APEC-WW & IG-WRDRR Joint Workshop

Extreme wind storms such as tropical cyclones are generally accompanied by high waves, storm surge, heavy rains, floods, landslides and lightning. Thus, the resulting disasters are better named “wind-related disaster” than “wind-induced disaster”. Wind-related disasters such as Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar in 2008 and Cyclone Sidr in Bangladesh in 2007 have had significa nt impactson our society, especially in terms of the shocking number of deaths and injuries to people and the attendant property loss. It has been reported that the majority of economic disaster losses in the world are caused by extreme wind related events, and it is hypothesized that global warming has the potential to further exacerbate this scenario through an increase in the number and intensity of weather-related disasters. This calls for concerted efforts in pooling of expertise and cooperative actions to reduce losses from various types of disasters. Despite recognition of this critical need for cooperative actions in wind-related disaster risk reduction activities among various professional organizations, there has been no notable collaborative effort among the various groups in the past.

An International Group for Wind-Related Disaster Risk Reduction (IG-WRDRR) was formally launched under the framework of UN/ISDR at the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction held in Geneva, Switzerland, 16-19 June 2009 (see web-site: http://www.iawe.org/WRDRR/).

The IG-WRDRR is responsible for establishing linkages and coordinating various communities to serve as inter-agency coordinators with a charter to work with international organizations involving agencies of the UN and involved NGOs, and to embolden their activities that help to serve as a bridge between policy makers and agencies responsible for actually carrying out the DRRat the local community level. All the efforts of IG-WRDRR are directly related to the implementation of the Hyogo Framework for Action in the area of wind-related disaster risk reduction. The main expected activities of the IG-WRDRR include:
- to establish a database/warehouse of the latest information/technologies relevant to wind-related effects and their mitigation;
- to facilitate technology transfer that attends to the needs of local communities exposed to disasters around the world;
- to provide assistance to international organizations in the preparation of guidelines to manage the impact of wind-related disasters including evacuation, recovery and reconstruction;
- to organize, dispatch and facilitate ground logistics for quick-response post-disaster investigation teams;
- to establish an international consensus for extreme winds based on damage relevant to different construction practices;
- to establish international guidelines to prepare for wind-related disaster reduction activities;
- to harmonize wind-loading codes and standards including environmental specifications;
- to facilitate development of a global Engineering Virtual Organization (EVO) for Wind-Related Disaster Risk Reduction; and
- to hold regular international workshops/conferences on WRDRR.

Polytechnic University has been organizing the “APEC Workshop on Regional Harmonization of Wind Loading and Wind Environmental Specifications in Asia-Pacific Economies (APEC-WW)” every year since 2004. The next APEC-WW 2010 will be held in the Republic of Korea, and “IG-WRDRR & APEC-WW Joint Workshop on Wind-Related Disaster Risk Reduction Activities and Inter-organizational Collaborations” will be held in Incheon on October 24. Forty to fifty people from more than 20 countries in the Asia-Pacific region will participate in this Workshop.

The proposed Pre-conference Event on 25 October 2010 is to summarize the “IG-WRDRR & APEC-WW Joint Workshop” and to share the current status and activities for WRDRR in the Asia- Pacific region. It will provide a platform for mutual exchange of information and knowledge between wind engineering experts, people working on DRR in various organizations, and policy makers. Future collaborative action plans will be discussed and implemented.

The risk of future disasters continues to escalate with population shifts towards urban centers located in the paths of typhoons/cyclones and the impending threat of their increased intensity and frequency as hypothesized by potential climate change. Urbanization has also led to the deterioration of regional and global environmental situations, which will have far reaching effects on social safety and public health. These tendencies are particularly significant in the Asian region. The proposed Pre-conference Event will take on additional regional challenges, and the outcomes will contribute to the 4AMCDRR in advance of WRDRR activities with the focus on urban areas in Asian countries and beyond.

Opening address: UNISDR

Activities in Asian region and role of ADRC (A. Koresawa)