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.