in disaster reduction
UNESCO’s role
• Identification of Hazards and Risks• Promotion of Preventive and Mitigation
Measures• Post-disaster investigation, recovery and
rehabilitation
The purposes of UNESCO in The purposes of UNESCO in the field of natural disasters the field of natural disasters
areare• promote a better understanding of the distribution in time and
space of natural hazards and of their intensity, • set up reliable early warning systems; • secure the adoption of suitable building design; • protect educational buildings and cultural monuments; • strengthen environmental protection for the prevention of natural
disasters; • enhance preparedness and public awareness through education
and training in communication and information; • foster post-disaster investigation, recovery and rehabilitation; • promote studies on the social perception of risks
UNESCO action is carried out UNESCO action is carried out throughthrough
• Networking and strengthening of regional and international co-ordination systems
• Direct partnership with Member States
• Field implementation of operational projects
• Reconnaissance and advisory missions
• Preservation and dissemination of data
• Seminars and training courses
UNESCO’s Potential Partners
Governments: National public institutionsIntergovernmental organizations: UN Agencies,
International and Regional organizationsCivil society and NGOs Private Sector
which operate at:-Local-National -Regional -International
UNESCO Field network
Education and training
Social awareness
development recovery
emergency
search, rescue
• Earthquakes• Tsunamis• Landslides• Floods• Tropical Storms• Volcanic Eruptions• Droughts and desertification
UNESCO and Disaster ReductionUNESCO and Disaster Reduction
UNESCO Science and UNESCO Science and Technology programmes in Technology programmes in
Disaster ReductionDisaster Reduction• Natural hazards programme
• International Geoscience Programme (IGCP)
• lnternational Hydrological Programme (IHP)
• Man and Biosphere (MAB) Programme
• Programmes of UNESCO’s lntergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC)
• Engineering programmes
Tsunami Warning and Mitigation Systems
IOC of UNESCO
Safe Evacuation Route
Appropriate Risk Awaweness of Local Communities
Hazard Mapping as a Tool for Effective Early Warning
Understanding of Hazardous Areas
+Early Warning
=
Safe Evacuation
“ANALISIS DE RIESGO POR INUNDACIONES Y DESLIZAMIENTOS DE TIERRA EN LA MICROCUENCA DEL ARENAL DE MONTSERRAT, EL SALVADOR”
Risk mapping, El Salvador, UNESCO RAP-CA project
Floods, landslides
UNESCO’s response to natural disaster
To enhance preparedness and public awareness through education and training
UNESCO’s sponsored publications and training activitiesUNESCO’s sponsored publications and training activities
UNESCO’s response to natural disaster
Education: to accelerate the progress of societies toward disaster resilience
UNESCO’s response to natural disaster
To protect educational buildings and cultural heritage
Landslides, Machu Pichu, Peru
International Programme on Landslides supported by UNESCO
UNESCO’s response to natural disaster
To strengthen environmental protection for the prevention of natural disasters
Planting a tree, St Vincent in the Grenadines
UNESCOUNESCO’s response to ’s response to natural natural disaster disaster
And, when catastrophes do strike, to foster post-And, when catastrophes do strike, to foster post-disaster investigation, recovery and disaster investigation, recovery and
rehabilitationrehabilitation
UNESCO post earthquake mission, Bam, Iran
VOLCANOE HAZARDVOLCANOE HAZARDMITIGATIONMITIGATION
• Guidelines on techniques for detecting and Guidelines on techniques for detecting and monitoring the phenomena preceding violent monitoring the phenomena preceding violent eruptionseruptions;;
• Communication between scientists, civil defense Communication between scientists, civil defense services and the general publicservices and the general public;;
• Volcanic-hazard zonation and volcanic emergency Volcanic-hazard zonation and volcanic emergency managementmanagement;;
• Promotion of the study on an International Promotion of the study on an International Mobile Early-Warning System for Volcanic Mobile Early-Warning System for Volcanic Eruptions (IMEWS)Eruptions (IMEWS)
Worldwide monitoring of volcanoes• There are ≈ 1500 active volcanoes but only 10% are
adequately monitored on land and space. Approximately 70 institutions contribute to IAVCEI-WOVO.
• Space monitoring is realized through SAR, SO2 and thermal with specific projects supported by spatial Agencies (NASA, ESA, JAXA).
• GEO and Supersites are improving the worlwide early warning strategies from space and land but are not still well developed for volcanoes.
• Stimulated and constituted an International forum for the debate of how to proceed during the volcanic crises and their management
• Needing of international cooperation and assistance between volcanologists and their role in the society to consult the governement representatives on the role of volcanology as a practical science to reduce risks for the eruptions
• First attempt to identify high risk volcanoes around the world
Main results from the 1984 UNESCO IMEWS Project
Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP/USAID)
• Operates since 1986• International volcano crisis response• Response to 25 worlwide crises in 12
countries, mainly in East Asia and South-Central America
• Track changes at volcanoes, developing early warning plans, and monitoring technology and hazard assessment training
World Organization of Volcano Observatories (WOVO)
• Development and maintaining volcano monitoring reference materials, including a directory of member observatories, their monitoring networks and staff,
• Upon request, to help a member observatory to find temporary scientific reinforcement,
• Refer governments, international organizations, and others seeking assistance in volcano monitoring to the appropriate member observatories.
WOVOdat• WOVOdat is an international, interdisciplinary, and nonprofit
project created for the purpose of storing data on worldwide volcanic unrest and making it freely accessible through the internet. WOVOdat is presently mantained by Earth Observatory of Singapore team.
• Data will be made available in an easy-to-use manner for observatories, researchers, decision-makers, and the public, in order to improve volcanic hazard assessment, enhance scientific research and facilitate international / interagency collaboration.
• This will enable not only an improvement of hazard, risk, and vulnerability analysis, but also an improvement in the forecasting and mitigation of volcanic disasters.
Operation and management of a future IMEWS project
• Coordination with existing structures and organizations:WOVO-IAVCEI, WOVOdat-EOS,VDAP and other projects at national or international level (i.e. GEO-Supersites)
• Creation of an International Advisory Panel• Creation of a web site dedicated on volcano
hazards
Future IMEWS
• Education and training of volcanic risks is the most important item to be considered for future IMEWS
• The original idea of havig Mobile Team(s), initially managed by national institutions, with strict relationship with UNESCO headquartiers should be different at present time for technical reasons and for the large financial efforts required.
• Of course some already existiting mobile teams such as VDAP should maintain close relationship with UNESCO.
• The suggestion is that an International Advisory panel, composed by UNESCO officials, experts in volcanology and WOVO members should be formed.
• This panel can also formulate, in case of crisis, with the help of statistical procedures (BET, ANN) an efficient answer for prompt decisions to government agencies about the risk involved in case of unrest episodes at worldwide volcanoes.
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