| |
The Kathmandu Valley project had four main objectives:
- evaluate Kathmandu Valley's earthquake risk and prescribe
an action plan for managing that risk;
- reduce earthquake vulnerability in public schools;
- raise awareness about the Kathmandu Valley's earthquake
risk among the public, government officials, international
community resident in the Kathmandu Valley, and international
organizations; and
- build local institutions that can sustain the work launched
in this project.
Like many urban areas in developing countries, Kathmandu Valley's
risk has increased significantly since the last major earthquake.
The Valley has a burgeoning population of almost 1.5 million people,
uncontrolled development, and a construction practice that has
actually degraded over this century. Nepal is among the poorest
and least developed countries in the world with a per capita GDP
of US$ 145. Approximately 14% of the GDP (US$ 400 million) is
derived from foreign development aid. A weak economy and abundant
poverty result in a lack of government funds to support earthquake
hazard mitigation programs (including ratification of a building
code), inexpensive and poorly constructed dwellings that often
fail even in the absence of earthquakes, and a tendency in the
general population to ignore the earthquake hazard because of
more immediate needs. The Kathmandu Valley has an urban growth
rate of 6.5% and one of the highest urban densities in the world.
Currently, Nepal has no official building code and nearly all
construction is built without the input of an engineer and without
seismic force consideration. The technical information about
earthquake risk in the Kathmandu Valley is incomplete and scattered
among several governmental agencies. However, a more important
contributor to the region's lack of earthquake preparedness
is that the synthesized and available technical information
has not been applied to the infrastructure of the modern day
Kathmandu Valley and has not been presented in a form comprehensible
to the public and government officials.
It is clear that a large earthquake near the Kathmandu Valley
today would cause significantly greater human loss, physical
damage, and economic crisis than in past earthquakes. The Kathmandu
Valley Earthquake Risk Management Project aimed to improve this
situation and start a process towards managing the earthquake
risk in the Valley. |
|
| |
Nepal and Earthquakes
Nepal is located within the Himalayan mountain range, a product
of the continental collision of the Eurasian and Indian plates,
initiated about 40-55 million years ago. The collision was followed
by subduction of the Indian plate underneath Tibet, which continues
today at an estimated rate of about 3 cm per year. The subduction
results in tectonic stresses along the Himalayan Frontal Fault
System (HFF), the Main Boundary Thrust Fault System (MBT), the
Main Central Thrust Fault System (MCT), and the Indus Suture
Zone (ISZ), all parallel to the Himalayan arc. Numerous earthquakes
have occurred in this region, including four major earthquakes
of magnitude greater than M8 within the last 100 years (Seeber
et al., 1981; Molnar, 1984; and Chandra, 1992). Table 1 shows
the frequency of earthquakes instrumentally recorded since 1911
within 150 km of Nepal's border.
In this century alone, over 11,000 people have lost their lives
due to earthquakes in Nepal. The 1934 AD Bihar-Nepal Earthquake
produced strong shaking in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal's political,
economic and cultural capital, destroying 20 percent and damaging
40 percent of the Valley's building stock. In Kathmandu itself,
one quarter of all homes was destroyed along with several historic
sites. This earthquake was not an isolated event. Three earthquakes
of similar size occurred in the Kathmandu Valley in the 19th
Century: in 1810, 1833, and 1866 AD. The seismic record of the
region, which extends back to 1255 AD, suggests that earthquakes
of this size occur approximately every 75 years, indicating
that a devastating earthquake is inevitable in the long term.
Institution Building
An important part of this project was to institutionalize
the earthquake risk management processes started during its
course. Continuation of these processes is a key component to
reducing the Kathmandu Valley's earthquake risk. The project's
institutionalization efforts have focused on two areas: first,
establishing NSET-Nepal as a neutral seismic safety advocate
for the country; second, to incorporate earthquake and other
disaster risk management activities into local government.
The project has given NSET-Nepal
an opportunity to establish an office, train its staff, gain
experience in earthquake risk management, and develop a positive
reputation through its actions. It has also provided an opportunity,
through the development of the Earthquake
Risk Management Action Plan Initiatives and other activities,
for NSET-Nepal to plan its long-term strategy in tackling the
Kathmandu Valley's earthquake risk.
Progress has been made in establishing local government earthquake
risk management institutions as well. The Kathmandu Metropolis
created a Disaster Management Unit as part of the city government,
which has been included in project activities and was trained
in organizing disaster management activities by a KVERMP consultant.
Other municipalities in the Valley have also considered establishing
Disaster Management Units and are working with NSET-Nepal to
get the process started. NSET-Nepal has also been active in
educating ward-level officials (a ward is a subset of a municipality,
the legal equivalent of a neighborhood), and at this time two
wards have created their own Disaster Management Committees
comprised of neighborhood residents and community-based organizations.
Back to Top |
|
Implemented by:
