Inhaltsbereich
Central Asia
Cross-Border Natural Disaster Prevention in Central Asia
Responsible at GFZ:
Prof. Dr. Jochen Zschau, Dr. Claus Milkereit, Dr.habil. Stefano Parolai
Dipl.-Geophys. Angelo Strollo (project coordinator)
Timeframe: 2008-2010
This project aims to contribute to seismic risk reduction in the region. It has been initiated by the Federal Foreign Office Germany, InWEnt and the Helmholtz Zentrum Potsdam Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum. A cross-border cooperation between the central Asian countries has been launched by GFZ and InWEnt, permitting the implementation of a region-wide seismic real-time network. At the same time, local scientists are involved in all the activities within the project, from the installation of seismic stations to seismic data analysis and seismic hazard assessment. This scientific and technical training will help the region to acquire scientific independence as well as the necessary know how to maintain the network in the long term.
Central Asia is subject to an increase of natural disasters as earthquakes, droughts, floods and sand storms. This has a strong impact on the living conditions of people and on the social and economic development in the region. Further increase of natural disasters and of the damage caused is to be expected in the course of the next decades. A cross-border cooperation with Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan has been initiated in August 2008. An effective interdisciplinary cooperation and dialogue between the ministries, institutions and universities of the different participating countries will be established.
The regional partners are
from Kazakhstan: Institute of Seismology of Kazakhstan
from Kyrgyzstan: Central-Asian Institute for applied Geoscience (CAIAG)
National Academy of Science of the Kyrgyz Republic (KIS)
from Tajikistan: Tajik Institute of Earthquake Engineering and Seismology
from Turkmenistan: Research Institute of Seismology
from Uzbekistan: Institute of Seismology, Academy of Science Republic of Uzbekistan
A new real-time seismic network will be implemented in order to improve the knowledge of the area. Existing and new stations will contribute to this network. By combining new seismological and engineering measurements calibrated and improved ground motion prediction for future earthquakes will be possible. The map representing earthquake events for Central Asia since 1973 and the GSHAP-map of the expected Peak Ground Acceleration (PGA) show that all participating countries are exposed to important seismic hazard and that most of the capitals and bigger cities are located within regions of high expected PGA values. However, the GSHAP-world map being a computed global seismic hazard map, its accuracy for specific regions is limited. This project will also help to improve estimations of PGA and of seismic risk for Central Asia.
The main activities are:
1-CA Cross-border seismic network design and realization in Central Asia (implementation of CAREMON,Central Asian Real-Time Earthquake Monitoring Network)
2-EM Earthquake Microzonation in urban areas
3-VR Risk assessment (Hazard and Vulnerability) in the region in coordination with the global initiative Global Earthquake Model (GEM)
4-CB Training of local scientists and technicians on seismological instrumentations, data analysis and seismic risk assessment.
Expected results:
Short term:
Improvement of:
- location of earthquakes
- estimation of magnitude and focal parameters
- knowledge on active faults
- characterisation of regional wave propagation, attenuation and ground motion
- existing microzonation studies
- seismic hazard and risk assessment
Long term:
- Rapid earthquake information
- Alert mapping and real-time shake mapping capability
- Seismic early warning capability
- Rapid damage and loss assessment capability.