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It was concluded at “Cities on Volcanoes” that to prevent large-scale disasters in cities on or near volcanoes, we must go well beyond the traditional hazard mapping and monitoring and involve the community in extensive education and public awareness campaigns. Risk evaluation must rely heavily on modeling and visualization of physical processes and their effects, which are easily grasped by emergency planners, the insurance industry, policy makers, and the public. As the role of cities in the global economy continues to grow in the 21st Century, a natural disaster in a large city can have serious regional or global effects. We must focus the geophysical, atmospheric, hydrologic, and geological sciences on interdisciplinary approaches to solving the urban problems of vulnerability and sustainability.
Representative Internet Web Sites For Cities and Volcanoes General Web Sites for Volcanology For general information about the hazards posed by active volcanoes, please go to the web sites listed below: The Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program The International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the
Earth’s Interior (IAVCEI) Natural Hazards Center, University of Colorado Benfield Research Center (Risk and Insurance) Definition
of a loss occurrence for a volcanic event International Volcanic Health Hazard Network
Quito is in the shadow of Guagua Pichincha, an active
composite cone. Day-to-day hazards involve ash falls that are both a nuisance,
a public health hazard, and hazard to aviation. Regularly updated information
and explanations are available on the web site at:
The New Zealand Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences
(IGNS) maintains an excellent website that explains volcanic hazards and
their mitigation. Many New Zealand cities on the North Island are near,
or in the case of Auckland, within volcanic fields. The web site can be
found at:
Mexico Mexico City, one of the world’s largest urban agglomerations, has its own geological survey, a trend that should be followed by other large cities. It’s web site is at: http://geologia.igeolcu.unam.mx/SeGeoMet/Inicio.html The National Center for the Prevention of Disasters
is the focus for disaster mitigation at the national level. They maintain
daily information on activity at Popocateptl, including a webcam. Nicaragua Instituto Nicaraguense de Estudios Territorales (INETER)
maintains an excellent web site with information on Nicaraguan volcanoes,
which are close to cities and towns.
Vesuvius
Japan The heavily-populated islands of Japan all have active
or dormant volcanoes. This nation also has some of the world’s most
comprehensive volcanic hazard mitigation activities. Much of the population
is well aware of the risk and what to do if an eruption is predicted.
Volcano hazard mitigation is active on all levels—local, regional,
and national. An informative web site on Japan’s volcanoes is administered
the Earthquake Research Institute in Tokyo—Their web site is located
at:
Japan-Sakurajima Japan-Usu An excellent videotape of the recent Usu eruption has been made and should
be seen by anyone concerned with volcanoes and cities. Montserrat, West Indies Educational Materials for Volcanic Hazards and their Mitigation Videotapes Understanding Volcanic Hazards and Reducing Volcanic Risk, are now available for purchase from the Northwest Interpretive Association for US$19.95 plus postage (see rates below). The videos are available in English and Spanish in either NTSC or PAL video format. The late Maurice Krafft for IAVCEI and UNESCO produced the video. Understanding Volcanic Hazards features stunning images of seven types of volcano hazards: ash falls, hot ash falls, mudflows, landslides, volcanic tsunamis, lava flows and volcanic gasses. This program is intended to help prevent future deaths from volcanic eruptions by showing compelling images of destructive volcanic activity. Hopefully, people who understand these hazards will avoid them in the future. The Northwest Interpretive Association (NWIA), a non-profit organization, is selling the video for IAVCEI. Orders can be placed by mail with an enclosed cheque or by phone with VISA card. Add US$5.00 for postage in the United States, Canada and Mexico. For all other destinations, add US$13.05 for airmail postage or US$5.55 for surface postage. Northwest Interpretive Association (NWIA) Make checks payable to NWIA. Be sure to specify English or Spanish, and NTSC (US and Japanese standard) or PAL (European standard). Allow 2-4 weeks for delivery.
* The 2004 "Volcanoes" Calendar is now available! Order from
your bookseller or Brown Trout Publishers, PO Box 280070, San Francisco,
CA 94128-0070, USA or via the web at www.browntrout.com.
* You can also get the 2004 "Volcanoes" Calendar from the Volcanostore:
City Populations
Urban Security Multinational Andean Project
Alexander, David, 2000. Confronting Catastrophe, Oxford University Press, New York, 282 pp. Fisher, R. V., Heiken, G. and Hulen, J. B., 1997. Volcanoes—Crucibles of Change. Princeton University Press, Princeton, 317 pp. Heiken, G. , Fakundiny, R. and Sutter, J. (eds), 2003. Earth Science in the City—A Reader, 2003. Published by the American Geophysical Union Johnson, R. W. and Threlfall, N. A., 1985. Volcano Town—The
1937-43 Rabaul Eruptions. Robert Brown and Associates, Bathurst,
N. S. W., Australia, 151 pp. |