Disaster Mitigation
in Asia

31 August 2006                                   
Issue No. 38

The Program for Hydro-meteorological Disaster Mitigation in Secondary Cities in Asia (PROMISE), funded by USAID/OFDA, commenced from October 2005. Through consultations with a number of ADPC partners, five project countries have been selected – Bangladesh, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Vietnam – for implementing demonstration projects in each country in a highly vulnerable city with recent history of hydro-meteorological disasters. Other components of the program consist of capacity building, risk management advocacy, networking and dissemination initiatives in the selected countries. The objective of the program is to contribute towards reduction of vulnerability of urban communities through enhanced preparedness and mitigation of hydro-meteorological disasters in South and Southeast Asia. The implementation of city demonstration projects are expected to continue during July to September 2006.

PROGRAM ACTIVITIES for August and September 2006:

• BANGLADESH - BDPC is continuing the ward sensitization meetings. It has also conducted a community risk assessment and hazard mapping in one ward.

• PAKISTAN - AKPBS,P monitored rainfall for August, during a period of heavy rains. It has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Sindh Agriculture & Forestry Workers Organization (SAFWCO) as its training partner. For next month, it is preparing for a training on GIS to be held by ADPC in Karachi from Sept. 5 to 9, 2006.

• PHILIPPINES - CDP and the Technical Working Group (TWG) of the Dagupan City Government has developed the criteria for the city's Barangay Community Level Preparedness and Mitigation Project. It also worked closely with the TWG on preparations for the Early Warning and Evacuation Workshop. For September, CDP will begin the Early Warning Workshops and assist the project demonstration barangays in installing the flood markers for the Early Warning System.

• SRI LANKA - Sarvodaya has started hazard mapping and vulnerability assessment in its project demonstration villages. It has also started helping its project communities develop their flooding emergency response and mitigation plans.

• VIET NAM - CECI focused on finalizing the training manual on community-based disaster risk management (CBDRM). Next month, it will orient the district and ward committees on the CBDRM process, as well as on its newly-revised PROMISE project implementation plan.

A. FROM THE REGION

(1) Volcanic Activity Report: Mt. Mayon, southeastern Luzon, Philippines, August 2006

(based on PHIVOLCS and USGS reports)

According to the Philippine Institute for Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) and news reports, lava extrusion and associated rockfalls on the SE slopes of Mayon continued during 23-29 August. On 24 and 28 August, moderate gray-and-white plumes were observed drifting to the NE, SE, and WNW. The volcano and surrounding areas has been on Alert Level 3 Status since July 14 when it emitted steam, and lava flow since July 15. The volcano is located at 13.257°N, 123.685°E.

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B. CALLS FOR SUBMISSION

http://www.asce.org/conferences/india06/.

(2) 8th Asia Pacific Conference on Disaster Medicine. Tokyo, Japan: November 20-22, 2006

Under a cooperative agreement established with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI) is pleased to offer the 2007 Professional Fellowship to provide an opportunity for practicing professional to gain greater skills and broader expertise in earthquake hazards reduction. The deadline to apply is September 5, 2006. More information on the fellowship is available on EERI's Web site at: http://www.eeri.org/home/fellowships_professional.html. Candidates may obtain an application form from EERI, 499 14th Street, Suite 320, Oakland, CA 94612; (510)451-0905; eeri@eeri.org; http://www.eeri.org/home/Profell_application.pdf.

(3) Call for Abstracts: 3rd Annual GIS Conference in Kuwait: February 9-21, 2007

The third Annual GIS Conference, the premier GIS event in the state of Kuwait is accepting abstracts; deadline of submission is September 30, 2006. Conference topics include: emergency response, natural resources management, GIS and environmental modeling, environment and natural hazards, planning and community, urbanization effects on the working landscape, water resources, remote sensing and data acquisition. Papers for oral presentations will be accepted based on single-page abstract submitted in Word to: papers@gulfgis.com. Authors should provide name, their position and their affiliation in the abstract. For more information visit: http://www.gulfgis.com.

(4) Call for Papers: Natural Hazards Review

Natural Hazards Review is currently seeking manuscripts for publication in upcoming issues. The journal publishes original, peer-reviewed papers on all aspects of natural hazards loss reduction. Articles containing detailed case studies are complemented by ones reporting original research findings. Natural Hazards Review serves as a forum for holistic approaches to natural hazards mitigation. Additional information, including complete manuscript preparation instructions, is available online at: http://scitation.aip.org/nho/.

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C.   CONFERENCES AND COURSES

(5) ADPC at Map Asia 2006. Bangkok, Thailand: Aug 29 to Sept 1, 2006

Organizers: GIS Development. Dr. Luis Jorge Perez-Calderon, ADPC Deputy Executive Director, will Chair the Technical Session 'Disaster Management' of Map Asia 2006 on September 1. Map Asia 2006 is the 5th Annual International Conference and Exhibition on Geographical Information Technology and Applications. Gabrielle Iglesias from ADPC UDRM team will present a paper on "GIS and E-governance Initiatives of Four Philippine Cities" on the parallel session on GeoICT on August 31. Map Asia is an international initiative aimed at providing a platform for the convergence of geomatics community of Asia-Pacific region. Founded in the year 2002, Map Asia is one of the largest annual Asian conferences on Geoinformation technology and applications. For a list of papers presented at the "Disaster Management" session, please visit: http://www.mapasia.org/2006/conference/session.asp?ses=Disaster%20Management.

(6) Hospital Emergency Preparedness and Response Course. Bangkok, Thailand: September 18-22, 2006e

Organizer: Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC). This international course is designed to help health personnel, both administrative and medical, prepare health care facilities and personnel to respond effectively to internal or community emergencies that involve large numbers of casualties. For more information, contact the Public Health in Emergencies Team, ADPC: adpc@adpc.net.

(7) Regional Course on Governance and Disaster Risk Reduction. Manila, Philippines: September 25-30, 2006

Organizer: Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC). This international course is designed to develop local government professionals sensitive to issues presented by recurrent hydro-meteorological hazards. The course will cover such topics as urban governance and risk management, vulnerability reduction, and mainstreaming risk reduction as a component of governance. For more information, contact the Urban Disaster Risk Management team, ADPC: iglesias@adpc.net.

(8) GWEA2006 Symposium on Impact Evaluation of Global Warming and Approach to Risk Analysis in East Asia. Taipei, Taiwan: October 31-November 4, 2006

Organizers: Fisheries Research Institute, Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan, and Global Change Research Center, National Taiwan University. This symposium will focus on climate change in East Asia; its impacts on ecosystem and adaptation, food production and adaptation, and human health and society; and risk assessment of global warming. To learn more, contact Don-Chung Liu, Fisheries Research Institute (Taiwan); +886-2-2462-0053 (Taiwan); GWEA2006@mail.tfrin.gov.tw; http://www.gcc.ntu.edu.tw/GWEA2006/english.htm.

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D.   USEFUL RESOURCES

SPECIAL FOCUS ON GOVERNANCE & HURRICANE KATRINA

(9) "One Year After Katrina: Progress Report on Recovery, Rebuilding and Renewal"

Office of Governor Haley Barbour, Mississippi, 46 pp. The report emphasizes governance (local governments, NGOs and the private sector) in recovery and reconstruction. The report can be found here: http://governorbarbour.com/recovery/documents/
oneyearafterkatrina.pdf.

(10) GAO Report: Katrina and Rita Fraudulent Disaster Relief

"Hurricanes Katrina and Rita Disaster Relief: Improper and Potentially Fraudulent Individual Assistance Payments Estimated to Be Between $600 Million and $1.4 Billion" is a statement of the testimony of investigators from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) before the Subcommittee on Investigations, Committee on Homeland Security of the U.S. House of Representatives. The report can be found here: http://www.gao.gov/docsearch/abstract.php?rptno=GAO-06-844T.

(11) Urban Institute: "After Katrina" Policy Briefs

This website of the Urban Institute has a collection of "After Katrina" policy briefs covering the following topics: Children/Families, Cultural Vitality, Economy/Taxes, Education, Government and Social Services, Health Policy, Housing, Nonprofits, Work/Income. The website can be found here: http://www.urban.org/afterkatrina/.