Earthquake and Tsunami Disaster Mitigation Technologies Seminar in Jakarta Today
Communities at risk of earthquakes and tsunamis will benefit from a seminar in Jakarta today that will disseminate disaster reduction technologies.
The two-day seminar will focus on earthquake and tsunami disaster reduction technologies developed under a multi-lateral research EqTAP (Earthquake and Tsunami Disaster Mitigation Technologies and their Integration to the Asia-Pacific) project.
One of the event organizers, Dr. Hiroyuki Kameda, said the seminar will deliver practical information such as output from the EqTAP project on disaster reduction technologies.
"This APEC seminar will make a valuable contribution to both disaster management capacity building and the enhancement of preparedness for natural disasters in APEC Member Economies," Dr. Kameda said on the eve of the seminar.
"The experiences of the Sumatra earthquake & tsunami disaster on 26 December 2004 and the subsequent earthquake disaster on 28 March 2005 have demonstrated the urgent need to put the outputs of the EqTAP project to practice.
"This includes the dissemination of information such as greenbelt technology for tsunami disaster reduction and seismic strengthening technology for brick masonry houses."
The seminar will discuss disaster reduction technologies that are particularly useful for developing areas including:
-
Disaster management technologies
-
Tsunami disaster reduction technologies
-
Seismic enhancement of masonry buildings and houses
-
Information dissemination technologies
Initially proposed by Japan, the seminar is being co-sponsored by Indonesia, Korea and Chinese Taipei. The seminar is taking place at the Hotel Nikko Jakarta, on 27-28 September. Participants are expected to include local government representatives, community leaders, engineers and disaster mitigation experts.
The APEC Industrial Science and Technology Working Group carried out the EqTAP project from 1999 to 2004. The project sought to intensify efforts to enhance disaster management capacity building, educate local communities on natural disaster reduction and salvation skills and increase public awareness on disaster preparedness.
Dr. Hiroyuki Kameda is Professor Emeritus, Kyoto University and Visiting Researcher, National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention (NIED), Japan.