Below are descriptions of recently awarded contracts and grants for the study of hazards and disasters. An inventory of contracts and grants awarded from 1995 to the present (primarily those funded by the National Science Foundation) is available on the Natural Hazards Center's web site: www.colorado.edu/hazards/grants.html.
Hurricane Loss Reduction for Residences and Mobile Homes in Florida. Funding: Florida Department of Community
Affairs, $700,000, 12 months. Principal Investigator: Ricardo Alvarez, International Hurricane Center, Florida
International University, University Park Campus, EAS 2710, Miami, FL 33199; (305) 348-1607; fax: (305) 348-1605;
e-mail: hurrican@fiu.edu; WWW: www.ihc.fiu.edu.
Under the Florida "Bill Williams Residential Safety and Preparedness Act," which supports the state's Hurricane Loss
Reduction Program, funding was allocated "to support programs of research and development relating to hurricane loss
reduction devices and techniques for residences and mobile homes and to the development of credible data on potential loss
reduction." This project, in its second year, is examining sheltering issues for mobile home parks, mobile home recycling
programs, insurance incentives for hurricane mitigation in housing, land development and zoning issues, and structural
retrofitting of existing residences and mobile homes. The project is a joint effort by the International Hurricane Center, the
University of Florida, Florida Atlantic University, Florida State University, and the University of South Florida.
Windstorm Simulation and Modeling Program. Funding: Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and five
Florida counties, $3.2 million, three years. Principal Investigator: Stephen P. Leatherman, International Hurricane Center,
Florida International University, see contact information above.
The aim of this project is to improve hazard mitigation by establishing a program involving recognition, planning, and
adaptation to natural hazards. The principal investigator will create a model, acquire data, provide visual risk information,
and promote public awareness and education. The modeling component will include a comparative assessment of existing
storm surge and wind models. Data acquisition will be combined with graphic representations to make the information
useful for researchers, emergency managers, and the public. The public awareness and education program will ensure a
better transfer of research findings to the general population.
Assessing the Cost of Evacuation in Response to Hurricane Warning. Funding: Florida International University
Foundation, $33,000, 12 months. Principal Investigator: Ricardo Alvarez. For contact information, see the first item.
Evacuation of coastal areas has been a key component of hurricane emergency plans for many years. Recently, however,
experiences with Hurricane Floyd in 1999 and Hurricane Gordon in 2000 have drawn attention to the increased potential of
damage, injury, and even loss of life during mass evacuations. Moreover, not much is known about the actual cost of
evacuating coastal communities. This project will identify all the elements that contribute to the cost of evacuation, explore
methods to aggregate some or all cost components to arrive at a baseline unit cost for evacuation, and explore ways in
which such generic methods can be applied on a community-wide or regional basis.
Natural Hazard Mitigation Experiences in Japan. Funding: National Science Foundation, $99,000, 24 months. Principal
Investigators: B.F. Spencer and Yahya Kurama, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556; e-mail:
spencer.1@nd.edu.
This award will support American graduate students, middle school science teachers, and university faculty to participate in
research in Japan in connection with NSF's Summer Programs in Japan. Faculty and students selected for the program will
participate in workshops and site visits related to natural hazards mitigation research. The project will help connect
American students and researchers to the most active Japanese university, government, and corporate laboratories involved
in hazard mitigation.
Assessment of Damage to Critical Infrastructure Facilities in the 1999 Kocaeli (Izmit) Earthquake in Turkey.
Funding: National Science Foundation, $75,000, 11 months. Principal Investigators: Philip L. Gould and Gayle S. Johnson,
Department of Civil Engineering, Urbauer 211, Washington University, St. Louis, MO 63130; e-mail:
pgoul@seas.wustl.edu.
This research will explore the failures of two types of industrial facilities, cooling towers and stacks, during the 1999
earthquake in Turkey. The project will also compare predicted response with field observations in order to evaluate the
adequacy of current design procedures.
Earthquake researchers and engineers from New York to California are forming a national network so that members can share the advanced research equipment, databases, computer models, and simulation tools of earthquake engineering testing facilities across the nation. Recently, the National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded $45 million to 11 universities as part of the George E. Brown, Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES) (see the Observer, Vol. XXV, No. 2, p. 18; and Vol. XXIII, No. 5, p. 2).
NSF plans to spend up to $81.9 million by 2004 under NEES to enhance earthquake engineering research equipment in the United States and to build a high performance
Internet network to connect the facilities. These awards will fund construction, expansion, and modernization of equipment, including capabilities for remote observation and operation. The equipment includes new and upgraded shake tables, centrifuges, a tsunami wave basin, large-scale laboratory experimentation systems, and field equipment. NSF hopes to grant a second set of awards in the future. All equipment is expected to be operational by late 2004. Eventually, a community-led consortium will be selected to manage and operate NEES for at least 10 years (see below).
For more information about NEES, see the NSF web site: www.eng.nsf.gov/nees
As part of the development process, NSF recently released Program Solicitation NSF 01-56: "George E. Brown, Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES): 778Consortium Development." That solicitation "re-quests proposals for a small team to initiate and coordinate activities with the earthquake engineering community, over a maximum three-year period with a target award date of October 1, 2001, that will result in the development and formation of a single community-based and community-led NEES Consortium. The NEES Consortium will be the single entity that will operate the NEES collaboratory . . . [which] will include approximately 20 geographically-distributed, shared-use next generation earthquake engineering experimental research equipment installations . . . networked together through the high performance Internet."
Two major objectives of this consortium will be to incorporate as a legal entity in order to receive awards from the federal government and to submit a proposal to NSF to operate the NEES collaboratory for the next 10 years.
For the complete solicitation, including details about proposal preparation, see the NEES web site: www.eng.nsf.gov/nees. Letters of intent are due May 4, 2001.
The NSF program officer is Joy M. Pauschke, NEES Program Director, Engineering, Civil and Mechanical Systems, Room 545, National Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22230; (703) 292-7024; fax: (703) 292-9053; e-mail: jpauschk@nsf.gov. Questions and suggestions about NEES can be e-mai led to nees@nsf.gov.
Below are some new or updated Internet resources the Hazards Center staff has found informative and/or useful. For a more complete list of some of the better sites dealing with hazards and disasters, see www.colorado.edu/hazards/sites/sites.html.
www.fema.gov/mit/planning.htm
On January 17, the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Mitigation Directorate unveiled a new web site for hazard
mitigation planning. In launching the site, the agency said, "We believe the information contained here will be a critical
resource for all who are involved in establishing disaster resilient communities throughout our nation. Hazard mitigation
planning is a collaborative process whereby hazards affecting the community are identified, vulnerability to the hazards
assessed, and consensus reached on how to minimize or eliminate the effects of these hazards. . . . Based on the lessons of
the '90s, it became apparent that the nation needed to shift its approach from a disaster-response driven system to a system
based on pre-disaster or ongoing risk analysis so that we could become proactive rather than reactive to hazard events. . . .
As a result . . . a unit for Hazard Mitigation Planning was established within the Directorate in 1998 to provide guidance
and resources to States and local communities to promote and support the mitigation planning process. FEMA therefore
places much value on the planning process as an approach to mitigation that must be promoted and supported in order to
build sustainable, disaster resilient communities!"
The site's information is organized into three sections: What's Currently on the Shelf; What's New; and On the Horizon. The developers welcome comments and recommendations. Suggestions should be directed to Gil Jamieson, Chief, Planning Branch, Mitigation Directorate, FEMA, 500 C Street, S.W., Washington, DC 20472; (202) 646-4090; e-mail: gil.jamieson@fema.gov.
www.anglia.ac.uk/geography/radix
Provoked by the January El Salvador earthquake (and subsequently by the disaster in India), a group of disaster scholars
launched this "Radical Interpretations of Disasters" web site, which addresses the fundamental question: Given our
extensive knowledge concerning natural hazards, recent historical disasters that should have provided object lessons and
opportunities for change, our increasing understanding of the direct link between disaster vulnerability and unsustainable
development practices, and the fundamental human value that suffering should be averted whenever possible, why is it that
catastrophes like the El Salvador quake continue?
As the site developers explain, "The word `radical' is used in the sense of radix or "root"--the root causes of vulnerability and what to do about it." The essays are intended to prompt discussion and stimulate further debate, and the developers invite all persons interested in these questions to participate. The site also offers on-line background material and resources and useful links regarding the recent earthquakes.
www.esig.ucar.edu/sourcebook
Our ever-toiling colleagues of the Environmental and Societal Impacts Group at the National Center for Atmospheric
Research (NCAR), in cooperation with the Atmospheric Policy Program of the American Meteorological Society, have
recently released their 2001 Extreme Weather Sourcebook, a compilation of statistics regarding "Economic and Other
Societal Impacts Related to Hurricanes, Floods, Tornadoes, Lightning, and Other U.S. Weather Phenomena." The goal of
this report is to educate and stimulate interest in the societal impacts of weather in the U.S. The wealth of information is too
great to present here, but a few highlights include:
For more information or to comment on the Sourcebook, contact Roger Pielke, Jr., NCAR, P.O Box 3000, Boulder, CO 80307-3000; (303) 497-8111; fax: (303) 497-8125; e-mail: rogerp@ucar.edu.
www.bghrc.com (click on
"Disaster Management")
The Benfield Greig Hazard Research Centre at University College London has launched a series of Disaster Management
Working Papers designed to make new evidence, analysis, and ideas available to researchers and practitioners worldwide.
The editors envision five main categories: research papers, case studies, field notes, discussion papers, and guidelines and
training materials. The first working paper is Physician Heal Thyself? The Politics of Disaster Mitigation, by John Twigg
of the centre. This discussion piece looks at some of the reasons why so little is being done to reduce people's vulnerability
to natural disasters and suggests that part of the problem lies within the so-called disaster "community" and that the
problem is political in the broadest sense of the word.
www.ilo.org/public/english/employment/recon/crisis/publ/wp1.htm
The overall goal of the International Labor Organization (ILO) InFocus Programme on Crisis Response and Reconstruction
is to develop a coherent and rapid response by the ILO to different crises--natural disasters, armed conflicts, financial and
economic downturns, and difficult political and social transitions. The working paper, Gender and Natural Disasters, by
Elaine Enarson--available at the URL above--is one of the first products of the program's research effort, undertaken in
consultation with an external network of researchers from around the world.
In her paper, Enarson provides a careful analysis of the gender facets of natural disasters. The report covers four main topics: the social construction of vulnerability to "natural" disasters, particularly on the basis of gender relations; the impacts of disasters on women's paid and unpaid work; six core action issues arising from these patterns; and policy and research implications for natural disaster management. Some impacts of disasters on men are also highlighted, and the data assembled cover both developing and developed countries.
Three broad conclusions emerge: first, both women and men have specific short-term needs and long-term interests in disasters; second, women are key economic actors throughout the disaster cycle of preparedness, mitigation, relief, and reconstruction; and third, women's economic vulnerability to future disasters is increased by lack of attention to gender equity in disaster interventions. The paper concludes with recommendations and proposals regarding how gender issues can be routinely taken into account in crisis response and reconstruction.
www.bluesky-foundation.com
The Blue Sky Foundation of North Carolina is a nonprofit corporation chartered to encourage hazard-resistant construction.
The foundation provides information, public education, and professional training to promote safe construction (see the
"Conferences and Training" section of this
Observer), wise land use, disaster mitigation, and sustainable development. Its
primary focus is on measures to reduce losses due to flooding, hurricanes, nor'easters, and other high-wind events. Blue
Sky's web site describes the foundation's programs in detail and offers several documents on hazard-resistant construction
as well as a bibliography and numerous other resources.
www.anglia.ac.uk/geography/gdn
www.anglia.ac.uk/geography/gdn/whatsoutthere.html
The Gender and Disaster Network Web site has added several papers and much additional information on gender issues in
disaster management, including a complete World Bank draft report on gender impacts during Hurricane Mitch (Delaney
and Shrader, 2000), and proceedings from last June's conference, "Reaching Women and Children in Disasters."
www.arct.cam.ac.uk/disasterdiplomacy/
"Disaster diplomacy" refers to the occurrence or threat of disaster facilitating cooperation among states in conflict. This
web site has been created "to foster discussion on applying disaster diplomacy to improving all disaster management
activities when confronted with international political barriers and to recognizing the true role of disaster in international
affairs. The goal is to determine if, how, and when disaster diplomacy could bring about advantageous change."
The site provides abstracts from a special issue of the Cambridge Review of International Affairs (Vol. XIV, No. 1, 2000) focusing on disaster diplomacy. The articles include:
Copies of this issue are available for $20.00 (includes postage) from the Cambridge Review of International Affairs, Centre of International Studies, Fitzwilliam House, 32 Trumpington Street, Cambridge CB2 1QY, U.K.; tel: +44 (0) 1223 741311; fax: +44 (0) 1223 741313; e-mail: intstudies-cria@lists.cam.ac.uk. For further information about the new web site, contact the site administrator, Ilan Kelman, e-mail: disasterdiplomacy@hotmail.com.
www.reliefweb.int
www.reliefweb.int/vacancies
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) ReliefWeb site, which we've mentioned
several times before, is designed (and frequently updated) to "serve the information needs of the [world's] humanitarian
relief community." The site includes dispatches on the latest world emergencies and disasters; other news regarding
international assistance; and extensive background information on both complex emergencies and natural disasters--by
country, if desired. The site provides information on appeals, donations, and donation management; a large map collection;
a directory of humanitarian organizations; numerous reference documents; as well as information on emergency telecommunications, early warning, and humanitarian training. Interested persons can sign up for e-mail notices of new
ReliefWeb information, and the "Humanitarian Vacancies Section" now allows users to both post new positions and peruse
employment opportunities.
www.pep.bc.ca
The function of the British Columbia (Canada) Provincial Emergency Program (PEP) (administered through the BC
Attorney General's office) is to "maintain effective awareness, preparedness, response and recovery programs to reduce the
human and financial costs of emergencies and disasters." The PEP web site provides background information about the
program as well as hazards management and mitigation in the Pacific Northwest generally. The site encompasses sections
on hazard preparedness and response and provides many of the enabling laws, policies, manuals, guides, plans, and other
documents in full text. It also includes incident summaries, media releases, a special section for children, a list of coming
events, and an on-line forum for discussion of hazard issues.
images.usace.army.mil/
Need a picture of flood, hurricane, or earthquake damage? emergency responders in action? flood mitigation structures?
Take a look at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers "Digital Visual Library," which includes both a photo library and a
graphic library. The images are provided to communicate visually the programs and projects of the Corps, as well as the
hazards and events with which it must contend. The searchable library includes photographs, illustrations, artwork, clipart,
logos, maps, and posters from around the world. New images are added frequently.
www.aquarius.geomar.de/omc/omc_intrhttp://www.colorado.edu/hazards/o/
Or perhaps you need a map? Why not create your own? It's easy on this "Online Map Creation (OMC)" site--a great
resource for students, geographers, geologists, geophysicists, seismologists, or anyone else needing a quick map for a talk
or paper. The site allows a person to create an on-line or downloadable map (in any of several different projections) by
simply entering the coordinates and defining the qualities he or she would like to see, such as political boundaries, rivers
and lakes, cities, topography, tectonic features, seismic faults, etc.
www.ijc.org
Via its web site, the International Joint Commission (IJC) has released Living with the Red: A Report to the Governments
of Canada and the United States on Reducing Flood Impacts in the Red River Basin.
The IJC cautions that, although the 1997 transboundary Red River flood was a rare event, floods of the same magnitude, or even greater, can be expected in the future. Economic damage in the United States and Canada from the 1997 flood approached $5 billion in U.S. dollars, and flood recovery and mitigation costs continue to grow. While a significant number of flood mitigation actions have been initiated since 1997, the people and property of the Red River Basin will remain at undue risk until comprehensive, integrated, bi-national solutions are developed and implemented. Solutions for one part of the basin must take into account the impacts on other parts of the basin. Flood protection for population centers, as well as small communities and individual isolated farmsteads in the Red River Basin, needs immediate attention.
The IJC found that there is no single solution to the challenge of protecting the people and property of the Red River Basin. Rather, all possible approaches, including both structural and nonstructural damage reduction measures, must be considered in a comprehensive plan. The IJC recommendations provide a blueprint for action by governments at all levels.
www.damsafety.org
The Association of State Dam Safety Officials has launched a new web site that features current news, information on
upcoming conferences and seminars, a secure on-line membership application, a bibliography of dam safety references, and
much more. Comments and suggestions regarding the site can be e-mailed to info@damsafety.org.
www.wn.org/newsevents.asp
www.wn.org/Mitch.pdf
World Neighbors is a nonprofit, charitable organization that works with rural poor in 18 countries in Asia, Africa, and
Latin America to strengthen the ability of individuals and communities to solve their own problems of hunger, poverty, and
disease. World Neighbors programs integrate improved agriculture, community-based health and family planning,
environmental conservation, water and sanitation, and small business.
At the second URL above, the organization recently published an extensive report on post-Hurricane Mitch recovery entitled Reasons for Resiliency: Toward a Sustainable Recovery after Hurricane Mitch. The basic premise is that much Hurricane Mitch damage was, fundamentally, human-caused and preventable--not an act of God. Funded by the Ford, Rockefeller, and Summit foundations, the study shows that land use in Central America amplified the storm's damage, whereas alternative farming methods in the future could cut erosion by more than half, save topsoil, and reduce runoff.
www.sciencemag.org
The January 12 issue of Science (Vol. 291, Issue 5502), available on-line at the address above, contains an analysis of
volcano deaths by Tom Simkin, Lee Siebert, and Russell Blong. Entitled "Volcano Fatalities--Lessons from the Historical
Record," it examines more than 400 fatal volcanic eruptions. The authors describe their findings as "worrisome"; they
found a marked increase in fatal eruptions in the 20th century, which they attribute to global population increase, not
greater eruption frequency, which has remained roughly constant. "Of the many agents of volcanic death," they further
report, "tephra (ashfall and projectiles) is more common (and more easily mitigated) than more widely feared agents such
as pyroclastic flows, tsunamis, and mudflows. During the sometimes long course of an eruption, the most dangerous time is
the first 24 hours, but next most dangerous are times months or years after the start, when people are tired of the eruption
and guards are lowered."
www.kingston.ac.uk/~ce_s011/landslid/slides.htm
On his personal web site, Eddie Bromhead, Professor of Geotechnical Engineering, School of Engineering, Kingston
University, U.K., maintains this section with numerous photos, maps, and diagrams of landslides and landslide mitigation
measures.
greenwood.cr.usgs.gov/maps/factsheets.html
Via the web, the Central Region of the U.S. Geological Survey has published numerous brief fact sheets on geologic issues,
including these three on land/soil failure:
www.eqnet.org
(click on "images" under "Earthquake Information Services")
EQNET is a cooperative effort among several U.S. hazards organizations; it is maintained by the Information Service at the
Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering Research (MCEER) at the University of Buffalo. EQNET is an
Internet gateway to all kinds of information about earthquakes, including many different collections of photographs and
other images. In a recent article in its newsletter, the MCEER Information Service highlighted the following sites:
Three sites that we recently added to our list of tsunami web pages
(www.Colorado.EDU/hazards/sites/tsunamis.html) include:
listserv@maelstrom.stjohns.edu
The "DisastMH" e-mail discussion forum provides a means for disaster mental health professionals to discuss key issues in
their field. To subscribe, send an e-mail message to the address above with "subscribe DisastMH <your first name, your
last name>" in the body of the message (for example: "subscribe DisastMH Ruth Westheimer"). For more information,
contact the list owner, Denruth Lougeay, e-mail: deneelou@znet.com.
