Ebook: Issues in Urban Earthquake Risk

Urban seismic risk is growing worldwide and is, increasingly, a problem of developing countries. In 1950, one in four of the people living in the world's fifty largest cities was earthquake-threatened, while in the year 2000, about one in two will be. Further, ofthose people living in earthquake-threatened cities in 1950, about two in three were located in developing countries, while in the year 2000, about nine in ten will be. Unless urban seismic safety is improved, particularly in developing countries, future earthquakes will have ever more disastrous social and economic consequences. In July 1992, an international meeting was organized with the purpose of examining one means ofimproving worldwide urban safety. Entitled "Uses ofEarthquake Damage Scenarios for Cities of the 21st Century," this meeting was held in conjunction with the Tenth World Conference ofEarthquake Engineering, in Madrid, Spain. An earthquake damage scenario (EDS) is adescription of the consequences to an urban area of a large, but expectable earthquake on the critical facilities of that area. In Californian and Japanese cities, EDSes have been used for several decades, mainly for the needs of emergency response officials. The Madrid meeting examined uses of this technique for other purposes and in other, less developed countries. As a result of this meeting, it appeared that EDSes bad significant potential to improve urban seismic safety worldwide.

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Urban seismic risk is growing worldwide and is increasingly a problem of developing countries. This book focuses on recent urban earthquake safety developments around the world; in particular, it provides approaches and procedures for the creation of earthquake damage scenarios (EDS). The articles will stimulate anyone -- scientist, engineer, government official, business leader, international aid provider -- considering an EDS project for a city, and they list some of the questions that should be asked, suggest methods of answering them, and describe some advantages and disadvantages of different approaches. Two articles discuss how the above strategies fared in a pilot EDS project nearing completion in Quito, Ecuador. Finally, authors from fourteen other earthquake-threatened cities in developed and developing countries attempt to summarize the earthquake safety of their cities. In the context of their particular social, economic, political, and technical settings, they discuss needs and approaches to reducing earthquake risk.

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Urban seismic risk is growing worldwide and is increasingly a problem of developing countries. This book focuses on recent urban earthquake safety developments around the world; in particular, it provides approaches and procedures for the creation of earthquake damage scenarios (EDS). The articles will stimulate anyone -- scientist, engineer, government official, business leader, international aid provider -- considering an EDS project for a city, and they list some of the questions that should be asked, suggest methods of answering them, and describe some advantages and disadvantages of different approaches. Two articles discuss how the above strategies fared in a pilot EDS project nearing completion in Quito, Ecuador. Finally, authors from fourteen other earthquake-threatened cities in developed and developing countries attempt to summarize the earthquake safety of their cities. In the context of their particular social, economic, political, and technical settings, they discuss needs and approaches to reducing earthquake risk.

Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-xvii
Some Remarks Concerning Worldwide Urban Earthquake Hazard and Earthquake Hazard Mitigation....Pages 1-10
Socioeconomic and Political Considerations in Developing Earthquake Damage Scenarios in Urban Areas....Pages 11-19
Seismological Information Necessary for Beneficial Earthquake Risk Reduction....Pages 21-33
Geotechnical Aspects of the Estimation and Mitigation of Earthquake Risk....Pages 35-77
Estimation of Earthquake Damage to Buildings and Other Structures in Large Urban Areas....Pages 79-101
Creating the Scenario and Drafting Earthquake Hazard Reduction Initiatives....Pages 103-113
The Quito Project: Technical Aspects and Lessons....Pages 115-120
Governmental Aspects of the Earthquake Damage Scenario Project of Quito, Ecuador....Pages 121-124
Developing a Comprehensive Earthquake Disaster Masterplan for Istanbul....Pages 125-166
Seismic Risk on the Territory of the City of Yerevan, Armenia....Pages 167-182
Status of Seismic Hazard and Risk Management in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal....Pages 183-197
Earthquake Disaster Countermeasures in Saitama Prefecture, Japan....Pages 199-213
Arguments for Earthquake Hazard Mitigation in the Kamchatka Region....Pages 215-219
Seismic Risk and Hazard Reduction in Vancouver, British Columbia....Pages 221-236
Earthquake Hazards in the Guatemala City Metropolitan Area....Pages 237-246
Earthquake Hazard in El Salvador....Pages 247-250
Seismic Safety of the Lima Metropolitan Area....Pages 251-264
Earthquake Damage Scenarios in Lisbon for Disaster Preparedness....Pages 265-289
Granada Facing an Earthquake....Pages 291-300
Seismic Exposure and Mitigation Policy in Nice, France....Pages 301-314
Back Matter....Pages 327-329
The City of Patras-W.Greece: A Natural Seismological Laboratory to Perform Seismic Scenario Practices....Pages 315-326

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Urban seismic risk is growing worldwide and is increasingly a problem of developing countries. This book focuses on recent urban earthquake safety developments around the world; in particular, it provides approaches and procedures for the creation of earthquake damage scenarios (EDS). The articles will stimulate anyone -- scientist, engineer, government official, business leader, international aid provider -- considering an EDS project for a city, and they list some of the questions that should be asked, suggest methods of answering them, and describe some advantages and disadvantages of different approaches. Two articles discuss how the above strategies fared in a pilot EDS project nearing completion in Quito, Ecuador. Finally, authors from fourteen other earthquake-threatened cities in developed and developing countries attempt to summarize the earthquake safety of their cities. In the context of their particular social, economic, political, and technical settings, they discuss needs and approaches to reducing earthquake risk.

Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-xvii
Some Remarks Concerning Worldwide Urban Earthquake Hazard and Earthquake Hazard Mitigation....Pages 1-10
Socioeconomic and Political Considerations in Developing Earthquake Damage Scenarios in Urban Areas....Pages 11-19
Seismological Information Necessary for Beneficial Earthquake Risk Reduction....Pages 21-33
Geotechnical Aspects of the Estimation and Mitigation of Earthquake Risk....Pages 35-77
Estimation of Earthquake Damage to Buildings and Other Structures in Large Urban Areas....Pages 79-101
Creating the Scenario and Drafting Earthquake Hazard Reduction Initiatives....Pages 103-113
The Quito Project: Technical Aspects and Lessons....Pages 115-120
Governmental Aspects of the Earthquake Damage Scenario Project of Quito, Ecuador....Pages 121-124
Developing a Comprehensive Earthquake Disaster Masterplan for Istanbul....Pages 125-166
Seismic Risk on the Territory of the City of Yerevan, Armenia....Pages 167-182
Status of Seismic Hazard and Risk Management in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal....Pages 183-197
Earthquake Disaster Countermeasures in Saitama Prefecture, Japan....Pages 199-213
Arguments for Earthquake Hazard Mitigation in the Kamchatka Region....Pages 215-219
Seismic Risk and Hazard Reduction in Vancouver, British Columbia....Pages 221-236
Earthquake Hazards in the Guatemala City Metropolitan Area....Pages 237-246
Earthquake Hazard in El Salvador....Pages 247-250
Seismic Safety of the Lima Metropolitan Area....Pages 251-264
Earthquake Damage Scenarios in Lisbon for Disaster Preparedness....Pages 265-289
Granada Facing an Earthquake....Pages 291-300
Seismic Exposure and Mitigation Policy in Nice, France....Pages 301-314
Back Matter....Pages 327-329
The City of Patras-W.Greece: A Natural Seismological Laboratory to Perform Seismic Scenario Practices....Pages 315-326
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