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Gupta, Anil K. and Nair, Sreeja S. (2011) Environmental
Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management,
Abstract Volume of International Conference,
10-11 May 2011, New Delhi P 64
Acknowledgements
Dr. Sandhya Chatterji, Dr. Florian Bemmerlein-Lux,
N. Raghu Babu, Reetika Goyal, Sunanda Dey,
Richa Arya, Hemant Kumar, Megha Kohli, J. N. Jha
Conference Organised by
NIDM & GIZ-ASEM
Editors
Anil K Gupta
Sreeja S. Nair
Design & Printed by
CELLULOID
318, Patparganj Industrial Area
Delhi - 110 092
e-mail: [email protected]
Concept Note - Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management 1
Thematic Session 1 Environmental Statistics and Decision Support Systems for Disaster Risk Management
ES-DSS -1 Flood Warning in Bavaria, Germany 5 Alfons Vogelbacher*
ES DSS-2 Extreme weather events in India- a preliminary analysis on Impact 5 Ajay Singh, Anand Patwardhan, Abhijat Arun Abhyankar, Nandlal L. Sarda
ES DSS-3 Knowledge and Data Integration for Modelling of Risk for Development of a DSS 6 J. Durgaprasad
ES DSS-4 Applications of Natural Disaster Database in Vulnerability mapping and Disaster risk reduction for the South Andaman Island, India – A GIS Based Probabilistic Risk Assessment study 6
Shrikant Maury, S. Balaji
ES DSS-5 Drought hazard and vulnerability analysis for Bundelkhand region using geo-spatial tools 7
Anjali Singh, Anil K Gupta, Sreeja S. Nair, P.K. Joshi, V.K. Sehgal
ES DSS-6 Environmental Statistics for Disaster Management – Indian Scenario 8 Sreeja S Nair & Anil K. Gupta
ES DSS-7 Application of analytic hierarchy process (AHP) to dust storm risk assessment, Khuzestan province southwest of Iran 8
Fatemeh Matroud, Ahad Nazarpour
ES DSS-8 Hot Spot Analysis of Tornado Due to Climate Change for Bangladesh: A GIS and Remote Sensing Approach 9
Md. Abul Hasem
ES DSS-9 Handling of Uncertainty for Modelling of Risk for Development of a DSS 9
J. Durgaprasadand , P. Subba Rao
ES DSS-10 Landslide Hazard Zonation Mapping Using Remote Sensing and GIS in Kodaikanal Taluk, Dindigul District 10
N . Prabhakaran, K.S. Preethi Magdalene
ES DSS-11 Participatory GIS Approach for Flood Vulnerability Assessment 10 Arnab Kundu
Contents
ES DSS-12 Application of “High Tech Agriculture” to overcome Disasters in Agriculture Sector 11 Dhiren Vandra & Asha Tank
ES-DSS -13 Air Pollution Episode Prediction Using Extreme Value Theory 11 Pragati Sharma, Suresh Jain
ES-DSS -14 Air Quality Alerts Using Univariate Linear Stochastic Model 12 Pragati Sharma, Prateek Sharma, Suresh Jain
ESDSS -15 Macro-analysis of occurrence of climate extremes in India 13 Ajay Singh, Anand Patwardhan, Abhijat Arun Abhyankar, Nandlal L. Sarda
ESDSS -16 Contribution of Geographic Information Science (GIS) to Emergency Preparedness and Response 13
Alok Singh, Sunil Kumar Yadav
ESDSS -17 Estimating the Hazard from Landslides Using Historical Data and GIS Spatial Model 14
Janak Bahadur Chand, Yasuhiro MITANI, Ibrahim Djamaluddin & Hiro IKEMI
ESDSS -18 Vulnerable Communities and Disaster Management - A GIS based Decision Support Systems for slums and low income housing of Ahmedabad, India 14
Rutool Sharma & Somesh Sharma
ESDSS -19 Cyclone hazard risk profile of coastal districts of India 15 M. Mohapatra
Thematic Session 2 Spatial Planning and Information Systems for Industrial Disaster Risk Management
SPIDRM-1 Approach to Land-use planning at Major Hazard Sites in Germany 16 Christian Jochum*
SPIDRM-2 Geographical Information System (GIS) based Emergency Planning and Response System 16
S.S. Gahlout, Arpita Gupta
SPIDRM-3 Vulnerability Assessment of an oil storage terminal using multi temporal satellite data: A study of IOC, Sitapura, Jaipur 18
B.D Bharath, B.S. Sokhi & Shreya Roy
SPIDRM-4 Application of dense gas dispersion modeling and Consequence analysis of industrial hazard scenarios in spatial planning 18
Asit K Patra
SPIDRM-5 Risk Management Information System – a GIS enabled tool for managing chemical risks at Maximum Accident Hazard Industry Clusters in India 19
Debanjan Bandyopadhyay, Nilanjan Paul
SPIDRM-6 Evolving a methodology to factor chemical risk into land use planning decisions in India 19
Anandita Sengupta, Debanjan Bandyopadhyay, Cees J van Westen
SPIDRM-7 Applications of RS and GIS Technique in Ground Water Decontamination: Recent Trend In Disaster Management 20
Parul Sharma, Shalini Srivastava
SPIDRM-8 A System Approach to Manage Chlorine Emergencies in Chlor-Alkali plants 21 Harisaran Das 21
SPIDRM-9 Alang Ship Recycling Industry: Issues, Standards And Way Forward 21 Anil Kumar, Shivani Gupta
Thematic Session 3 Legal Framework and Regulations for Environment and Disaster Management
LFEDM-1 Effectiveness of Environmental Legal Systems for the Protection of Environment: A Study of the Tribal Areas of Himachal Pradesh 23
V.B. Negi, Jaishree
LFEDM-2 Legal Protection, Economic Gain and Right to Struggle: A Case study of mineral mining in coastal area of Kerala 24
S. Mohammed Irshad
LFEDM-3 Environmental Degradation and Interpretation of existing legal provisions 24 Somya Gupta & Tanya Verma
LFEDM-4 Disaster Management: its impact in Law and Development 24 Hitesh Agrawal
LFEDM-5 Evolution and Impact of International Environmental Jurisprudence in India 25 Archita Phookun, Sophia S Mustafa
LFEDM-6 Bhopal Gas Tragedy 26 Vijita S. Aggarwal
LFEDM-7 Sustainale Development and Natural Resource Management – A Legel Perspective 26
Archita Phookun and Anupam Pandey
LFEDM-8 Legal Framework and Regulations for Environment and Disaster Management (Safety and disaster laws) 27
Nishant Buragohain
Thematic Session 4 Environmental Services and EIA in Disaster Management
ESEIA-1 Environmental Disasters and EIA 28 Pavan Kumar Singh, Susanta Kumar Jena
ESEIA-2 An Overview of EIA study of Swan River Flood Management Project, District Una, Himachal Pradesh, India. 28
Madhuri Venu, S.Rishi, Abinder S. Chadda
ESEIA-3 The role of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) on Flood Risk in India 29 Alok Singh, Sunil Kumar Yadav
ESEIA-4 Waste Management and Disposal Services after Disasters in India 29 G. Niranjani
ESEIA-5 Role of EIA in Disaster Management 30 Aditi Madan
ESEIA-6 Floods in Gorakhpur: Applying EIA to Risk Mitigation 31 Richa Arya, Anil K. Gupta , M. Yunus
ESEIA-7 Vulnerability of critical infrastructures towards natural hazards 31 Claudia Bach*
ESEIA-8 Groundwater Management During Disasters In India 32 K. J. Anandha Kumar
ESEIA-9 Waste Management and Disposal Services Integral Part of Relief Measures 33 G Ravi
Thematic Session 5 Natural Resources Management - Linkage to Disaster Risk Management
NRMDRM-1 Sustainable Coastal Protection and Alternative Livelihood Option through Bamboo Bioshields 34
Thara K.G
NRMDRM-2 Water Harvesting Based Sustainable Farming System to Alleviate Drought 34 R.K. Sahu, K.K. Sahu
NRMDRM-3 Land & Water Management Strategies for Drought and Flood Proofing 35 K.K. Sahu, R.K. Sahu
NRMDRM-4 Protection of Mangroves and related species – A Natural Care to Avert the Damage of Tsunami 36
G. Vedanthadesikan , P. Murugesan
NRMDRM-5 Flood Management in GBM Basin: A Mechanism for Natural Resource Management between Co-Riparian 37
Priyanka Mallick
NRMDRM-6 Strengthening Adaptation Capacities and minimizing Risks of Vulnerable Coastal Communities 37
Ashish Chaturvedi, Rachna Arora*
NRMDRM-7 Ecosystem Approach to Disaster risk Reduction 38 Sunanda Dey
NRMDRM-8 Urbanisation, Water Scarcity and Climate Change: A Case from Rajasthan with Global Implications 39
M. S. Rathore
NRMDRM-9 Developing Effective Storm Water Drainage Systems Plan for Flood Management in the City 41
Anjana Vyas
NRMDRM-10 Ecological Social and Technological Dimensions of Resource Management for Reducing Disaster Risk 41
A. K. Choudhary
NRMDRM-11 Variability of the Thermohaline Structure in the Gauthami-Godavari Estuary 42 Thota V. Narasimha Rao
NRMDRM-12 Disaster Risk Reduction in the Himalayan context - relationship between NRM and Community Engagement 42
Gargi Banerji and Sejuti Basu and Abhinaba Chakravarti
NRMDRM-13 Water Resource Management for DRR - A Case study of Bero Block, Jharkhand State, India 43
Kiran Jalem, Purnima Kumari
NRMDRM -14 Natural Resource Management Policy Implications on Disaster Risk Management Practices: Insights from North-East Cambodia 44
Kathlyn K. H. Sumaylo
NRMDRM -15 Ecosystem approach to Disaster Reduction: Case of agroecosystems and drought in India. 44
Divya Agarwal, Anil K Gupta
NRMDRM -16 Flood Risk Mitigation Measures for the River Indus in Leh Town 45 Zainab Jalis, Amir Ali Khan, Sirajuddin Ahmed
NRMDRM -17 Role of Water bodies in Climate-Disaster Resilience in Urban Areas 46 BK Singh and Shiraz A. Wajih
NRMDRM -18 Agroforestry model to improve economic and ecological viability in degraded tea lands in mid country of Sri Lanka 46
Prasad Dharmasena, M.S.Bhat
NRMDRM -19 Decentralized Solid Waste Management: The sole option of Urban Disaster Resilience 47
BK Singh and Shiraz Wajih
NRMDRM -20 Disaster management in the Forestry Sector: Issues and Concerns 48 VRR Singh
NRMDRM -21 Addressing Disasters in Cold Deserts of Indian Himalayas 48 Gargi Banerji, Sejuti Basu, Abhinaba Chakravarti
NRMDRM -22 Community Based Mitigation and Preparedness for Disaster Risk Reduction based on Natural Resource Management 49
Dr. Sandhya Chatterji, Dr. Anil K. Gupta, Ms. Sreeja Nair
INTER DISCIPLINARY AREAS
IDDRM-1 Sustainable Urban Development: Integrating Land use Planning and Disaster Risk Reduction 50
Priti Attri, Anil K Gupta, Smita Chaudhry, Subrat Sharma
IDDRM-2 To Assess the Challenges Posed by Polluted Groundwater on Public Health – GIS Approach, Kanpur region, Uttar Pradesh 50
Deepshikha Purwar
IDDRM-3 The Treatment of the Liquid Rejects from The Petroleum Refinery of Arzew–Algeria to the Mediterranean Littoral 51
Menouar Hanafi
IDDRM-4 Correlation of Neotectonic activity with landslide occurrence along Main boundary thrust in Dehradun region 51
B. C. Joshi
IDDRM-5 Risk Perception of Inundation Events in Mumbai 52 David J. Hallau
IDDRM-6 In Search of Alternatives for Edge Old Disinfection technologies 52 Mrinal Kanti Ghosh
IDDRM-7 Mapping different types of Conflict related incidents in Manipur using GIS Techniques 52
Ankit Jaswal
IDDRM-8 Climate Change and Disasters in India R K Mall, R Bhatla, A K Gupta
Conference Committee
54
* Contributions made on behalf of GIZ
Foreword
Thirty years ago, half the developing world lived in extreme poverty today, a quarter. Now a much smaller share of children are malnourished and at risk of early death. Access to modem infrastructure is much more widespread. Critical to the progress is rapid economic growth driven by technological innovation and institutional reforms. Yet ,the needs remain enormous. With so many still in poverty and hunger, growth and poverty alleviation remain the overarching priority for developing countries. Climate change only makes the challenge more complicated. First, the impact of a changing climate are already being felt with more droughts, floods, strong storms, heat and cold waves -taxing individuals, communities and governments. People ex-
posed to various hazard prone environment with low capacity are more vulnerable. This poses a greater challenge for safe and sustainable living.
Societies dependant on the climate for their survival, continuity and growth are now coming to grips with the fact that the climate is now prone to their actions. The steep increase in green house since the industrial revolution has transformed the relationship between people and the environment. To put it differently, not only does climate affect development but development affects the climate.
During the last one and half decades, there has been a paradigm shift in India’s approach to both Disaster Management and Climate Change adaptation. Shifting the focus from a relief centric reactive approach, India has adopted a proactive, holistic and integrated approach encompassing disaster risk reduction with prompt and efficient response, relief and recovery. Disaster management now high-lights the inter dependence of economy, environment and inclusive development. In synergy with this approach, the National Environment Policy, 2006 lays emphasis both on risk mitigation and adaption of Climate Change, which has been further supplemented and reinforced through the National Policy on Disaster Management, 2009.
There is an urgent need to enhance knowledge base by taking up more research and development work focussed on all related fields and for developing new technologies including study of traditional wisdom and practices, tools and methodologies.
I am sure that the current endeavour of NIDM, jointly with GIZ and the Ministry of Environment and forest (MoEF) Advisory Services for Environmental Management (ASEM) programme, will facilitate the process of learning. Besides, conference aims at promoting tools and techniques based on space technology, environmental statistics, environmental impact assessment and environmental laws for di-saster management.
The present conference is a step forward towards developing conceptual framework, academic and institutional networks and drawing various case studies. I am sure that the conference would be extremely useful for all the stakeholders. I extend my best wishes to all the experts, delegates and team members of the conference for its grand success.
(R. K. Srivastava)
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF DISASTER MANAGEMENT(Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India)
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 1
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management
Environment and Disasters Environmental degradation is the deterioration of the
environment through depletion of resources such as
air, water and soil; the destruction of ecosystems, habi-
tat and the loss of natural homeostasis. It is defined as
any change or disturbance to the environment per-
ceived to be deleterious or undesirable, be it quantita-
tive or qualitative.
Environmental degradation is one of the Ten
Threats officially cautioned by the High Level Threat
Panel of the United Nations including World Resources
Institute, UNEP, UNDP and the World Bank. Disasters are
the events of environmental extremes which are inevi-
table entities of this living world. Over the years, with
the increasing human intrusion in the natural systems
and the changing global environment, the frequency
and impact of the disasters is augmenting. Following
are the three major faces of environmental change pri-
marily responsible for causing or aggravating hydro-
meteorological disasters:
� Climate-change
� Land-use changes
� Natural resource degradation
Environment and disasters are inextricably linked,
particularly in context of hydro-meteorological haz-
ards, climatic risks and epidemiological challenges. It is
now widely recognized in terms of following interface:
(a) Environmental degradation leads to disasters
Environmental degradation can occur owing to natu-
ral processes or due to human induced impacts. Altera-
tion of natural systems and processes, destruction of
habitats, loss of quality of environment and exploita-
tion of resources are the broad indicators of environ-
mental degradation. Climate-change, land-use and
natural resource degradation are known to generate
or aggravate disasters especially of the hydro-meteo-
rological origin. Increasing trend in these disasters like
floods, drought, cyclone, pest-attack and fires, world-
wide and especially in continents of Asia and Africa is
a serious concern for governments and communities.
(b) Environmental degradation causes vulnerability
Besides causing new hazards and aggravating precur-
sors of disaster events, degradation of environment
increases socio-economic vulnerability by reducing
bioproductivity, livelihoods, water, food and nutrition,
sanitation and health, housing, entrepreneurship, and
thus, overall economics jeopardizing the coping capac-
ity. Low capacities result in high exposures to hazardous
prone locations and conditions of high disaster risk. Poor
environmental quality and degraded natural resources
also cause social conflicts and political instability.
(c) Disasters impact environment
Disaster events are also known for causing serious im-
pacts on environment affecting natural processes, nat-
ural resources and ecosystems, and thereby creating
conditions for secondary or future disasters including
complex emergencies. Natural disasters can also trig-
ger chemical or technological disasters. Environmen-
tal sustainability is also compromised during disaster
management operations and recovery process due to
improper disposal of disaster and relief wastes, acute
exploitation of natural resources and inappropriate
land-use/landscape modifications.
(d) Environmental Management and Disaster Man-
agement Cycle
Knowledge of environment is crucial in all stages of
disaster management cycle including pre-disaster
prevention and mitigation, and during post-disaster
Concept Note
2 | Abstracts
response, relief, reconstruction and recovery. Experi-
ence of the past disasters indicated that environmen-
tal services like shelter, water, food safety, sanitation
and waste management form crucial components in
emergency relief especially in case of water and cli-
mate related disasters. On the other hand, concern on
disaster risk and mitigation is equally important in all
stages of environment management from prevention
of hazards and environmental degradation, control,
impact minimization, remediation, rehabilitation over-
all sustainability in environmental systems.
A well-managed environment can act as a buf-
fer against disasters. This can happen in two ways. A
healthy or well-functioning ecosystem can regulate
or mitigate the hazard itself, thus preventing a di-
saster from taking place or reducing its impacts. In
addition, healthy ecosystems reduce people’s vul-
nerability to disasters by increasing the resilience of
communities through meeting basic needs (water,
food, health, fuel, etc.) and supporting sustainable
local livelihoods and economies. Opportunities of
integrating environmental management and disas-
ter risk management together, hence, are a prime
concern emerged globally. Environmental laws and
instruments viz. EIA, Risk & Vulnerability Assessment,
Ecological modeling and predictions, Auditing, Envi-
ronmental Laws facilitate at key stages of disaster risk
management.
Legal and Institutional FrameworkDisaster management has primarily been a concern
for emergency response and a post-disaster focused
approach until the realization of paradigm shift
from ‘response and relief’ to ‘prevention and pre-
paredness’. The climate-change awareness globally
has brought-in a greater understanding on role of
global, regional and local environmental aspects in
disaster management (risk assessments, mitigation,
early warning and effective response). In many coun-
tries, the framework of disaster management has
been functional in total separation from the systems
that deal with environmental protection and natural
resources management. However, at international
level the guiding documents like Agenda-21, Hyogo
Framework of Action, Millennium Ecosystem Assess-
ment, IPCC 4th Assessment Report, Ramasar Conven-
tion, Convention on Desertification, and many other
strategic documents have recently emphasized envi-
ronmental aspects of disaster management and vice
versa with intense focus.
At national levels as well, for example in India,
the disaster management act and policy has defined
‘substantial damage to….environment’ as a disas-
ter, and has focused on environmental compatibil-
ity and sustainable development as strategic issue
in disaster management cycle. On the other hand,
policies and legal framework on environment – wa-
ter, forests, agriculture, land-use, atmosphere and
climate-change, waste management, besides consti-
tutional provisions on environment, have provided
options for reducing hazards and vulnerability in
context of disasters. For example, the National strat-
egy on climate-change actions and missions thereof,
policy statement on conservation of natural resourc-
es, coastal zone regulation, area specific notifications
like one on Doon valley, are of key importance in di-
saster risk management.
EIA as a decision making tool helps in identifying
viable and sustainable option for structural or non-
structural measure of disaster mitigation, whereas
post-disaster EIA forms a part of damage, loss and
needs assessment that enables planning for recon-
struction and recovery. Although most EIAs implic-
itly have focus on natural disaster risk in the project
site context and include a Disaster Management as
part of EMP, the information contained therein the
state of environment section and predictions under
the section on environmental impacts can be used
for carrying out detailed risk assessment and disas-
ter management planning as well. However, there
is a need to carry out a systematic analysis of these
policies and laws for applying these legal provisions
for various activities under disaster management.
ContextUnited Nations agencies including UNEP, UNDP, IUCN,
UN-ISDR and UNU Institute of Environment and Hu-
man Security, jointly with many international organi-
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 3
zations like ADPC, WWF, GFMC, ProAct Network, SEI,
and the Council of Europe, have formed a Partnership
for Environment and Disaster Risk Reduction (PEDRR)
in year 2008 with headquarter at Geneva. UN-OCHA
has setup a joint Environment Unit with UNEP to em-
phasize environmental aspects of disasters and their
management. UN-ISDR and IUCN have come up with
a number of publications on linkage of environment
and disasters. However, at national levels the initiatives
for emphasizing the linkages between the two are yet
to be understood.
In India the National Disaster Management Au-
thority is the apex national organization for develop-
ing guidelines and plans on various aspects of disas-
ter management, whereas Ministry of Environment &
Forests is nodal agency for environmental protection
including dealing with issues of climate-change, forest
and habitat conservation, environmental quality, EIA,
etc. Various aspects of land-use and natural resources
are dealt by different Ministries like Rural Develop-
ment (Deptt of Land Resources), Water Resources, Ag-
riculture, Earth Sciences, Science & Technology, Biodi-
versity Board, etc.
It has been experiences that the disaster manag-
er’s often fail to recognize the environmental dimen-
sions of disaster risk, vulnerability and also of the post-
disaster actions, whereas environmental managers
seldom focus on evaluating disaster risk aspects within
their studies. There is also a need to analyze and/or to
develop approaches, tools, techniques and method-
ologies, legislative framework, statistical and decision
support systems of environmental management for
their role in disaster risk management.
Since the environmental degradations resulting
into disaster risk are either slow onset process or have
wider geographic extents, local administrators and
planner’s understanding usually not sound enough
to analyze cause-consequence relationship may re-
sult in inappropriate strategies for disaster mitigation
and response. However, many good case examples of
utilizing environmental knowledge and management
into disaster risk management and also disaster risk
reduction’s significance in sustainable environment
are available particularly in context of hydro-meteo-
rological disasters in mountain and coastal areas and
also in context of urban flooding, epidemics and agro-
ecosystems. Therefore, it is necessary to deliberate and
discuss case studies, conceptual and strategic frame-
works for utilizing environmental knowledge into di-
saster risk management activities in an international
forum of experts on environment and disasters, policy
makers, practitioners, scientists and academicians.
ekDRM projectThe ekdrm2011 international conference is being or-
ganized jointly by National Institute of Disaster Man-
agement (NIDM New Delhi), GIZ (Berling, Germany),
GIZ-ASEM (New Delhi, India) and the programme
implemented facilitated through the consortium of
Ifanos Concept & Planning (Germany) and Ifanos In-
dia (New Delhi). ‘German Technical Cooperation and
Capacity Building’ (GIZ Germany, formerly GTZ and
InWEnt) have entered in cooperation with National
Institute of Disaster Management for a joint project
‘Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Manage-
ment (ekDRM 2010-12) focusing on knowledge man-
agement for disaster risk management. The specific
components of project activities include the following:
� Environmental statistics and decision support sys-
tem including remote sensing and GIS application
for disaster risk management
� Spatial planning and land-use aspects for reduc-
ing risk of complex emergencies including Na-
tech disasters
� Environmental and natural resource legislation for
disaster risk management and post-disaster man-
agement
� Post-disaster environmental services and role of
EIA in context of disaster management.
� Linkages between natural resource management
and disaster risk management for climate-change
adaptation and sustainable development
Cooperation aims at promoting research/case
studies, developing and maintaining web-enabled hu-
man resource platform effective training methodolo-
gies including blended learning approach, tools and
methodologies, workshops, conferences and publica-
tion of reference literature.
4 | Abstracts
ObjectivesAim of the conference is to offer an international plat-
form for sharing of experience, knowledge, opinions
and initiate dialogues on various aspects of environ-
mental knowledge management, decision support
systems, planning and monitoring of implementation
The key objectives are:
� developing practically applicable conceptual
models of integrating environment and disaster
management including customization of tools
and methodologies
� analyzing need and availability of environmental
data for various stages of disaster management
planning and implementation – including risk as-
sessment, mitigation strategy, damage, loss and
needs assessment and recovery planning
� understanding role of environmental jurispru-
dence in disaster risk management and analytical
interpretation of environmental law provisions for
application in disaster management context
� Explore the various Spatial Planning/Information
Systems for Industrial (Chemical) Disaster Risk
Management , applicability and limitations
� developing a network of agencies and experts on
the subject for implantation of ekDRM project ac-
tivities on various aspects of environment – disas-
ters linkages
� Understanding the role of Environmental Impact
Assessment and Environmental Services (post di-
saster) in Disaster Management
� bringing out case studies of best paractices of link-
ages between environmental management and
disaster risk management
Expected OutcomeThe ekdrm2011 Conference shall be attended by more
than 150 delegates from India, Germany and other
countries across the world representing scientists,
academicians, practitioners, policy makers, multilateral
agencies, UN agencies, government officials, disaster
responders, NGOs and scholars. Conference will be a
forum for presentation and deliberations on various
case studies of good and bad examples, tools, meth-
odologies, legislation and approaches on various as-
pects of the environmental knowledge for disaster risk
management from across regions of India, Germany
and many other countries of the world. Role of various
agencies and institutions and issues for policy advo-
cacy shall also be discussed in context of applicability
of legal provision and tools in context of disasters. Sug-
gestions for customization of various environmental
instruments for use in different stages of disaster man-
agement cycle shall be drawn. The conference will fa-
cilitate a network of resources and experts on different
thematic areas for academic and research advances.
Literature generated from the conference papers
and presentations/discussions shall be used in devel-
oping a compendium of case studies and knowledge
base for planning activities and to be used as training
materials. Proceeding volume containing full papers
shall be published in form of book and shall be sig-
nificant contribution to the reference literature on the
subject. The most important outcome of the proposed
conference shall be in form of promoting and motivat-
ing greater emphasis on environmental management
and disaster risk management integration into prac-
tice at all levels.
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 5
Thematic Session 1
Environmental Statistics and Decision Support Systems for Disaster Risk Management
ES-DSS 1
Flood Warning in Bavaria, Germany Alfons VogelbacherFlood Information Centre, Bavarian Environment Agency, Munich, [email protected]
For more than 100 years, the flood warning ser-
vice in Bavaria has performed valuable work for suc-
cessful mitigation of flood damage. It covers the river
basins in Bavaria with response times ranging from 6
to 12 hours up to the larger basin of the Danube with
response times ranging from 1 to 3 days. After the big
flood in May 1999 in Bavaria, the action program 2020
was installed for a sustainable flood protection in Ba-
varia integrating structural and non-structural means
to minimize flood damage. The improvement of the
flood warning service was part of this program. As a
prerequisite for flood forecast a meteorological and
hydrological information system and database with a
fully automated data communication system has been
created in the last ten years. Following the lessons
learned during the floods of May 1999 and August
2002, the focus was set on the reliability and availability
of the main system-parts. Real-time data collection, on-
line data base, generation of automated products and
the dissemination of the data and products are based
on redundant systems at several locations. Hydrologi-
cal forecasts have become an important part of the
flood warning scheme. Numerical weather forecasts of
the German Weather Service are mainly used as input
to the hydrological forecast models. Experiences with
published forecasts during former flood events have
shown the need for communicating the uncertainties
associated with these forecasts to the civil protection
and the public. Therefore, methods for quantifying and
representing these uncertainties have been developed
and incorporated in the flood warning routine.
Keywords: flood warning Bavaria, flood forecast,
flood information system, rainfall-runoff model, Dan-
ube river, uncertainty, ensemble forecast, transbound-
ary forecast system, flood preparedness, flood protec-
tion, realtime data collection, online data base.
ES DSS-2
Extreme weather events in India- a preliminary analysis on ImpactAjay Singh Post doctoral fellow, SJM SOM IIT [email protected]
Anand Patwardhan Professor, SJM SOM IIT [email protected]
Abhijat Arun Abhyankar Post doctoral fellow, CSE IIT [email protected]
Nandlal L. SardaProfessor, CSE IIT [email protected]
Extreme weather events have enormous impacts
to human society and environment. India is highly vul-
nerable to climatic extremes due to high population
density, poor infrastructure, low human development
index and minimal coping capacity. In this scenario
it is important to look at damage caused by climate
extremes over India spatially and temporally. Impacts
data constitute information about mortality, persons
6 | Abstracts
affected, village affected, crops affected and total eco-
nomic loss. All events combined show significant in-
creasing trend in impact. It was found that significant
increasing impacts are observed in case of dust storm,
flood, hail storm and lightening. Floods share maxi-
mum impacts caused by climate extremes. Total mor-
tality due to the extreme events is maximum in Orissa.
It also stands first in normalized mortality. Cold wave
has significant increasing trend in impact on Haryana,
Rajasthan and West Bengal, whereas significant de-
creasing trend in Madhya Pradesh. All the states have
shown increasing trend in heat wave occurrences. Fi-
nally policy implications of impacts of these events
and future work have been discussed.
ES DSS-3
Knowledge and Data Integration for Modelling of Risk for Development of a DSSJ. DurgaprasadProfessor, Civil Engg. Department, Gyan Ganga College of Tech., Jabalpur - 482 003, India. E-mail: [email protected]. Subba Rao Professor and Head, Civil Engg. Department, JNTU College of Engineering, JNTU Campus, Kakinada - 533 003, India.
East coast of India is frequently battered by in-
tensive tropical cyclones. Due to these natural haz-
ards, damage to infrastructure is predominant in-
cluding heavy losses of life and property. From post
disaster damage surveys, it is noted that many indus-
trial buildings, houses, roads, power and communi-
cation lines suffer varying degrees of damage result-
ing in socio-economic losses. How risky the system
is important for projects/problems, which are gener-
ally of high cost or unique or strategically important
and multidisciplinary in nature. One aspect of effec-
tive risk management is accurate risk analysis, which
is of vital significance to decision makers. Hence, it is
necessary to develop continually efficient method-
ologies and techniques for moderating risks to be
within acceptable limits. A storehouse of knowledge
of experts and data are now available in the area of
risk analysis, wherein extensive work has been done
by professionals and researchers who have also stud-
ied natural hazards and strategies for mitigating the
damage or loss. Acquired chunks of knowledge from
the domain expert’s must be processed to identify
the conflicting chunks of knowledge, gaps, and re-
dundancies and improved before using for risk anal-
ysis. Further, it is necessary to eliminate conflicts and
represent the knowledge in a consistent and com-
plete manner suitable for carrying out risk analysis.
The use of a graph theoretic technique is proposed
in this paper for processing of knowledge and its use
in the creation of a Knowledge Base (KB) for develop-
ing Decision-Support System (DSS). To demonstrate
the approach, a case study on risk analysis of a roof
structure against damage due to cyclonic winds is
used.
ES DSS-4
Applications of Natural Disaster Database in Vulnerability mapping and Disaster risk reduction for the South Andaman Island, India – A GIS Based Probabilistic Risk Assessment studyShrikant Maury*, S. BalajiDepartment of Coastal Disaster Management, Pondicherry University, Port Blair 744103Email: [email protected]
The South Andaman Island is one of the most
natural disaster prone zone and very frequent to
earthquakes which are often most destructive and
also inherently poses various vulnerable natural haz-
ards such as catastrophic tsunamis, coastal floods,
coastal land subsidence and landslides etc. The
South Andaman Island lies in the Bay of Bengal in
N-S direction and administratively ambit between
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 7
10°00’ to 12°12’ North latitudes and 92° to 94° East
longitude. Major landscape of these islands are di-
vided into low to moderately high and steep hills,
intermountain narrow valleys and gradually sloping
coastal tracts including swamps. The 26th December
2004 tsunami disaster not only posed geographi-
cal and environmental changes but it also infringed
the infrastructure of social life of this island. The
post math tsunami impacts still triggering imbal-
ance on various consequences and driving major
environmental and climatic change on this Island. A
GIS based Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) is an
ardent need for the assessment of the vulnerability
before work on any development policies and imple-
ment the development plans. Therefore to evaluate
the vulnerability risks, a culmination of available
disaster database from the past events in various
aspects and contemporary issues related to sustain-
able community developmental activities and their
scenarios on changing environment have been un-
dertaken. This article provides cognitive understand-
ing and integrates the perception on various aspects
of GIS based Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) and
its importance in disaster management, environ-
mental issues and developmental activities for the
South Andaman Island.
ES DSS-5
Drought hazard and vulnerability analysis for Bundelkhand region using geo-spatial toolsAnjali Singh TERI University, New Delhi 110 070, India
Anil K Gupta, Sreeja S. Nair National Institute of Disaster Management, New Delhi , India
P.K. Joshi , V.K. SehgalIndian Agriculture Research Institute, New Delhi, India
Drought is one of the most complex natural di-
sasters in the world in terms of the number of per-
son directly affected. It is considered to be least un-
derstood among all natural disasters due to wider
range of environmental inputs and influences over
the occurrences, impacts and mitigation strategies.
A major challenge for drought research is to devel-
op suitable methods and techniques for forecast-
ing the onset and termination points of a drought.
Drought indices plays an important role in drought
studies, they assimilate thousands of bits of data of
drought variable into a comprehensible big picture.
A drought index value is typically a single number, far
more useful than raw data for decision making. Since
drought studies require huge amount of continuous
data and because of its peculiar characteristics there
has been a lack of progress in drought management
throughout the world in general and in particular in
India. Present study has scientifically identified and
assessed the hazards and vulnerability on spatial and
temporal scales, by using (SPOT Vegetation images)
remote sensing and GIS techniques. The study has
developed a new methodology for a comprehensive/
detailed drought analysis covering three major types
i.e. meteorological, hydrological and agricultural with
limited and freely available data. It was an attempt to
fill the knowledge gap by using statistical techniques
and Geoinformatics tools and of drought monitor-
ing. Range of indices like Deciles of percentile, SPI,
Percent by normal SWLI, NDVI and VCI were used to
capture multi-dimension impact of drought. Differ-
ent software such as ArcGIS 9.1, ENVI 4.4, SPI_SL_6
etc, has been applied to analyse the nature of the
droughts and calculate their frequency and intensity.
The report ends with innovative presentation of haz-
ard, vulnerability and composite drought risk map of
the region to educate the reader and the decision
makers about the recurring nature of the drought. It
presents an intelligent information base to assist the
decision makers and mitigation analysts in taking in-
formed decisions in drought mitigation action. The
aim of the study was to develop a drought risk map
for the Bundelkhand region which is not available
and can serve as a major basis for risk management
planning and programmes along effective warning
and monitoring framework.
8 | Abstracts
ES DSS-6
Environmental Statistics for Disaster Management – Indian ScenarioSreeja S Nair & Anil K. GuptaNational Institute of Disaster Management
It has been increasingly recognized that develop-
ment, disaster risk and Environment are interlinked.
However the exact nature is poorly understood due to
the non availability of datasets. Disaster management
being a multi -disciplinary subject involving complex
subjects like Atmosphere, Water, Biodiversity, Land and
Soil and Human Settlements and socio economic fac-
tors it is difficult to collect, analyze and study relation-
ships among them. It, therefore, became necessary to
develop an efficient statistical system on environment
including the disasters that could meet the growing
demand of various governmental agencies, environ-
mentalists and general public for data on various as-
pects of environment and disasters.
The Central Statistical Organization has taken
various initiatives in close cooperation with various
data source line Ministries / Departments/ Organiza-
tion for the development of environment statistics in
the country. CSO created a division of environmental
statistics in 1996 and prepared broad framework for
capturing statistics. The Compendium of Environment
Statistics by CSO has been prepared under the broad
Framework for Development of Environment Statistics
provided by the United Nations Statistics Division and
adopted by the Steering Committee on Environment
Statistics set up by CSO during 1996.The five param-
eters of the framework, namely, biodiversity, atmo-
sphere, land/soil, water, and human settlements have
been used in this compendium. There is a dedicated
chapter on Land Uses, Agriculture, Mining and Natural
disasters included in the compendium. CSO in collabo-
ration with NIDM came up with a framework for devel-
oping a national disaster statistical system in India cov-
ering hazard related statistics and disaster statistics.
The present paper gives a detail analysis on how
the compendium of environmental statistics can
be utilized by the disaster managers for the various
phases of disaster management cycle. The paper also
highlights the limitations of the databases in the per-
spective of a disaster management professionals and
strategies to overcome the challenges.
ES DSS-7
Application of analytic hierarchy process (AHP) to dust storm risk assessment, Khuzestan province southwest of IranFatemeh Matroud Department of mathematic Islamic Azad University (IAU), Abadan Branch
Ahad NazarpourDepartment of geology, Islamic Azad University (IAU), North Tehran branchCorresponding author: [email protected]
Dust storm is the synthesize result of the action
of atmospheric motion and physical geographic en-
vironment. Formation dust storm depends on the in-
teraction between atmosphere and sandiness surface,
which are different physics medium in their density.
Recently Khuzestan province in southwest of Iran is af-
fected by dust storm phenomena. This feature makes
some problem in agriculture, Transportation, Commu-
nication and human health side effect in this province.
Evaluation, ranking and management strategies of en-
vironmental impacts of dust storms are the reasonable
ways to achieve sustainable development. These ways
can be as a management tools in decision making for
program planners. So they can be able to identify solu-
tions and logical and best choice option for reducing
potential environmental impacts from implementa-
tion of a plan or severity of the actual effects of a natu-
ral phenomenon. Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) is
an approach to decision making that involves structur-
ing multiple choice criteria into a hierarchy, assessing
the relative importance of these criteria, comparing
alternatives for each criterion, and determining an
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 9
overall ranking of the alternatives. In this investigation
ranking of environmental impacts in physicochemical,
biological, social, economic and cultural environmen-
tal has been done by using AHP methods. Results of
this study showed that dust has the greatest effects on
health than education.
Key words: Analytical Hierarchy process (AHP), Rank-
ing, dust storm, Environment
ES DSS-8
Hot Spot Analysis of Tornado Due to Climate Change for Bangladesh: A GIS and Remote Sensing Approach Md. Abul Hasem Dept. of Geography, M.Sc; Geography and Environment, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. e-mail : [email protected]
Bangladesh ranked the top of among world’s ten
deadliest tornados from death toll with more than 16
million people stretching a small proportion of land-
mass and highly susceptible due to climate change.
It has the potential impact as there’s more energy
in the atmosphere, more water vapor evaporating
and greater likelihood for stronger heating events
that lead to stronger thunder storms-super cells
and tornado production. Death toll from tornados
is the highest due to lack of communication, informa-
tion, warnings, week housing and appropriate shelters
etc. Tornados and Norwester’s is a short lived event
and occurring regularly which is creating an adverse
situation to the poor people. The risk and vulner-
ability of tornado hazard is crucial and causing a
great proportion of economical, social, administra-
tive and health problems to the affected people.
Coping strategy for the development of household
employment, water supply and health is very
little in relation to damage and injuries. The study
aims to develop a tornado Hot Spot zone by cal-
culating Getis-ord Gi* statistics and Spatial Weight
Matrix. The Delauny _Triangulation conceptualization
ensured the relationships of neighborhood features. A
ranking matrix and linear interpolation method adopt-
ed to find the risk areas throughout the country. Data
over 40 years will help to analysis tornado hot spot
zone. Capacity building, damage management and
development are very important for the spatial allo-
cation of affected people which will help the decision
makers to launch multifaceted initiatives and projects
aiming at mitigation of risks.
Key words: Climate change, Hotspot zone, Weight ma-
trix, Shelters, Capacity Building and Development.
ES DSS-9
Handling of Uncertainty for Modelling of Risk for Development of a DSSJ. DurgaprasadProfessor, Civil Engg. Department, Gyan Ganga College of Tech., Jabalpur- 482003, India. E-mail: [email protected]
P. Subba RaoProfessor and Head, Civil Engg. Department, JNTU College of Engineering, JNTU Campus, Kakinada - 533 003, India.
One aspect of effective risk management is ac-
curate risk analysis. Decision Support Systems (DSS)
are being widely used for risk analysis. Risk arises from
uncertainty about the future behaviour of a system.
In the absence of uncertainty there would be no risk.
In spite of the great significance and practical success
of probabilistic information theory, it has increasingly
been recognized that probability theory captures only
one type of uncertainty, i.e., aleatory uncertainty. The
greater challenge is to treat epistemic (due to vague-
ness) uncertainties that come from incomplete (or lack
of ) knowledge about fundamental phenomena. And,
the problem of accounting for epistemic uncertainty in
risk management decisions is conceptually straightfor-
ward, but is riddled with practical difficulties. In addi-
tion, complexity is an important source of uncertainty
10 | Abstracts
and hence risk. Complexity makes it difficult to under-
stand or predict a system’s behaviour, thus giving rise
to epistemic uncertainty. The more complex a system
is, the more possibility for components to interact in
unforeseen and possibly undesirable ways. One goal
of risk management, and development of DSS and op-
eration in general, is to reduce uncertainty as much as
possible, and to make sure that the remaining uncer-
tainty is identified and understood. These issues are
addressed, in this paper, by making use of Bayesian
networks. And expert opinions are aggregated into full
(composite) probability distributions that can be com-
bined through Bayesian computations with the other
variables of the model. To demonstrate the approach,
a case study on risk analysis of a roof structure against
damage due to cyclonic winds is used.
ES DSS-10
Landslide Hazard Zonation Mapping Using Remote Sensing and GIS in Kodaikanal Taluk, Dindigul DistrictN . Prabhakaran, K.S. Preethi MagdaleneDepartment of Civil Engineering, PSNA College of Engineering and Technology, Dindigul
India is vulnerable to different natural hazards of
which 15% of total area of the country is susceptible to
landslides exceeding 0.49million km2. Landslide is de-
fined as “the movement of mass of rock, debris or earth
down a slope”. Landslides are caused in hilly terrains
due to factors like gravity, weathering, deforestation,
earthquake, heavy precipitation etc; Landslide may be
major or minor disaster which results in loss to prop-
erty and life. Kodaikanal is a Taluk division of Dindigul
district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It lies between
10 0 6’38”N to 10 0 26’57”N Latitudes and 77 0 16’00”E
to 77 0 44’56”E longitudes, covering an area of about
1081.33 sq.km. The methodology involves generation
of drainage pattern map, geology, structural map, land
use/land cover map, slope angle, slope aspect, DEM,
lineament map, landuse/landcover, rainfall distribu-
tion and water level map. DEM of study area has been
generated from SRTM image and topographic map at
a scale of 1:25000. Landuse/landcover map has been
largely interpreted from Landsat TM and Cartosat im-
age. To identify the vulnerable areas, the above-men-
tioned parameters were analyzed in a GIS by assigning
appropriate ranks and weights. The result is a landslide
hazard zonation map showing regions with varying
degrees of vulnerability to landslides. It is opined that
such a map (which is derived from the analysis of the
causative factors) will enable to propose and imple-
ment suitable mitigating measures like blasting thus
preventing loss of life and property in the Kodaikanal
hills.
ES DSS-11
Participatory GIS Approach for Flood Vulnerability AssessmentArnab Kundu Research Scholar, Centre for the Study of Regional Development, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi-110067, India. Corresponding authors: [email protected]
Flood is a most frequent and risky hazard as well as
a disaster in the world. In the present study, Participa-
tory GIS (PGIS) approach has been used to assess flood
vulnerability and risk. The application of Participatory
GIS is common and effective where local people have
the ability to accumulate knowledge and experiences.
The PGIS integrates qualitative information (mental
maps, public opinions) with quantitative data. The
main objective of this study is to design a method of
the vulnerability assessment and also for further risk
analysis and management. In this study, building ma-
terials, land use map, flood depth map, population (day
and night), building types of study area have used to
clarify social vulnerability. For the community based
study, sites or houses of the area have been selected
by Random sampling method. A questionnaire has
been prepared for the collection of qualitative as well
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 11
as quantitative data from the people. The vulnerabil-
ity maps and curves have been created using Spatial
Multi Criteria Analysis (SMCA) technique. For this, some
of the invented data has used together with the exist-
ing data. The PGIS survey of the area help in obtaining
many information which are needed for the assess-
ment of vulnerability of the study area.
Keywords: Flood, Vulnerability, Participatory GIS (PGIS),
Social Vulnerability, Random Sampling, Questionnaire,
SMCA, Risk Analysis and Management.
ES DSS-12
Application of “High Tech Agriculture” to overcome Disasters in Agriculture SectorProf. Dhiren Vandra & Asha Tank,35,Jaydeepnagar, Jail Road, At Mangrol Dist Junagadh (GUJARAT)E-mail : [email protected]
Disasters are the events of environmental ex-
tremes which are inevitable entities of this living world.
The impact and frequency of the disasters is augment-
ing. During last decade, there has been greater focus
on the interface between environment, livelihoods
and disasters with environment and Disaster Risk Re-
duction for agriculture especially. Because Indian ag-
riculture is a field which is fully depends on rainfall,
temperature fluctuation, climate and other natural fac-
tors. The irrigation water is limiting factor of agriculture
production. In natural disaster Drought is most serious
disaster. 43% of total area and 60% of Agricultural area
are under Drought for ever. 27% of total population of
Gujarat state facing Drought Problems permanently.
During the 1960 to 1990 (30 yrs) were 18 droughts in
Gujarat. This ignored aspect need scientific study. With
the help of various references this study was carried
out with objectives to know proportion of farmers
who adopts High Tech Agriculture systems like Micro
Irrigation, Green / Glass Houses, Mulching etc in five
Talukas of Junagadh District of Gujarat State. The short
questioner giving farmers and data collected was ana-
lyzed by simple percentage/ proportion method.The
results shows that 50 to 60 percent farmers are adopt-
ing mulching to maintain soil temperature and soil
moisture in horticultural crops. It reduces 25 to 35 per-
cent water requirement of crops during drought con-
dition; 30 to 35 percent farmers are adopting low cost
Green houses which reduce 20% of water requirement
in controlled condition and increase 18 - 24 % agricul-
tural production; 70 to 80 percent farmers are adopt-
ing Drip Irrigation systems and 25 to 40 percent farm-
ers adopting sprinkle irrigation which saves 35 to 70
percent and 25 to 35 percent of water respectively. So
the suggestions are, every farmer should adopt mulch-
ing practices to maintain soil moisture and soil tem-
perature in water deficiency,Green House may be used
as and when require to create controlled atmospheric
condition to sustain crop yield in any disaster.,Every
farmer of arid region should adopt any Micro irrigation
system to minimize water requirement of crops during
drought condition.This way with the help of various
High Tech Agriculture systems, we can reduce effects
of any drought on agricultural productivity.
ES-DSS 13
Air Pollution Episode Prediction Using Extreme Value TheoryPragati SharmaAssistant Professor, Department of Applied Sciences, Bharati Vidyapeeth’s College of Engineering, Paschim Vihar, New Delhi Prateek SharmaAssociate Professor, Department of Natural Resources, TERI University, Delhi
Suresh JainAssociate Professor, Department of Natural Resources, TERI University, Delhi, 10, Institutional Area, Vasant Kunj, New DelhiEmail: [email protected]
The extreme air pollution event, i.e. the maxi-
mum Air Pollution Concentration (APC) is governed
by many complex and interrelated factors. In the
first place, the causative source emissions and sec-
12 | Abstracts
ondly, the cumulative effect of typically complex
climatological conditions such as low surface wind
speed, temperature inversion, anticyclonic condi-
tions, mixing height, atmospheric stability etc. exert
a large influence on the APC. As a result of this and
the inherent uncertainty associated with turbulent
flow, the deterministic models generally fail to pre-
dict extreme event adequately. Thus, on account of
these complexities, the statistical methods offer an
alternative and pragmatic approach to analyze the
extreme air pollution phenomenon.
The Extreme Value Theory (EVT) has mostly been
applied in hydrology for the statistical treatment of
floods and draughts. In air pollution literature many
studies applying Statistical Distribution Models
(SDMs) to air quality data, have been undertaken.
However, the EVT has not been applied in air pollu-
tion area that much frequently, perhaps because of
non-availability of adequate data set necessary for
its application. In the present study application EVT
has been described to through illustrative example
for making predictions of the expected number of
violations of the National Ambient Air Quality Stan-
dards (NAAQS), for two primary pollutants attributed
to vehicular sources – carbon monoxide (CO), and
nitrogen dioxide (NO2) monitored at a receptor lo-
cation near a busy urban road intersection in Delhi.
This has been done fitting Type I asymptotic distri-
bution of extreme values, more popularly known as
the Gumbel distribution. The parameters of the dis-
tribution have been estimated using the Gumbel’s
method. A comparison of the predicted violations of
the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS)
and the exceedence of the maximum pollution con-
centration with that of the observed data indicates
that Type I asymptotic distribution adequately fits to
the observed extreme value data. Finally applicabil-
ity of EVT for local air quality management has been
suggested.
Key words: extreme value theory, Gumbel distri-
bution, time series, statistical modelling, air quality
standards.
ES-DSS 14
Air Quality Alerts Using Univariate Linear Stochastic ModelPragati Sharma Assistant Professor, Department of Applied Sciences, Bharati Vidyapeeth’s College of Engineering, Paschim Vihar, New Delhi-110063.
Prateek SharmaAssociate Professor, Department of Natural Resources, TERI University, Delhi, 10, Institutional Area, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi
Suresh JainAssociate Professor, Department of Natural Resources, TERI University, Delhi, 10, Institutional Area, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi Email: [email protected]
Air pollution is relevant in urban regions in view of
the large number of people suffering from its effects
on health. Moreover, in many urban areas, pollutant
concentrations become really critical in the presence
of particularly unfavourable meteorological conditions.
Such conditions lead to the formation of an urban “heat
island”, where prolonged pollutant accumulation takes
place. In polluted areas there is, thus, a need for issuing
warnings to the general public so that sensitive individ-
uals can take necessary precautions. For an adequate
health warning system and for management of control
and public warning strategies for pollutant levels at
densely populated areas, reasonably accurate forecasts
of pollutant concentrations as a function of time and lo-
cation are necessary so that those persons with pollut-
ant affected health problems can plan their activities in
advance. There is also the possibility that foreknowledge
of high pollution potential could be used to reduce fu-
ture atmospheric pollutant concentrations through
timely reduction of emissions by traffic control or indus-
trial shut-down. The air quality “predictor” for pollutants
can be developed either by analytical or by statistical
means. Analytical models are, in general, more suitable
for making long-term forecasts/planning decisions. For
air pollution “episodes”’ characterised typically by fast
dynamics, these models do not give satisfactory results.
Moreover, in the absence of additional parameters re-
quired as input, such as, wind vector, temperature, traffic
characteristics (for emission factor computations), the
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 13
analytical models fail to provide quantitative descrip-
tion of the atmospheric pollution. Stochastic modelling
of the pollution time-series provides an alternative ap-
proach. In the present study, an attempt has been made
to determine the degree of prediction possible using
only a limited data set, restricted only to the past record
of CO and NO2 time series. For this purpose, the theo-
retical details of the univariate linear stochastic model
based on the Box-Jenkins modelling techniques has
been first described. The methodology has then been
described through an illustrative example in which
models for CO and NO2 for a major traffic intersection
in Delhi City (ITO crossing) have been developed. The
models can be utilised for supplying real-time forecasts
of extreme CO and NO2 concentrations, predicting fu-
ture concentration levels on the basis of data recorded
in previous periods.
Key words: Air quality alert, time-series analysis, real-time
prediction, linear stochastic models, early warning system
ESDSS -15
Macro-analysis of occurrence of climate extremes in IndiaAjay SinghPost doctoral fellow, SJM SOM IIT [email protected]
Anand PatwardhanProfessor, SJM SOM IIT [email protected]
Abhijat Arun Abhyankar Post doctoral fellow, CSE IIT [email protected]
Nandlal L. SardaProfessor, CSE IIT [email protected]
Climate change studies suggest shift in extreme
weather events. The changes in patterns in extreme
weather events would lead to issues related to energy,
water and food security including national security. In
the present study we have selected ten key climate
extreme events namely, flood, tropical cyclone, heat
wave, cold wave also gale, squall, lightning, dust-storm,
hailstorm and thunderstorm to study spatio-temporal
pattern over India. Data on the occurrence of extreme
climate events have been acquired from India Meteo-
rological Department and other relevant government
agencies. Flood constitutes major share of the events.
Cyclonic events which constitute only 1% of the events
have sizeable impact on socio-economic system of the
coastal region. Regression analysis on the total num-
ber of occurrences of these events reveals a significant
increasing trend. Among several events showing sig-
nificant increasing trend are flood, heat wave and light-
ning. Only cyclone among the all reported events has
insignificant decreasing trend. Leading states by event
category has also been computed and found that few
states are relatively more prone to the repeated occur-
rence of particular events. Finally, we have concluded
with the suggestions for the improvement in data col-
lection and key recommendations for further study.
ESDSS -16
Contribution of Geographic Information Science (GIS) to Emergency Preparedness and ResponseAlok SinghAssistant Professor, Accurate Institute of Advanced Management, Greater Noida, [email protected]
Sunil Kumar YadavAssistant Professor, Greater Noida Institute of Technology, Greater Noida, [email protected]
The emergency preparedness and response ap-
plication challenge is mainly concerned with the inter-
action between humans and their environment under
conditions thought to be hazardous either to habitat or
life. This application challenge is not only multifaceted
as its title implies but also covers a wide range of disas-
ters, many with fundamentally different underlying pro-
cesses (such as earthquakes, hurricanes, and wildfires).
Even though the processes that generate the disaster
might be fundamentally different, techniques to assess
risk, evaluate preparedness, and assist response appear
to have much in common and can share and benefit
14 | Abstracts
from advances in geographic information science (such
as data acquisition and integration; data ownership, ac-
cess, and liability issues; and interoperability).
Understanding geographic information is critical if
we are to build and maintain livable communities. Since
computing has become almost ubiquitous in planning
and managing our communities, it is probable that ad-
vances in geographic information science will play a
founding role in smarter decision making. This paper ex-
amines the challenges that occur between humans and
their environment under conditions thought to be haz-
ardous to life and habitat. Emergency preparedness and
response are reviewed, and recommended priorities for
research, educational, and policy contributions to emer-
gency preparedness and response are documented.
Keywords: Geographic Information Science (GIS),
Emergency Preparedness, Emergency Response, Risk
assessment, Emergency Planning.
ESDSS -17
Estimating the Hazard from Landslides Using Historical Data and GIS Spatial ModelJanak Bahadur Chand, Yasuhiro MITANI, Ibrahim Djamaluddin & Hiro IKEMIPhD Scholar,Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, Kyushu University, Motooka 744, Nishi-Ku, Fukuoka, JAPANe-mail: [email protected]
Landslides are important natural hazards that often
result in significant damage to society every year in Ja-
pan. The nature of damage that can be caused by land-
slides is complex and diffuse because of the many inter-
acting factors that are involved, and it may involve loss of
life and injury or economic loss. For instance, in Itoshima
area, many landslides occur around residence buildings
and some of them have caused damage to the environ-
ment. A Japanese practical method for measuring slope
hazardous area in the vicinity of buildings has been es-
tablished for Itoshima area. A rational assessment of a
slope hazard, including the consideration of potential
travel distance of debris and spatial distribution of the
vulnerable building population is rarely carried out, and
landslide consequences are commonly gauged only the
basis of engineering judgment. Traditionally, the main
emphasis of this method has often been placed on the
evaluation of the likelihood of slope failure based on the
slope angle. However, in comparison with fairly advanced
geographic information system (GIS) technology that
has been developed and applied in the landslide hazard
assessment, there seem to be a lack of a systematic and
comprehensive framework for rigorous assessing the
likelihood of slope hazard on widely area. In addition, in
developing risk management methods, it is important
to keep in mind the wide range of landslide and slope
instability problems, which need to be considered. This
paper provides an overview of the factors that need to
be considered in landslide hazard and risk assessment
in Itoshima area, and the approaches that could be ad-
opted in quantifying whole area of the likelihood of
slope hazard around residence buildings. An integrated
methodology has been developed to generalize a land-
slide hazard assessment map based on historical data
and spatial criteria, and examples are given to verify the
slope hazard assessment by three-dimensional (3D) in-
stability analysis by GIS-based integrated tool.
ESDSS -18
Vulnerable Communities and Disaster Management - A GIS based Decision Support Systems for slums and low income housing of Ahmedabad, IndiaRutool Sharma & Somesh SharmaFaculty of Planning and Public Policy , CEPT University, Kasturbhai Lalbhai Campus ,University Road Navrangpura, Ahmedabad
It is a known fact that the vulnerable communities
like people living in slums, low income groups, migrant
colonies and EWS housing societies are much more
susceptible to disasters than other communities living
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 15
in the city. Also it has been witnessed that the impact
of any disaster is also much higher on this group of
people as they are at a higher risk of exposure. These
communities may be directly affected during the disas-
ter as they are generally not prepared and excessively
affected. In event of a disaster, they donot have enough
knowledge and resources to respond to these disasters.
These people may take several months or years to re-
habilitate completely, as they may loose multiple things
like livelihood means, house, other assets, important
documents or family member during the disaster. The
paper emphasis the need for developing a comprehen-
sive GIS based Decision Support System (DSS) focusing
specifically on vulnerable communities living in urban
areas. The developed DSS will enable urban local bodies
to identify vulnerable communities based on nature of
disaster, plan mitigative measures, which will ultimately
help to respond quickly to emergency situations. The
DSS can also be used to assist the urban local bodies for
post disaster planning like estimate losses, design R&R
packages and distribute resources like construction
of houses, social infrastructure etc. The GIS based DSS
can also be used for recording disaster related data and
also facilitate easy upgradation of records. The informa-
tion generation from DSS can be a base for preparing
environment action plans and environment manage-
ment plans of the city. The paper presents the need and
framework for preparing a Decision Support System
taking Ahmedabad (India) as case study.
Keywords: Disaster, GIS, Decision Support System, Vulner-
able communities, Slums, environment
ESDSS 19
Cyclone Hazard Risk profile of coastal districts of IndiaM. MohapatraIndia Meteorological Department, Mausam Bhavan, DelhiE-Mail: [email protected]
Hazards associated with tropical cyclones are long
duration rotatory high velocity winds, very heavy rain
and storm tide. India has a coastline of about 7,516 km
of which 5,400 km is along the mainland. The entire
coast is affected by cyclones with varying frequency
and intensity. The India Meteorological Department
(IMD) is the nodal government agency that provides
weather services related to cyclones in India. Howev-
er, IMD has not identified cyclone prone districts fol-
lowing any specific definition though the districts for
which cyclone warnings are issued have been identi-
fied. On the other hand, for the purpose of better cy-
clone disaster management in the country, it is neces-
sary to define cyclone proneness and identify cyclone
prone coastal districts. It is also necessary to decide
degree of hazard proneness of a district by considering
cyclone parameters so that mitigation measures are
prioritized. In this context, an attempt has been made
to prepare a list of cyclone hazard prone districts by
adopting hazard criteria.
In general, the coastal districts of West Bengal,
Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu are more prone
and are in the high to very high category. The Prone-
ness factor is very high for the districts of Nellore, East
Godawari, & Krishna in Andhra Pradesh; Yanam in Pu-
ducherry and districts of north coastal Orissa & West
Bengal. The results give a realistic picture of degree
of cyclone hazard proneness of districts, as they rep-
resent the frequency and intensity of landfalling cy-
clones alongwith all other hazards like rainfall, wind
and storm surge. The categorization of districts with
degree of proneness also tallies with observed pic-
tures. Therefore, this classification of coastal districts
based on hazard may be considered for all the re-
quired purposes including coastal zone management
and planning. However, this classification is based on
only hazard criteria. Vulnerability of the place has not
been taken into consideration. Therefore, composite
cyclone risk of a district, which is the product of haz-
ard and vulnerability, needs to be assessed separately
through detailed study.
16 | Abstracts
SPIDRM-1
Approach to Land-use planning at Major Hazard Sites in GermanyChristian JochumChairman, German Commission of Process Safety, Bad Soden, GermanyEmail: [email protected]
The European Seveso II directive, which covers ma-
jor hazard sites, regulates spatial planning. There shall
be appropriate safety distances between those sites
and sensitive neighbourhood like residential areas. In
Germany the Commission on Process Safety, which
advises the German Federal Government, has issued a
guidance on land-use planning. It covers the planning
of industrial zones, for which the concrete usage is not
yet known (greenfield developments), as well (and
even more important in Germany) developments in
the neighbourhood of existing major hazard sites.
The guidance recommends certain assumptions
to calculate safety distances. It takes into account tox-
icity, thermal radiation and explosion pressure and
gives the figures for important, representative sub-
stances. On reaching or exceeding these distances, it
may be generally assumed that the effects of a major
accident will not lead to a serious hazard for the popu-
lation. To cover a wide range of possible installations
for greenfield planning the assumptions are conser-
vative. For planning purposes around an existing ma-
jor hazard site a more specific approach is possible.
Whereas some European countries apply quantitative
risk assessment for this purpose, Germany uses a de-
terministic approach. If the “greenfield safety distanc-
es” cannot be met, “credible worst case” scenarios have
Thematic Session 2
Spatial Planning and Information Systems for Industrial Disaster Risk Management
to be defined on a case by case basis. Consequence
assessments then lead to more specific (and generally
shorter) safety distances.
Experience in Germany shows that a critical pre-
condition for effective land-use planning is a good
cooperation between the different authorities respon-
sible for spatial planning and environmental safety.
As many industrial zones in Europe traditionally
are in densely populated areas planning tools can-
not solve all existing problems. Relocation either of
hazardous installations or sensitive neighbourhood is
rarely possible, so that here the focus is on improved
safety measures and emergency preparedness.
SPIDRM-2
Geographical Information System (GIS) based Emergency Planning and Response SystemS.S.GahloutDeputy Director General, National Informatics Centre, New Delhi, [email protected]
Arpita GuptaScientist D, National Informatics Centre, New [email protected]
Geographical Information System (GIS) based Emer-
gency Planning and Response System has been devel-
oped for Major Cluster of Industries in selected industri-
alized States in the Country. Project is sponsored by
Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF), Government
of India, which is nodal ministry for handling chemical
disasters in the country. Project is Developed by Nation-
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 17
al Informatics Center (NIC), Department of Information
Technology, Govt. of India along with expert consulting
organizations - M/s Associated Consulting Engineers,
Technosafe Consultants and IRG Consultants. System
has been developed as a complete software package
comprising of GIS tools and district databases. The pro-
gram is user-friendly and can be used along with district
level offsite emergency plan not only for planning and
mock trials of major chemical emergencies but also dur-
ing actual emergency.
In phase I the project is spread over four major in-
dustrialized states in the country viz. Gujarat, Maharash-
tra, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh . Twenty districts
were identified based on large number of Major Accident
Hazard (MAH) industries to include in this project. These
districts covered were Kutchh, Ahmedabad, Vadodara,
Bharuch, Surat and Valsad in Gujarat, Nasik, Thane, Mum-
bai, Pune, Raigad and Ratnagiri in MaharashtraTiruvallur,
Chennai and Salem in Tamil Nadu, Rangareddy, Medak,
East Godavari, West Godavari and Vishakhapatnam in
Andhra Pradesh.In phase II the project is spread over
ten major industrialized states in the country viz. Punjab,
Delhi, Haryana , Rajasthan, Karnataka, Assam, West Bengal
,Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Kerala . Twenty one
districts were identified based on large number of Major
Accident Hazard (MAH) industries to include in this proj-
ect. These districts are, Panipat in Haryana, Alwar and Jai-
pur in Rajasthan, Delhi, Ghaziabad and Bulandshahar in
Uttar Pradesh, Ropar and Hoshiarpur in Punjab, Dhar and
Bhind Madhya Pradesh, Bongaigaon and Guwahati in As-
sam Bangalore (rural and urban), Mysore and Mangalore
in Karnataka Ernakulam in Kerela, Burdwan, Hooghli, 24
Parganas (North and South), Kolkatta and Howrah in West
Bengal. Latest information was collected from Director-
ate of Factories of each state to identify MAH industries
to be covered as part of this project. Data on each MAH
industry was collected through a well-designed ques-
tionnaire and visits to industrial units. Data collected
pertain to chemical data - type of chemicals, quantities,
storage containers, storage conditions, etc. and response
data - PPEs, medical facilities, fire fighting facilities, ve-
hicles, etc. for each MAH unit separately. For all the Forty
identified districts, data was collected for “First Respond-
ers” and “Sensitive Area” district wise. First Responders
include Police, Fire Service and Medical Service (Gov-
ernment as well as Private). Relevant data was collected
with respect to contact information, facilities available to
combat chemical emergencies, etc. such as fire tenders,
BA sets, etc. with fire department, burn and chemical poi-
soning facilities with hospitals, etc. In addition, a separate
exercise requiring extensive fieldwork was undertaken
to mark the locations of MAH industries, first responders
and sensitive areas in terms of Latitude and Longitude
values so that they can be located on geo-referenced
digitized base maps. Such exercise was accomplished
with the help of handset GPS (Global Positioning System).
probable hazard zone, location of first responders (Police,
Fire and Medical Services), amenities and sensitive areas.
The aspect of continuity in display of areas for respective
districts has also been considered while identifying the
toposheets. All the essential features have been digitized
to develop base maps in different layers to which spatial
data can be attached. Field data collected with the help
of GPS pertaining to location of MAH industries and first
responders and other sensitive areas have been super-
imposed on digitized base maps in separate layers. Mo-
saicing and customization of digitized districts maps has
been done in order to get seamless maps of each indus-
trial pocket with an extent to cover all the MAH industries
along with MCL scenarios, police stations, fire stations
and hospitals. Data on all the chemicals stored at MAH in-
dustries has been compiled. Based on the MCL scenarios
computer modeling has been done using ALOHA and
ARCHIE for consequence analysis. Outcome is made com-
patible to complete software package and for display on
digitized maps. Outcome of all the relevant scenario are
stored in data base in the form of shape files and can be
displayed on digitized maps in separate layers as per the
user’s requirement. Users can view the district map on
their screens - these are digitized maps in layers superim-
posed on relevant sets of SOI toposheets for ease of use.
These GIS maps contain all the relevant data with respect
of location of MAH units and first responders, chemical
and response data, possible accident scenarios, hazard
zone under each scenario, etc. User can customize the
view based on choice of layers. Hazard zone in case of
toxic scenarios can be viewed with respect to user input
wind direction as well as a buffer to cater to complete
18 | Abstracts
hazard zone. Fire/explosion scenarios shall be depicted
as circular buffer zone around the point of accident.
Key words: MAH units, Emergency Planning and re-
sponse, Hazard Zone.
SPIDRM-3
Vulnerability Assessment of an oil storage terminal using multi temporal satellite data: A study of IOC, Sitapura, JaipurMr. B.D Bharath, Mr. B.S. Sokhi,& Ms. Shreya Roy Human Settlement Analysis Division, IIRS, DehradunEmail: [email protected]
Fires in the form of Flash Fires, Pool Fires, Jet Fires,
Explosions are some of the most common types of acci-
dents in oil storage terminals handling petroleum hydro-
carbon mixtures. Thermal Radiation from Fire, Blast Over-
pressure from Explosion are the major types of threat
involved in this type of accident. The nature of vulnerabil-
ity also depends on the type of the substance involved,
its vapor pressure, rate of volatilization, flash point, flam-
mability limits, boiling point, molecular weight, chemical
composition as well as the micro-climatic conditions like
atmospheric stability, mixing height, wind speed, wind
direction, rain wash etc of the site.
A major accident involving Motor Spirit Vapor Cloud
Explosion and Fire occurred at Indian Oil Corporation’s
Petroleum Oil Lubricants Terminal, Sitapura, Jaipur on
October 29, 2009. There were 11 petroleum storage tanks
in the IOC terminal that includes 5 for MS and 3 each for
High Speed Diesel (HSD) and Kerosene with a stock ca-
pacity of 60,000 KL of petroleum products.
The project was attempted to utilize coarse reso-
lution multi temporal satellite data like Terra MODIS
to visualize post hazard smoke plume, to identify the
most vulnerable zones with medium to high resolu-
tion satellite imagery of LISS III/IV as well as in ALOHA,
a software developed by USEPA which uses chemical
data,metereological conditions, nature of accident as an
input, to give threat/ vulnerable zones as an output and
finally integrating them in GIS environment to prepare a
vulnerability zonation map..
Areas within 500 to 700 meters from the IOC storage
terminals were the most vulnerable zones as predicted
by ALOHA and facilities beyond 700 m upto 2km suffered
glass window pane breakages. The worst case scenario
was run for full capacity with highest ambient tempera-
ture recorded and it was found that had the accident oc-
curred in that condition then the dense areas of Pratap
Nagar would have been highly affected.
These types of studies can provide a good insight for
the decision makers to identify the possible threat zones
from hazards like fire, explosions which can be used as
an input before siting any storage installations handling
flammable products like gasoline, diesel and kerosene.
SPIDRM-4
Application of dense gas dispersion modeling and Consequence analysis of Industrial Hazard Scenarios in Spatial PlanningAsit K PatraDisaster Management Institute,P. B. No. 563, Paryavaran Parisar, E-5 Arera Colony, Bhopal. India.E-mail: [email protected]
Consequence analyses due to accidental two-
phase superheated release from containers stored in
industries play vital role in spatial/off-site emergency
management planning. The results of dense gas dis-
persion modeling and effective analyses of loss sce-
narios can be applied to strengthen and modify the
administrative, legislative and spatial planning as-
pects required in preparedness and response stages.
The present paper deals with the worst-case release
scenarios associated with bulk storages of flammable
and toxic chemicals including underground pipe-
line transportation of natural gas. Inferences of these
analyses are expressed in terms of the actions/mea-
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 19
sures to be taken by the administration (off-site), on-
site plant management, required changes in relevant
codes/rules etc. Special recommendations have been
given on the utilization of these results in strength-
ening infrastructure of an Emergency Control Centre
(ECC) suitable for effective control and coordination of
activities during chemical/industrial disasters. Proper
application of analysis results in consultation with
state Town & Country planning department/Municipal
corporation/village panchayet would not only help in
allocating/demarcating land for industrial estates or
for residential or for other purposes, but also can avert
Bhopal/IOCL Jaipur Fire type off-site casualties.
Keywords : Consequence Analysis, offsite emergency,
on-site plant management
SPIDRM-5
Risk Management Information System – a GIS enabled tool for managing chemical risks at Maximum Accident Hazard Industry Clusters in IndiaDebanjan BandyopadhyayPhD Student, Faculty of Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation, University of Twente, Netherlands
Nilanjan PaulManager – GIS & IT Solutions,SENES Consultants India, email: [email protected]
Increasingly, all over the world, the need is ex-
pressed for integrated information system tools that
can assist in effective management of industrial acci-
dents originating from hazardous facilities. A number
of scientific and commercially available computerized
models currently exist which can simulate potential
risk scenarios like a toxic release, fire or explosion and
predict resulting end-point effect distances. Other
tools can spatially represent the area at risk by over-
laying an accident scenario footprint on a map to aid
the end-user in better visualizing the spatial extent of
risk. However, such modeling tools are seldom closely
coupled with updated GIS data and functionalities to
be able to estimate the extent of damage to human
life and property. We have developed a web-GIS en-
abled risk management information system (RMIS)
that integrates consequence modeling algorithms for
a range of technological hazard scenarios with a geo-
database containing repository of relevant hazard and
vulnerability data. The RMIS can be made available
through a customized user interface to decision mak-
ers, emergency responders and concerned stakehold-
ers, based on requirement. A pilot system has already
been deployed for the industrial town of Haldia, India.
We conclude that adoption of such an integrated ap-
proach will add considerable value to existing tools
for management of industrial risk, providing end-users
with more contextual information for decision making.
Keywords: risk scenario, hazard footprint, vulnerability,
simulation, geo-database, web-GIS, RMIS
SPIDRM-6
Evolving a methodology to factor chemical risk into land use planning decisions in IndiaAnandita Sengupta, Debanjan BandyopadhyayPh D student, Dept. of Urban & Regional Planning, Faculty of Geo-information Science and Earth observation (ITC), The Netherlands
Cees J van WestenAssociate Professor, Faculty of Geo-information Science and Earth observation (ITC), The NetherlandsEmail: [email protected]; [email protected]
Industrial accidents like Bhopal (1984) and more
recently Jaipur (2009) have clearly shown how the con-
sequences of such accidents can severely be affected by
the juxtaposition of hazardous installations with high
population densities. In such cases, the risk posed by
industrial accidents rises as further industrial or urban
development takes place. This is particularly the case in
developing countries like India, where the lack of regu-
latory framework for land use planning results in the
20 | Abstracts
close proximity of hazardous industries to residential
areas with their vulnerable communities. Though land
use planning is widely accepted as an important plan-
ning measure for minimizing risk;however it is difficult
to implement because of the various considerations
involved with land use, especially in countries like India
where pressure on land tend to be high. India, one of the
most densely populated countries in the world, is also
witnessing rapid industrialization.Today India has more
than 1949 Maximum Accident Hazard (MAH) industries,
a number which is steadily increasing following the Pe-
troleum, Chemicals and Petrochemicals Investment Re-
gion (PCPIR) Policy, for industries that store or process
considerable amounts of hazardous chemicals. In con-
tinuation of earlier practice, such MAH industries tend
to be clustered in some 90 industrial towns across the
country, thereby exposing the nearby resident popula-
tion to the adverse effects of releases of toxic substanc-
es, explosions and fires. Many of these towns are also
attracting new industries, including the MAH category,
because of availability of supporting infrastructural fa-
cilities, the availability of skilled manpower and other
locational advantages. In the absence of an appropriate
regulatory framework, such developments are leading
to a further increase in risk levels in such areas or towns.
It is after 25years of Bhopal Disaster; so far in India
no provision has been made to consider ‘risk’ in land use
planning decision. Recently, after concluding investiga-
tions into a major fire accident in a hazardous facility in
the city of Jaipur (India, 2009), the government is now
considering to draw up zoning regulations for the sur-
rounding areas of major petroleum and petrochemical
high hazard installations.
In this regard, we have made an attempt to formulate
a methodology to quantify industrial risk considering the
consequence of an accident scenario and vulnerability of
the neighbouring area.The authors have also examined
the basis for formulating a suitable risk zoning approach-
considering industrial risk-related criteria into account
and applied the result of such criteria to the industrial
town of Haldia in India. A scenario-based consequence
assessment was carried out for the identified reference
scenarios. Reference scenarios were selected based on
expert’s judgment. Based on available hazardous chemi-
cal inventories and their location, footprints of the refer-
ence scenarios were prepared and successively aggre-
gated into a consequence map of the study area. Using
a multi-criteria rating and ranking method, vulnerability
of the area was estimated considering building construc-
tion, number of people and sensible receptors etc. These
maps were subsequently multiplied using a risk matrix
to prepare the risk map depicting potential risks of the
area. Finally, the result was discussed to identify useful in-
puts for future land use planning of the area as well as for
risk mitigation interventions. The same framework can be
adopted for future land use planning exercises in other
industrial areas to minimize risk levels, thereby helping to
reduce the odds of another Bhopal like incident.
Key words: Industrial hazard, risk assessment, land use
planning, India
SPIDRM-7
Applications of RS and GIS Technique in Ground Water Decontamination: Recent Trend In Disaster ManagementParul SharmaDepartment of Chemistry, Amity School of Engineering & Technology, Amity University, Haryana
Shalini SrivastavaFaculty of Science, Dayalbagh Educational Institute, AgraEmail: [email protected]
One of the most formidable challenges facing the
human kind in the 21st century is sustainable environ-
mental management. Ground Water quality manage-
ment is of prime concern since it affects all and the way
in which we live. The problem of ground water contam-
ination can be managed if the source of the contamina-
tion is known and managed. The level of problem can
be decrease to a very large extent by optimized siting
decision which has gained considerable importance as
they ensure minimum damage to the various environ-
mental sub components and also reduce the stigma as-
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 21
sociated with the residents living in its vicinity.
In order to manage and mitigate the impact on the
ground water environment, it is therefore required to
have new tools and the method of analysis, which help
us to collate, analyze, model and monitor diverse data
on the environment in a rapid and flexible manner. RS/
GIS (Remote Sensing/Geographical Information Sys-
tem) plays an important role in disaster management
as it can serve as a means to integrate ever increasing
volume of diverse spatial environmental data from nu-
merous sources at local, regional and national scales
into a manageable whole.
With this aim in view, the present study focuses the
utilization of GIS system in hazard identification and risk
assessment by siting areas of ground water contamina-
tion. Among dirty dozen club of toxic pollutants, heavy
metals are the most important source as ground water
contaminants. Thus their removal becomes an absolute
necessity. Slow but pervasive risks/hazards produce by
toxic metals [As, Cd, Cr, Pb and Ni] causes more casual-
ties than swift environmental hazards. The need of the
hour is to devise an efficient solid waste management
system wherein decision-makers and waste manage-
ment planners can deal with the increase in complex-
ity, uncertainty, multi-objectivity and subjectivity asso-
ciated with this problem.
Keywords: RS/GIS, ground water decontamination,
disaster management, heavy metals
SPIDRM-8
A System Approach to Manage Chlorine Emergencies in Chlor-Alkali plants Harisaran Das Joint Director (SHE), Alkali Manufactures India Limited [email protected]
Chlorine is a very useful and indispensable chemi-
cal but it is hazardous. Chlorine may leak in the plant
during it’s production & storage due to various rea-
sons. For any management to keep a track of all the
causes of leakage on a routine manner is not possible
and therefore there is likelihood of leakage during it’s
production, storage & filling.
Leakage of Chlorine will be a major catastrophe
and will be a havoc to the natural environment and hu-
man beings. Once chlorine gas leaks in the plant due to
any reason, there will be an emergency situation. The
severity of the emergency situation will depend on
the amount & duration of the chlorine gas release. It is
therefore desirable that a proper management system
should be built into the daily routine work schedule of
an organization to prevent chlorine leakage and han-
dle any emergency in case of chlorine leakage.
The paper discusses a Management System for car-
rying out day to day process activities in a Chlor-Alkali
Plant for ensuring adequate Safety System and preven-
tive control to avoid chlorine leakage incidents in the
Plant and also build up management system for han-
dling chlorine emergencies. Preventive Steps To Avoid
Chlorine Incidents In The Plant and Handling of Chlo-
rine Emergency were discussed in detail in the paper
SPIDRM-9
Alang Ship Recycling Industry: Issues, Standards And Way Forward Anil Kumar, Shivani Gupta Tata Institute of Social SciencesEmail [email protected], Email : [email protected]
Alang, situated on the western coast of India, is
one of the biggest ship breaking/recycling yards in
the world. The suitable geographical location, cheap
labour force and less stringent environmental regula-
tions have encouraged the industries to a stretch of
10 km in Alang and Sosiya. Hundreds of ships of vari-
ous categories dismantle in Alang from almost every
corner of the world. Current financial year (2010-11) is
going to be earmarked for Alang as the ship breaking
industry is expecting highest number of ships. Alang is
22 | Abstracts
also associated with various environmental concerns
raised over decades now. These range from liquid and
solid waste control management including hazard-
ous waste and transportation. This paper looks at the
trend of hazardous and non-hazardous waste gener-
ated from the industry. Thousands of workers work-
ing in this industry are constantly exposed to various
kinds of risks. Working under high risk conditions in
such industries has caused casualties on a regular
basis. This paper looks into the reported incidences
that happened over a period of time in these indus-
tries and various associated reasons. Gujarat Maritime
Board established a state of art institute for training of
the workers in the year 2003 in Alang. Regular train-
ings are being provided to hundreds of workers in var-
ious fields. Despite numerous trainings in the field of
ship recycling, incidences of various types of accidents
continue to occur. This paper also examines various
international conventions and national legislations in
the field of ship recycling and environmental pollu-
tion. In the end, the paper recommends certain mea-
sures which can be adopted for the safety of labourers
on a long term basis.
Key words : Hazardous waste, International conven-
tions, ship recycling
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 23
LFEDM-1
Effectiveness of Environmental Legal Systems for the Protection of Environment: A Study of the Tribal Areas of Himachal PradeshV.B. Negi Assistant Registrar, IGNOU Regional Centre, Chauhan Niwas Khalini, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, 171002, email: [email protected].
JaishreeAssistant Professor, Government P.G. Degree College Chamba, Himachal Pradeshemail: [email protected].
The environment is a protean term as it readily as-
sumes different forms and characters but it is defined
to mean the natural and human made world of the
particular areas. Therefore, the environment includes
the ecosystem including biodiversity and natural re-
sources; all areas and structures modified or built by
humans; and all factors affecting human health and the
quality of human life including cultural heritage and
amenity exist within the area, however the economic
and social matters are excluded to confine the concept
of the environment to its common-usage. The human
impacts on the environment are not circular because it
simply focuses on regulating that part of the environ-
ment that can be controlled by humans. The develop-
ment activities in the present time are being carried
out without keeping in mind the consequences of the
ecological imbalance, by degradation of the environ-
ment for attaining over all socio-economic upliftment
of its masses in shortest possible time leading to natu-
ral disaster.
The hill state of Himachal Pradesh, like rest of the
states in the country, also embarked upon the path of
economic development for realisation of social uplift-
ment and could not escape the damage caused to en-
vironment by the development activities for the eco-
nomic benefit of its people particularly to the Tribal
areas of the state, which has now started making its
adverse impact on the state’s ecology. Further, popula-
tion pressure on land and other natural resources also
leads to degrade the environment for timber and fuel
wood etc. in addition to various development activi-
ties including construction of large scale Hydro Power
Projects being carried out in the state to achieve the
economic growth and to make Himachal Pradesh
Power state. Since the environment is one of the most
important feature for the survival of human life, which
is considered as a basic fundamental human right and
a social goal now a days, therefore, the damaged envi-
ronmental condition of these vulnerable areas can be
redirected by making a ecological sustainable devel-
opment by effective implementation of environment
legal system and properly enforcement and imple-
mentation of the provisions of Environmental Laws by
the state government to protect the natural resources
of the area. This paper is an attempt to address these
issues with particular emphasis to evaluate the effec-
tiveness of the response to overexploitation of natural
resources and environmental loss as well as climate
change. This paper also elaborates the best available
method that provides the simplest, most systematic,
comprehensive and meaningful framework with the
effective predictive system currently available to eval-
uate the effectiveness of an environmental legal sys-
tem, to protect the environment and natural resources
of this Hill State.
Thematic Session 3
Legal Framework and Regulations for Environment and Disaster Management
24 | Abstracts
LFEDM-2
Legal Protection, Economic Gain and Right to Struggle: A Case study of mineral mining in coastal area of KeralaS.Mohammed IrshadAssistant Professor, Jamsetji Tata Centre for Disaster ManagementTata Institute of Social Science, E-Mail: [email protected]
Mining areas in the country are characterized as
both an area of immense ‘development potential’ and
‘war zone’. This is a national picture of mining economy,
even if there are legal provision to protect the environ-
ment and displacement yet mining is continuing even
in the war zones. This paper is about the story of two vil-
lages in Kerala’s coastal area where mineral mining has
washed away to villages and the worst part is that late
2004 Tsunami causes some of the worst impact in these
areas. Seawater heavily flooded through the heavy pit
resulted by mining. The recent CRZ notification chal-
lenges the local people’s anti-mining struggle. The
modes of operandi of companies which are mining the
entire coastal area are not abided by the provisions of
the Minerals (Development & Regulation) Act 1957. This
paper discusses this issue in detail with case studies.
LFEDM-3
Environmental Degradation and Interpretation of Existing Legal ProvisionsSomya Gupta & Tanya VermaStudents of Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University, Lucknow
This paper seeks to deal with the various legal is-
sues that concern environmental degradation in India.
Environmental degradation happens through deple-
tion of resources such as air, water and soil, destruction
of ecosystems and the extinction of wildlife. There are
many factors like population growth, urbanization, etc.
that contribute to environmental degradation. Lack
of attention paid to the conservation of environment
leads to various natural disasters. Despite the many leg-
islations and laws that have been passed in India and
other countries to limit the problem of environmental
degradation, it still continues to be a huge threat to our
environment. Existing environment laws in India are
made up of a number of different instruments, which
is why it remains difficult to identify a coherent body
of comprehensive laws concerning the environment.
This is related to the fact that distinct concerns have
been addressed in different enactments. This is also
due to the division of powers between the centre and
the states and the fact that water regulation is mostly in
the hands of the states. The lack of a specified body of
laws concerning the environment leads to unsatisfac-
tory judicial decisions given in environment law con-
cerning case, like the Bhopal Gas Tragedy Case and the
Narmada Bachao Andolan Case.
There are many such loopholes that the environ-
ment laws provide, which need to plugged in if there
is anything concrete that wants to be done to protect
the environment. This paper highlights the various le-
gal aspects of this problem and also brings to light the
various reforms that could be made to make the laws
concerning this issue more concrete and also provides
methods for disaster risk reduction. That could be made
in order to deal with this problem more effectively.
LFEDM-4
Disaster Management: its impact in Law and Development Hitesh AgrawalIV Semester and Naiana Jain, II Semester, Nirma University, Ahmedabad
This paper discusses about Disaster manage-
ment, its Stages, Objectives, Authorities, Legal provi-
sions and cases related to it. Disasters result from the
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 25
combination of hazards, conditions of vulnerability
and insufficient capacity or measures to reduce the
potential negative consequences of risk. On the ba-
sis of origin, there are two types of disasters:bNatural
Disasters (earthquake, landslide etc.)and Human
Induces Disasters (Nuclear Disaster, Chemical Disas-
ter etc.)
There are various Vulnerability Zones shown in
the main paper with Diagrams. Section 2 Clause (e)
of the Disaster Management Act, 2005 defines Di-
saster management and why it is necessary.
Disasters are extreme events which cause a
great loss to life and property. They pose a serious
threat to the normal life as well as the process of
development and strike with sudden violence, tear-
ing bodies, destroying lives and structures.Disaster
Planning can be tacit in four stages viz
Mitigation - Minimizing the effects of disaster.
Preparedness - Planning how to respond.
Response - Efforts to minimize the hazards cre-
ated by a disaster.Recovery - Returning the commu-
nity to normal.
National Policy on Disaster Management has
many objectives, amongst some are Promoting a
culture of prevention, preparedness and resilience
at all levels through knowledge, innovation and
education. Encouraging mitigation measures based
on technology, traditional wisdom and environmen-
tal sustainability.• Mainstreaming disaster manage-
ment into the developmental planning process
and etc.Disaster Management Act, 2005 lays down
institutional, legal, financial and coordination mech-
anisms at across levels. The paper describes about
various Chapters given in the Act, from Chapter I to
XI, its diverse provisions, committees established
under and functions. One of the main goals of DM,
and one of its strongest links with development, is
the promotion of Sustainable livelihoods and their
protection and recovery during disasters and emer-
gencies.The paper also describes about Bhopal gas
disaster that how it was disaster and what relief has
been provided to victims and M.C.Mehta’s Case and
other cases
LFEDM-5
Evolution and Impact of International Environmental Jurisprudence in IndiaArchita Phookun, Sophia S MustafaDr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University, Lucknowe-mail: [email protected]
The difference between animals and humans is that
animals change themselves for the environment, but humans
change the environment for themselves. (Ayn Rand)
Through this paper, the researchers try to under-
stand the evolution of Environmental Jurisprudence
in India and how it has applied all the major environ-
mental principles and further interpreted their exist-
ing laws to bring the environment under its realm.
Firstly, the paper provides the historical back-
ground of how environmental jurisprudence became
a part of the global legal scenario with the help of
landmark cases; secondly, it discusses in detail, the
major environmental principles like sustainable de-
velopment, precautionary and polluters’ pay princi-
ples with reference to the major litigations that have
transformed these principles into legal norms. Fur-
ther, it emphasizes the impact of these cases on the
present Environmental Law regime. The paper also
includes the development of Indian Environmental
Law and how the judiciary has adopted and inter-
preted these aforementioned principles to suit the
needs in India to protect the environment and miti-
gate or prevent industrial disasters like the Bhopal
Gas Leak. The stand of the Indian judiciary on cases
relating to developmental projects on one side and
environmental protection on the other have been
critically examined and their implications have been
assessed.
The judiciary through Article 21 of the Indian
Constitution has played a key role in guaranteeing
wholesome environment as an important fundamen-
tal and human right. In conclusion, the paper deals
with the doctrine of Public Trust and how a balance
26 | Abstracts
needs to be created between development and envi-
ronmental well-being of the people. The researchers
have adopted the doctrinal method of research as it
proved to be an extremely useful mode which per-
tained to the needs and requirements of the paper.
LFEDM-6
Bhopal Gas TragedyVijita S. AggarwalUSMS, GGS Indraprastha University, Kashmere Gate, [email protected]
The Bhopal gas tragedy is the worst industrial
disaster in human history. Twenty-five thousand
people died and five hundred thousands were in-
jured. Furthermore, the victims of the tragedy had
to suffer an inordinate delay and tardiness in receiv-
ing either an adequate compensation or satisfaction
in bringing the erring to justice. The injustice done
to the victims of Bhopal raises important issues re-
lated to differences in corporate governance, the
regulatory environment and compliance, and juris-
prudence across developed and developing nations.
With the backdrop of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, this
paper attempts to investigate two different but re-
lated themes. These being, firstly, as to whether de-
veloping countries are more disposed to have such
disasters as compared to developed countries, and
secondly, whether the deleterious consequences of
these disasters are likely to be more serious in de-
veloping countries than developed countries. The
paper explores this by looking at differences in cor-
porate orientation towards safety, the enforcement
of the existing regulations by the regulatory bodies
as well as systems, processes, methods and practice
of the judicial systems in the developed country in
comparison to the developing countries to pre-empt
or to deal with such disasters.
LFEDM-7
Sustainale Development And Natural Resource Management – A Legel PerspectiveArchita Phookun and Anupam [email protected] & [email protected]
Through this paper the researchers try to give
a brief insight into the evolution and growth of sus-
tainable development in the international as well as
national scenario with the help of legal instruments
and hallmark cases.Firstly, the paper gives a brief in-
troduction on what ‘sustainable development’ is and
the Brundtland Report of 1987 which brought out
this concept in the global arena. Secondly, the paper
talks about the growth of this concept with reference
to Rio Declaration and decided ICJ, WTO and other in-
ternational cases. Further, it talks about various factors
that have influenced legal change in this field. Another
important concept covered by this paper is the analy-
sis of the substance and current law on the subject. A
nominal law in force may fall short of the purpose to
achieve global natural resource management. Contri-
bution of various international agencies to the growth
of environmental and natural resource management
jurisprudence has also been dealt with in the paper.
Further the role of non- governmental organizations in
the furtherance of ‘sustainable development’ has also
been included. The paper emphasizes that the only
way of achieving sustainable development is through
participation of all sectors in genuine social partner-
ship and dialogue with a sense of common purpose.
Further, the paper gives an Indian perspective of the
concept of ‘sustainable development’ with reference
to municipal laws and important case laws. It also talks
about enhancing legislative and judicial capacities in
developing countries such as India. Lastly, the paper
includes the main areas of improvement and sugges-
tions and recommendations for the same. An all en-
compassing model Sustainable Development Act for
every nation and required conclusions have also been
included.
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 27
LFEDM-8
Legal Framework and Regulations for Environment and Disaster Management (Safety and disaster laws) Nishant Buragohain M.A. in Disaster Management, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai E-mail: [email protected]
The current study, “Sustainability of Community
Based Disaster Risk Reduction (CBDRR) Programme:
The case of Duryug Pratirodh Samiti (DPS) in Dhemaji
District of Assam” is an attempt to study the factors
contributing to the sustainability of the CBDRR pro-
gramme which was implemented in Dhemaji district
of Assam. The National Disaster Management Act was
passed in 2005 in India. The state has taken up the re-
sponsibility of reducing the vulnerabilities of the com-
munities and thus, create a safer world for them. It has
been seen that implementing agencies have to follow
a strict deadline for the completion of the project. It is
well understood that the intent of the donor agencies
and the implementing agencies is good and to cre-
ate safer conditions for the communities through the
CBDRR programmes. This study tries to highlight the
importance of having a long-term approach and cus-
tomized programme based on the ground conditions.
The study also highlights other factors of sustain-
ability of the CBDRR programme such as the role of
Gram Panchayat, Linkages to Development Activities,
Focus on Vulnerability Reduction and not only on Risk
Reduction, and Incentives to the Community. The case
study is based on field data collected from 10 vil-
lages in Dhemaji district (Assam) between May-July
2010 and October-November 2010.
Keywords: Sustainability, CBDRR, Gram Panchayat, Vul-
nerability Reduction, Risk Reduction
28 | Abstracts
ESEIA-1
Environmental Disasters and EIAPavan Kumar SinghSenior Research Officer, National Disaster Management Authority, NDMA Bhawan, A-1, Safdarjung Enclave, New Delhi-110029, [email protected]
Susanta Kumar JenaSenior Research Officer, National Disaster Management Authority, NDMA Bhawan, A-1, Safdarjung Enclave, New Delhi-110029, [email protected]
Environmental protection and resource manage-
ment has conventionally been given importance all
over the world which has increased in recent time. In
India, a major legislative measures for the purpose of
environmental clearance was in 1994 when specific no-
tification was issued under section 3 and rule 5 of the
environment protection Act, 1986 called the “Environ-
ment impact Assessment Notification 1994”. Environ-
mental Impact Assessment (EIA) is the official appraisal
process to identify, predict, evaluate and justify the eco-
logical, social, and related biophysical effects of a pro-
posed policy, program or project on the environment.
EIA minimizes risks of environmental disasters as
the legislation provides opportunity for increasing pub-
lic awareness, initiatives of environmental groups and
to integrate environmental consideration into devel-
opmental plans and policies. Environmental clearance
for development projects can be obtained either at the
state level or at the central level depending on certain
criteria concerning the characteristics of the project.
However, for most projects the consent must first be
taken from the state pollution control board or pollu-
tion control committees in the case of union territories.
While the increased threat to the environment is
matched by the enactment of an increasing amount
of legislation, the responsibilities and capacities of the
various agencies, including the regional offices of the
MOEF, to monitor compliance has not been appropri-
ately strengthened.
The focus of EIA now therefore needs to shift from
utilization and exploitation of natural resources to con-
servation of natural resources. There is also an urgent
need to build capacities of government agencies, com-
munities, NGOs and the judiciary with regard to the
implementation of the existing EIA notification.
ESEIA-2
An Overview of EIA study of Swan River Flood Management Project, District Una, Himachal Pradesh, India. Madhuri Venu, S.RishiDepartment of Environment & Vocational Studies,Punjab University, Chandigarh,
Abinder S. Chadda IPH Department, District Bilaspur, Himachal PradeshEmail: [email protected]
EIA assesses and predicts the impacts of a pro-
posed project or action on human well-being, as well
as the well-being of ecosystems on which human sur-
vival depends. Environmental Impact Assessment is
one of the major instruments integrated with a goal
of making economic development project, environ-
Thematic Session 4
Environmental Services and EIA in Disaster Management
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 29
mentally sound and sustainable. The main objective of
this paper is to give a combine and integrate overview
of environmental, economic and social impact assess-
ments of Swan River Flood Management Project-II. The
Swan River of district Una, Himachal Pradesh, once, was
known as River of sorrow as during monsoon period
the flood creates havoc in District Una. During past 10-
12 years loss of property due to floods in river Swan has
been estimated as more than Rs. 1,666 million (Rs. 166.6
crores). Human and livestock loss has been to the ex-
tent of 50 and 236 numbers respectively. But it was tak-
en under the reclamation process by Swan River Flood
Management and Integrated development Project and
turned to the gift for district. This would revolutionize
the economy of the farmers of Una district as it would
result in raising of 1,500 metric tonnes of fish, 14,450
metric tonnes of food-grains, pulses, vegetables and
7,700 metric tonnes of fruits every year besides mitigat-
ing miseries caused due to floods to life and property
both. This paper is an overview of EIA study of Swan
River Flood Management and Integrated development
Project -II. The EIA study gives the maximum thrust to
the impacts on water environment and its cascading
effects on the biotic as well as abiotic environment.
Keywords: - EIA, Environment, Sustainable, Flood Man-
agement, Economy.
ESEIA-3
The role of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) on Flood Risk in IndiaAlok SinghAccurate Institute of Advanced Management, Greater Noida, email [email protected]
Sunil Kumar YadavGreater Noida Institute of Technology, Greater [email protected]
The research paper discusses flood risk in India,
which has increased alarmingly in recent decades
largely due to changing physical characteristics of the
hydrological system caused by human activities: con-
tinued development of already densely populated
flood plains, encroachment on flood prone areas, de-
struction of forests and hill slopes development.
Flood losses are high but disastrous flood events
which occurred in the past as a consequence of rapid
development and environmental degradation are for-
gotten quickly, people choosing to see only the posi-
tive benefits of a booming economy while turning
a blind eye to their negative effects. It suggests that,
within a climate of sustained economic boom, policy
makers as well as Indians from all walks of life are un-
derstandably less concerned about floods than they
are about the financial gains that can be reaped from
a booming economy. States that official solutions for
flood control are largely engineering based and are in-
effective to combat extensive monsoon floods.
In this paper we have used Environmental Impact
Assessment (EIA), is the official appraisal process to
identify, predict, evaluate and justify the ecological, so-
cial, and related biophysical effects of a proposed poli-
cy, program or project on the environment. It provides
insight on alternatives and measures to be adopted
before any commitment, thus helps in important de-
cision-making. The overall objective of the EIA is to de-
sign developmental projects and activities taking into
consideration the environmental perspective.
Keywords: Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA),
Flood Risk, Indian Context, Risk assessment, Risk Miti-
gation Strategy.
ESEIA-4
Waste Management and Disposal Services after Disasters in India G.Niranjani M.A. M.Phil. (PhD)Research and Teaching Assistant, Discipline of Public [email protected] / [email protected]
Disasters such as floods, fires, hurricanes, earth
quakes, tsunami, droughts, bomb blasts, and cyclones
30 | Abstracts
cause waste disposal challenges in communities
across the nation. These disasters result in the creation
of large quantities of new debris (construction and de-
molition materials, vegetation, hazardous waste, refrig-
erators and other appliances and electronic devices).
These materials must be separated from normal waste
and managed differently to ensure they are disposed
of safely. Mass feeding facilities and mass care centers
used during some disaster responses may also result in
the accumulation of large amounts of waste in a single
location. Some events do not produce new debris but
cause a problem by disrupting the waste management
system that normally stores, collects, and disposes of
solid waste. For example, an ice storm could disrupt
the collection and transportation of waste and an in-
fluenza pandemic could severely reduce the number
of waste management workers able to come to work.
The objectives of this research paper are to ana-
lyze the problem of the waste disposal after disasters
and find out a solution for it which is a timely need for
humanity. The study undertaken includes interviews
and observation methods which come under primary
data. Government records, website sources, magazines,
journals, periodicals, newspapers, books which comes
under secondary data. The method of research is de-
scriptive. Planning must be done to ensure availability
and use of the human and physical resources needed
for rescue work and provide preliminary needs as per
the requirement of the area. Accordingly in each area,
for possible calamities in the city, resources have to be
identified. Participative approach would be the right
attitude to face the challenges by waste management
after disasters. People have to come forward to help
one and all. Non Governmental Organizations should
participate voluntarily in helping according to the situ-
ation. Government organizations should act immedi-
ately to safeguard the situation. A participative process
of thinking and dialogue builds strategic capability and
can be more creative and important than analytically
derived plans. Collaboration in the planning process
establishes a common framework for communication
and decision-making and has wider team-building ef-
fects. Participation encourages initiative and responsi-
bility. Thus it is important for each and every individual
to participate for a good cause which will really help
the human affected in the past and try to create a pre-
paredness attitude for the future.
ESEIA-5
Role of EIA in Disaster ManagementAditi MadanM.A. Disaster Management,Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai
Recurrent disasters occur causing huge loss of life
and property. Following any disaster, Reconstruction
and Recovery policy is formulated providing a time-
frame for various activities to be undertaken within
planning and implementation framework. There is a
need for placing environment in the policy framework
to avoid further degradation of environment and to
ensure that the environment is included effectively in
both, within individual sectors, but also as a separate
sector.
The recovery strategy for environment as a cross
cutting sector, focuses on ensuring sound manage-
ment of the environment and natural resources at all
levels. For instance the environmental control author-
ity of Aceh (BAPEDAL) selected 86 major projects for
environmental impact assessment. To meet the urgent
needs of the situation, it used a method that focused
on key environmental factors and enabled a quick re-
action to the people’s need for reconstruction, while
keeping the negative effects on the environment to
a minimum. All the projects for the quarrying of sand
and gravel were carefully checked for controls on the
removal of sand and gravel from the river which could
have resulted in altering of the course of rivers leading
to flooding, landslides etc. The goal was to make those
responsible aware of possible damage to the environ-
ment, while offering possible solutions.
Thus to ensure that environmental considerations
are addressed and incorporated into the development
process, to anticipate and minimize environmental
impacts of development proposals, to protect the pro-
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 31
ductivity and capacity of ecological systems and to
promote development that is sustainable and optimiz-
es the resource in best possible way there is a need for
EIA in Disaster preparedness and Management
Key words: environmental impact assessment, recov-
ery strategy, ecological systems
ESEIA-6
Floods in Gorakhpur: Applying EIA to Risk MitigationRicha Arya, M. YunusDepartment of Environmental Science, Babasaheb Bhimrao
Ambedkar (A Central) University, Lucknow (U.P.)
Anil K. Gupta
National Institute of Disaster Management, New Delhi
The Gorakhpur district, a district in the eastern Ut-tar Pradesh, covers area of 3,483.8 square kilometres. Situated on the bank of rivers Rapti and Rohini, rivers originated from Himalayan foothills and the north-east-ern India influenced by the summer monsoon causing heavy rains during June – September, and the glaciers provide their greatest amount of water to the river dur-ing the this period. Floods in these regions are not new. Several part of the district is affected annually. Drainage congestion due to environmental degradation, land-use changes and deposition of silt in the channels aggravat-ed flood flows during monsoon season. Flooding in this region causes widespread loss of environment includ-ing agriculture, forests, soil, livestock, besides affecting habitations, infrastructure and thus, the human lives. Populations in rural area are living marginalised, below poverty and lack capacity to development flood resis-tance on their own. During and after flood the problems related to potable water, health, sanitation, water log-ging etc. make the situation worse. It usually takes more than two months period to return back into the normal routine life.
Impact of developmental projects, land-use chang-
es and environmental degradation has not only ag-gravated the impact of climate-change implications and disasters particularly flood, but also caused new hazards for water and climate related disasters. Thus, impact assessment approach is expected to be help-ful in understanding the phenomenon of risk building for flood disasters in the pre-disaster context. On the other hand, various mitigation measures – structural or non-structural, need to be screened for their ecologi-cal and economic compatibility where EIA plays a vital role. Rapid EIA of post-disaster situation helps in quick understanding of environmental needs, response, relief and recovery plan from environmental angle, which is very important for ensuring sustainability in livelihoods, health, agriculture and long-term sustainable develop-ment. Present paper examines the case of Gorakhpur flood from angle of applying EIA to the three stages of flood disaster management – risk analysis, mitigation and post-disaster, in order to develop a prototype for EIA application in flood disaster management in India.
ESEIA-7
Vulnerability of critical infrastructures towards natural hazardsClaudia Bach
In the light of climate change, temperature and precipitation weather patterns are changing in inten-sity and duration. Additionally, the number of extreme weather events including heat waves/droughts, storms, heavy precipitation and flooding (due to sea level rise) is increasing. At the same time, an increasing number of persons and values is being affected by such events due to socio economic changes such as urbanization, popula-tion growth or economic growth. However, the accumu-lation of values and population in urban (hazard prone) areas also involves infrastructures that have to be built to allow the functioning of such urban areas. Thus, in case of a hazardous event, these infrastructures can be affected, too.
32 | Abstracts
Besides the accumulation of infrastructures in urban areas, the mentioned socio-economic changes (also in-cluding globalization and technological changes) require increasingly complex systems of infrastructures that de-pend on each other as for example in the case of elec-tricity and information and communication technology (ICT). In parallel, an increasing number of infrastructures is being operated by privately owned companies which challenges the governance of these complex systems.
These developments make it necessary to have a closer look at the vulnerability of infrastructure services towards natural hazards and effects on the population affected in case of their black-out. Especially due to the fact that critical infrastructures and electricity supply in particular built the backbone of developed and devel-oping (urban) societies. Many sectors such as transport, health services and the economy depend on electricity and society. In case of a major black-out, neither banks nor electric light would work and stations as well as air-ports would face chaotic situations. At the same time, population and economy are highly dependent on the functioning of these services. Nevertheless, there have been few attempts to assess the vulnerability of critical infrastructures.
Developing a comprehensive assessment for infra-structures based on the understanding that vulnerability can be described as a function of exposure, susceptibil-ity and coping capacity, two steps have to be taken into account: First, the vulnerability of certain infrastruc-ture systems has to be evaluated. Second, the depen-dency of other systems and the population in case of infrastructure failure has to be assessed. The first step encompasses the physical assessment of components and their meaning for the whole process. It has to be identified whether components are exposed to certain hazards, if they would be affected by it and if they could technically and organizationally be replaced. Among these steps the whole system can be assessed. The sec-ond step comprises the assessment of a failures impact and interdependencies between different services and the population. At this stage especially mismatches be-tween demand and supply play an important role.
Referring to these steps, the paper will introduce potentials and limits of vulnerability assessments of
critical infrastructures and will introduce an approach to capture second- and third-order effects (for heat waves) which can be used for improvements in the planning process when developing infrastructure supply systems but also for improving disaster risk management by tak-ing effects of infrastructure failure into account.
ESEIA-8
Groundwater Management During Disasters In IndiaK. J. Anandha KumarAssociate Professor, National Institute of Disaster Management, New DelhiE-mail: [email protected]
The disasters events that occurred in the last
three decades in India have also affected the water re-
sources of the respective areas in various ways, some
times in a deteriorating way, initiating response from
the stake holders of the area. So far, the action of these
stake holders in general, have been, playing the role
of a responder to the disaster. The learning from these
experience can be utilized for coping with such future
events. The Groundwater plays a vital role to restore
water supply in an area affected by disaster, especially
during the recovery and rehabilitation period. The ex-
perience of impact of disaster on groundwater regime and its management are discussed in this paper. The sci-entific knowledge of occurrence and movement of this precious, invisible resource through various hydrogeo-logical surveys, exploration and monitoring will help to protect and utilize this resource at the time of disaster. Further, in the changing scenario with paradigm shift in disaster management policy towards disaster pre-paredness from that of responsive role, the experience gained, knowledge, expertise and data base available, can help achieve the reduction of the impact of the di-saster by protecting the available fresh water sources and restoring the of potable water supply with minimal loss of time.
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 33
ESEIA-9
Waste Management and Disposal Services Integral Part of Relief MeasuresG Ravi (Indian Navy)Officer in Charge NBCD School, INS Shivaji, Lonavala – 410402,
Maharastra
Large quantities of waste is generated during nat-
ural calamities, it is both a threat to public health and
also hinders rescue and relief efforts. Waste generated
during disasters can be categorized under the follow-
ing broad classifications: a) Waste and debris as conse-
quence of calamity / disasters and b) Waste generated
by effected personnel at relief camps / disaster site
Natural calamities Tsunami, earthquake, cyclones,
draught, floods will generally result in localized gener-
ation of rubble, earth and vegetation. Man-Made Disas-
ters Industrial Accidents, sabotage and CBRN incidents
are potentially far reaching and will involve wastes
which are incident specific and can be far reaching in
extent , scale and duration.The extent of waste gen-
erated on account of a natural calamity or manmade
disaster cannot be predicted accurately. However the
waste generated on account of human activity post
disaster at site and relief camps can be minimized by
a well thought out disaster response plan and its ef-
ficient implementation, which is specific to an area and
type of disaster.
This paper will discuss the impact of disaster
waste on the environment and society with particu-
lar emphasis to our country. Also impact of incidents
such as the collision/ grounding of shipping, accidents
offshore resulting from oil exploration / extraction,
industrial accidents / possible sabotage will also be
examined.
Further measures to mitigate the effects of waste
generated post disaster through preparedness and ef-
ficient delivery of relief and rehabilitation measures
will be examined. This will put into perspective our
present relief and response model towards handling
disaster waste.
34 | Abstracts
NRMDRM-1
Sustainable Coastal Protection and Alternative Livelihood Option through Bamboo BioshieldsThara K.GHead , Disaster Management Centre and Member, State Disaster Management Authority, Government of Kerala.
The colossal destruction, loss of lives and liveli-
hoods which India faced during the 2004 Tsunami
emphasised the need for an integrated coastal zone
management and an Integrated Coastal Zone Man-
agement Plan (ICZMPs) in the coastal zones. The state
of Kerala (India) , which is surrounded on all the three
sides by the sea has a unique status in that it has a
very long sea coast ( 587 Km) , which hosts a very high
population (2000-3000/ km2 in a small geographical
area ( 38698 km2) and). About 800000 fishermen folk
live in this dynamic area of tsunami, flood and cyclone
disasters. As structural measures are prohibitively ex-
pensive and severely damage the natural beauty of the
beaches, promotion of non structural measures such
as development of green belts are increasingly becom-
ing more the order of the day. Mangroves and other
coastal forests have the limitation that they do not
grow in all soil and climatic conditions. Promotion of
bamboo cultivation as the bio-shield for coastal pro-
tection has the multi-faceted advantages of enhancing
employment opportunity and livelihood security of
the vulnerable communities. It also has an economic
imperative that it can revive and promote the tradi-
tional sector of bamboo based cottage and small or
large –scale industries, handicrafts etc. Cultivation of
bamboo trees along the coastal belt will also provide
food, ecological , livelihood and economic security to
rural artisans and industrial workers. Owing to the wide
adaptability of bamboo to various climatic conditions,
and soil types and its role as an effective carbon sink, a
slow and sustainable shift towards bamboo should en-
couraged. Durability of bamboo against wind, cyclone
and earthquakes also supports its wide use in disaster
resistant construction activities , concrete reinforcing
etc and can also serve as a tool for employment & I in-
come generation.
Key words: integrated coastal zone management,
bio-shield, coastal protection
NRMDRM-2
Water Harvesting Based Sustainable Farming System to Alleviate Drought
R.K. SahuDean, Faculty of Agricultural Engineering,
K.K. SahuProfessor, Department of Soil Science & Agril. Chemistry. Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Raipur (Chhattisgarh)
Micro level water harvesting through farm
ponds and shallow dug wells has been proved to be
the drought proofing technology in watershed proj-
ects in Chhattisgarh and is found to be capable of re-
Thematic Session 5
Natural Resources Management - Linkage to Disaster Risk Management
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 35
ducing migration from the area as a result of in-season
droughts. Disasters like floods and droughts are the
major risk to sustainable agriculture and livelihood of
small and marginal farmers. Wide dissemination and
adoption of micro level water harvesting can be ac-
celerated by proper identification and evaluation of
potential areas for its use. Recent studies have estab-
lished that on-faSrm reservoirs and shallow dug wells
are economically viable and scale-neutral, to store and
conserve rainwater to alleviate drought and intensify
cropping. This system is generally i.e. it is suitable for
large as well as small farm. The present study was un-
dertaken in 4 micro watersheds of 1-2 ha size covering
Plains and Plateau areas of Chhattisgarh with the ma-
jor objectives to investigate the techno-economic fea-
sibility of runoff harvesting and its use for improving
the existing rainfed farming systems. In Chhattisgarh,
where average rainfed farm size is about 1.79 ha, the
average size of SFR is 2000 m3. About 10-12% land is
used for the reservoir construction, with 2.6 m depth.
It provides supplemental irrigation to entire rice farm
(1.5 ha) in wet season and meets the water require-
ments of about 40% of the farm for growing second
crop in post monsoon season. In addition, farmers
grow fish in the reservoir. Benefits from the use of res-
ervoir water for rice and fish productions in the two
seasons are higher than the investment needed for
reservoir construction. Alternative designs of small
farm reservoirs were attempted at four levels of prob-
ability viz. 80, 75, 60 and 50% of rainfall and runoff.
Evapotranspiration of crops were estimated, to work
out the water demand of crops for the expected de-
sign length of dry spells besides other factors. Similarly
alternate designs of drainage system were attempted
at four levels of recurrence intervals of daily maximum
runoff viz. 1.25, 1.33, 1.66 and 2 years. Crop perfor-
mance as a result of irrigation from reservoir and shal-
low dug wells were evaluated. The fish rearing in SFR
was introduced to enhance the overall productivity of
the production system. Considering water allocation
to different crop activity, optimal crop area and water
allocation model for maximizing net returns was made.
Optimal crop plans were formulated under 3 different
cases of crop area constraints with available water and
land. The study revealed that the B/C ratio was highest
(2.33-2.78) in reservoirs designed at 80% probability
of rainfall and runoff and it is very much comparable
to irrigated farming. The highest B/C ratio (2.49-2.78)
was found in the case when there was no restriction
on choice and area of crops, followed by the case (B/C
ratio 2.40-2.58) when there was restriction on rice area
(at least 15-20%). It was lowest in the third case (B/C
ratio 2.33-2.50) where farmers had strong affinity to
rice (at least 25-30%). The adoption of technology in-
creased B/C ratio (1.06-1.16 to 2.33-2.78) in reservoirs
designed at 80% probability of rainfall and runoff. The
cropping intensity increased from 70% to 200% after
adoption of this system. The economic analysis con-
ducted at Philippines on similar system, have shown
high returns (B/C ratio: 5.1, IRR:177%).
Key words: SFR: Small Farm Reservoir, B/C: Benefit Cost,
IRR: Internal Rate of Return.
NRMDRM-3
Land & Water Management Strategies for Drought and Flood ProofingK.K. SahuProfessor Deptt. of Soil Science & Agril. Chemistry,
R.K. SahuDean, Faculty of Agricultural Engineering IGKV, Raipur (Chhattisgarh)
India is one of the most disaster prone countries
of the world. Drought is a perennial and recurring fea-
ture in many parts of India. According to reports (Govt.
of India) about 68% of the country is prone to drought.
Drought leads to large-scale migration in search of al-
ternative livelihoods, loss of human life due to stress,
suicide, starvation or unhygienic conditions, and in-
creased social conflict. The emphasis, therefore, has to
move towards simple technologies to harness rainwa-
ter, against the large-scale exploitation of rivers and
groundwater through dams and tube-wells. Drought
and floods in India are a perennial phenomenon, re-
36 | Abstracts
curring with regular consistency every few years.
Rural Chhattisgarh is passing through an eco-
nomic crisis. Majority of the population(>60%) is still
dependent on agriculture for their livelihood . As a
result of population pressure on the land resources
to produce more and to bring un-culturable land into
cultivation. About 1.18 M ha of land in Chhattisgarh
(8.74% of geographical area) have been identified as
wastelands (Wasteland Atlas- 2005, MoRD). In addition
to these wastelands about 0.35 M ha of agricultural
lands are marginally productive, where agriculture
is generally uneconomical. The problems associated
with wastelands development can be grouped into
policy, management and technical aspects which
needs careful address of these issues.
After nearly three decades of satisfactory agricul-
tural growth, both production and productivity has
been stagnating during last 10 years. To overcome
the problems extending the technological gain to
new areas, particularly eastern India and dry farm-
ing areas. Eastern India has the largest untapped
production reservoir in agriculture. The strategy of
developing natural resources base such as land, soil
and water to ensure sustainable production and
productivity through watershed management pro-
gramme. ICRISAT’s experience in rainfed areas has
clearly demonstrated that more than water quantity
per se management of water resources is the limita-
tions in SAT (Wani et.al. 2003a). In Chhattisgarh state
77 per cent cropped area depends on rainfall for sup-
ply of moisture. Although the region receives high
amounts of rainfall annually (1200-1600mm), bulk of
precipitation occurs in high intensity storms of very
short duration. The water so received is prom to run-
off, seepages and percolation losses much faster than
its uptake by crops. This causes drought and flood
situation in the state. Situation is accelerated in case
of upland and barren Bhata land situations. Chhattis-
garh has a dense network of untapped perennial and
seasonal Nala/riverlets/streams/rivers. These are ma-
jor bottlenecks that have hindered growth in agricul-
tural productivity and farm income. Appropriate land
and water management strategies can be adopted to
mitigate these problems.
NRMDRM-4
Protection Of Mangroves And Related Species – A Natural Care To Avert The Damage Of TsunamiG. Vedanthadesikan, Senior Assistant Professor, Centre for Rural Development, Annamalai Univrsity, Annamalai Nagar email: [email protected], [email protected]
P. MurugesanAssistant Professor, Centre for Rural Development, Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar 608 002 email: [email protected]
Right from 2004 people of the world, particularly
people residing near the Coastal area are fearing
about the Tsunami, a natural and manmade disas-
ter. This not only takes the lives of human being and
also affects the livestock, cultivable land, drink-
ing water etc. Whenever there is an earth quake
occurred in the sea/ocean (epicenter) there is a
possibility of Tsunami. Now days, the warning system
is available and alert the countries which are at the
risk of Tsunami. In the context of developing coun-
tries, the warning system is an advance one. Due the
availability of this system, the tsunami cannot be pre-
vented or averted and at the same time the damage
could be reduced. Here reduction of damage means,
one can alert the people and make them to go to the
safest place. Tsunami. In the context of developing
countries, the warning system is an advance one. Due
the availability of this system, the tsunami cannot
be prevented or averted and at the same time the
damage could be reduced. Here reduction of damage
means, one can alert the people and make them to go
to the safest place. But the damage of buildings and
other things cannot be averted. (For example, on 10th
March Japan was totally collapsed by Tsunami,
though they have well built Tsunami Warning Sys-
tem). But due to the absence of mangrove/relat-
ed species, the complete coastal area, where the
developed systems are existing have been destroyed
completely The nature itself creates Tsunami and
other natural disasters. And at the same time it gives
the natural solution also. The mangrove forests which
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 37
are existing at Sundarban (West Bangal) and Picha-
varam (Tamil Nadu) and Carnicobar Islands (Andaman)
reduced the damage of Tsunami. It is witnessed
during the 2006 Tsunami. Where the Mangrove for-
ests are in dense, there the Killer waves are the blocked
by the mangroves, where the Mangrove was cleared
or removed by the human, there the people paid their
lives. Where the Mangroves or the related species are
not available there it can be grown. Now, the M.S
Swminathan Research Foundation are under taking
this project. Hence, in this paper an attempt is made to
explain the how the mangroves could be grown so as
to prevent the damage of Tsunami.
NRMDRM-5
Flood Management in GBM Basin: A Mechanism for Natural Resource Management between Co-RiparianPriyanka MallickPhD Student, South Asian Studies, School of International Studies, JNU.
Floods are an integral part of the inherent variabil-
ity of nature. It is an attribute of the physical environ-
ment and thus is an important component of hydro-
logical cycle of a drainage basin. It plays a major role
in replenishing freshwater resources, recharging wet-
lands and groundwater and supporting agriculture and
fishery systems, thereby making flood plains preferred
areas for human settlement and various economic ac-
tivities. However, floods have negative impacts as well,
such as on lives, livelihoods and economic activities and
in extreme cases they cause devastation. The way we
deal with floods co-determines whether water remains
a life-providing element or becomes a destructive force
against human life and economic development. Flood
hazards and disasters are the products of an interac-
tion between environmental and social, economic and
political processes. Disasters as multi-dimensional and
all encompassing occurrences influence every aspects
of human life. So a multi-dimensional approach, related
with the newly emerging concept of Integrated Flood
Management (IFM) should be analysed. The Ganga-
Brahmaputra-Meghana (GBM) basin is a major source
region of floods. Due to the excessive water flow in the
monsoon months in these three rivers, the people of
the riparian countries suffer from untold miseries due
to the occurrence of floods almost every year. Geo-
graphically the region is integrated. However, politically
this is the parts of different countries like India, Nepal,
Bhutan, and Bangladesh. Individual efforts of each
country to mitigate the flood hazards by adopting pre-
ventive measures did not prove much effective. Hence,
a region-wide integrated approach based on compre-
hensive data sharing and joint modeling and scenario
development efforts among the GBM countries would
be highly useful in managing floods and mitigating its
impacts in all the regional countries.
Key words: Integrated Flood Management, integrated
approach, riparian countries
NRMDRM-6
Strengthening Adaptation Capacities and Minimizing Risks of Vulnerable Coastal Communities Ashish Chaturvedi & Rachna AroraGIZ-ASEM,e-mail: [email protected], [email protected]
Adaptation to climate change requires commu-
nity-based, integrated and innovative solutions that
simultaneously address livelihood improvements and
environmental sustainability. Measures focusing on
preparedness for climate change and related disasters
will enhance proofing of communities and thus con-
tribute to livelihood security and poverty alleviation.
With this view, GIZ-ASEM implemented an adaptation
project, financed by the German Ministry of Develop-
ment Cooperation (BMZ) in the two Indian states of
38 | Abstracts
Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh in the second half of
2010. The main goal was increasing the resilience of
local communities to current and projected climate
impacts. To achieve the goal, in addition to capacity
development measures, the project developed local
adaptation guides and implemented selected mea-
sures identified in the guides.
To develop the guides and identify adaptation
measures to be implemented, the project used the local
knowledge, together with scientific evidence and tools.
One such tool, the Klimalotse or the climate Navigator,
has recently been developed by the German Federal
Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt). The modular
Klimalotse has five parts that start from an introduction
about climate change and then in distinct steps move to-
wards the development of a strategy for climate change
adaptation. The interim steps include the identification
of risks and opportunities as well as the development of
potential measure to overcome them. It is important to
note that the audience for the Klimalotse are the heads of
environmental departments at companies and munici-
palities, who would like to make a self assessment on a
basic level. They get introduced into the topic of climate
change and then have to work through various parts of
the navigator by themselves.
The project adapted the Klimalotse to the context of
coastal communities in India by following a moderated
approach. The communities were supported in the vari-
ous steps of developing the local adaptation guides by
facilitators who were trained on the Klimalotse method-
ology by the project team. Further, due to the paucity of
scientific data, the risks and opportunities were mainly
based on the local community knowledge which was also
collated with the support of the same facilitators. Finally,
the communities were guided through the perceived
risks and identify pilot measures which could potentially
overcome the risks. The pilot initiatives were proposed by
the villages, then refined, planned and implemented with
assistance of the project team. Projects include elevating
a piped causeway to flood-proof it, renovating irrigation
bunds and desalinating soil as well as fortifying a fresh-
water reservoir against coastal erosion.
Keywords: Adaptation, climate change, coastal erosion.
NRMDRM-7
Ecosystem Approach to Disaster risk ReductionSunanda DeyResearch Scholar,Delhi [email protected]
Natural disasters are increasing in frequency
and quantum day by day. For better preparedness
for and mitigation of impacts of disasters, disas-
ter risk reduction measures play critical role. The
ecosystem approach of indigenous communities
makes them resilient towards future disasters. The
ecosystem approach helps to manage resource
use more effectively and contribute to reducing
the risk and impact of disasters. It is a strategy for
the integrated management of land, water and
living resources that promotes conservation and
sustainable use in an equitable way. The indig-
enous communities all over the world are perfect
example from whom we can learn to utilize natural
resources more efficiently, in harmony with nature
leading to sustainable development. Humans are
an integral part of the ecosystem. Ecosystems are
closely linked with social systems such that people
receive substantial benefits of food, fiber, habita-
tion, tourism, climate moderation, flood reduction
etc. Endangering the ecosystems would impact
humans leading to their increased vulnerability
to natural disasters. Sustainable indigenous disas-
ter risk reduction measures reduce the impact of
hazard exposure and make the community ready
to bear the consequences more effectively. The
Mishing community affected by annual floods in
Brahmaputra river in Assam, with their indigenous
cultural practices have shown an example of living
with risk. The incorporation in development policy
and planning of such practices shall be highly ap-
preciable and a move towards more sustainable
development living.
Keywords : ecosystem approach, conservation, indig-
enous cultural practices
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 39
NRMDRM-8
Urbanisation, Water Scarcity and Climate Change: A Case from Rajasthan with Global ImplicationsM. S. RathoreSarah Opitz-Stapleton, Shashikant Chopde and Marcus Moench
The world is rapidly urbanising. At a global level,
over 50% of the world’s population already resides in
cities and urban areas, which have become the primary
engines of economic development (UN-Habitat 2009).
Migration into urban areas is high, as populations re-
spond both to the opportunities they present and the
pressures inherent in highly uncertain rural, agricultural
livelihoods. Yet, how solid is the foundation upon which
urbanisation rests? In many parts of the world, the basic
resources, such as water, required for burgeoning urban
populations are increasingly polluted, in limited supply
and facing intense competition from multiple users. Cli-
mate change is likely to substantially exacerbate the mul-
tiple challenges of providing adequate water resources
to urban populations and protecting ecosystems.
Fluctuating weather patterns - changes in temper-
ature, precipitation and other climatic variables - could
fundamentally affect the availability and quality of the
water supplies that are central to the survival of urban
areas. Many migrants from rural areas to urban areas
are already pushed to leave their homes by depleted
or degraded water resources and weather variabil-
ity. As the frequency and intensity of climate related
hazards, such as floods or droughts, changes, the rate
of migration from rural to urban areas is likely to in-
crease and further stretch the ability of urban areas to
supply water to their populations (Bordalo and Savva-
Bordalo 2007; Drechsel et al. 2007; Satterthwaite 2008).
Furthermore, because transitions to urban livelihoods
are pulsed and dynamic, urban water supply needs are
difficult to project and many populations remain un-
served by municipal systems. The problem is threefold:
� To project and define the relationship between cli-
matic and water resource conditions on one side
and likely population pulses between urban, peri-
urban and rural areas on the other side;
� To ensure clean and safe water supplies are physi-
cally available that can meet the changing needs
of migrants for domestic and livelihood uses; and
� To deliver supplies to vulnerable (often transient)
populations, particularly in areas that are not
served by formal piped systems.
Addressing the above problem in a way that cat-
alyzes attention and action requires approaches to
research that actively engage key private, public and
non-government actors. It also requires evaluation of
current policies and projects governing the provision
of water supplies to migrant populations.
Jaipur city in Rajasthan, India, represents a micro-
cosm of the dilemma faced by many urban areas. Rural
to urban migration rates are high and the city is grow-
ing rapidly, with settlement occurring both in the urban
centre and the surrounding peri-urban areas. Water
supplies are limited and often of low quality. Ground-
water mining over many decades has heavily drawn
down, and in some cases depleted, aquifers at both lo-
cal and district scales. The impacts of over-pumping are
further compounded by pollution and degradation of
recharge areas. These impacts are of particular concern
in the rapidly expanding peri-urban area surround-
ing Jaipur, where changes in land use are eliminating
groundwater recharge zones and sewage and commer-
cial effluents are discharged untreated. Surface water
sources are heavily developed. Bisalpur Dam, designed
to become the principal source of Jaipur’s municipal
water supply from 2010 onward, has only filled nine
times since it became operational in 1994 (Department
of Irrigation, Sechai Bhawan JLN Marg Jaipur 2010).
Rainfall distribution is spatially uneven throughout
the Banas River Basin, the river that feeds Bisalpur Dam,
and is highly variable. Approximately, 90% of the annual
precipitation falls in July-September as the basin lies at
the northwestern fringe of the South Asian Monsoon.
The basin is bounded by the Aravalli Range on the west,
which creates two rainfall zones in the area upstream of
Bisalpur Dam. One zone receives an annual average of
805mm and the other only 614mm. Sequential drought
years are common and some, such as 2000-2003 in
40 | Abstracts
which rainfall decreased almost 60%, are severe. The ex-
treme recent drought events resulted in a marked flight
from the rural areas to Jaipur city, and a significant draw-
down in groundwater. Slight changes in the dynamics
of the monsoon system as a result of climate change,
whether through general shifts in the starting date,
changes in overall rainfall amount and/or through rain
events becoming less frequent but more intense, could
have drastic implications for Jaipur’s water availability.
Given Jaipur’s dependence on this one source for much
of its water supply, any disruption could undermine one
of the most essential resources required for any city to
sustain itself – a secure source of water supply.
Jaipur’s potential vulnerability to climate change
and rapid population growth typifies that of many cit-
ies. The case study of Jaipur city provides an analysis of
the dynamic changes occurring in one specific location,
and at the same time, as shedding light on issues that
will be faced by many cities globally. Statistical down-
scaling of climate change scenarios to produce future
rainfall projections between 2009 – 2040 and Model-
ling and analysis of Jaipur’s current and future water
supply vulnerability through an integrated water re-
source software, the Water Evaluation and Planning
(WEAP) software developed by the Stockholm Environ-
ment Institute (SEI) were the tools used in the study.
A baseline characterization of Jaipur’s water sup-
ply context based on the above analysis was evaluated
and used to develop potential future scenarios of wa-
ter supply, demand, and migration patterns. Plausible
demand and supply-side scenarios were then devel-
oped and tested in an integrated water resource mod-
el to evaluate their ability to provide water to Jaipur’s
burgeoning population under various migration and
climate change scenarios.
Analysis of Jaipur’s water supply system highlights
the fundamental fragility of one of the basic systems
upon which the future of the urban area and the liveli-
hood and wellbeing of its residents depend. Both his-
torical experiences and modelling results highlight the
high possibility of sequential drought years in which
the current water supply system would fail severely to
meet the basic needs of urban residents. The ability to
respond to this situation is heavily undermined by the
unavailability, inaccessibility and lack of neutrality in
key data sets. Official estimates of water supply avail-
ability in key facilities, such as the Bisalpur dam, differ
by as much as two orders of magnitude depending
upon the data source. The uncertainties inherent in cli-
mate change projections further undermine the abil-
ity of key actors at the city level to adequately project
water supply availability for burgeoning urban popula-
tions in the future. Reliable quantitative estimates of
future stream flow are impossible to generate based
on currently available data and, even if substantial im-
provements in data availability and neutrality could be
assured, would remain limited due to uncertainties in
climate, demographic changes, and livelihood shifts.
The peri-urban areas surrounding the city are
both a major source of vulnerability and potential ar-
eas where innovations could transform Jaipur’s water
supply future. Land uses and institutions are changing
rapidly in these regions as migrants settle or cycle back
and forth between their rural homes and the city, and
urban forms of economic activity emerge. On one level,
these contribute heavily to degradation of the ecosys-
tems and local water resource base. On another level,
as institutions and water uses change, the peri-urban
areas are points of dynamic change where many of the
rigidities that have blocked innovative approaches to
water management in both rural and established ur-
ban areas are less entrenched. The common rule of
thumb is that 80% of India’s urban areas have yet to
be built (ISET 2010). This maxim applies as well in the
peri-urban areas surrounding Jaipur, which will likely
become part the future urban core. If key groundwa-
ter recharge areas can be protected in these areas, if
innovative and efficient water supply systems can be
established and if water quality can be protected, then
Jaipur’s future as city that is resilient to climate change
and other disruptions may be possible to ensure. The
future depends on the peri-urban regions and the
opportunities for change that may be inherent in the
transitions they are now undergoing. Understanding
these opportunities and developing mechanisms to
work with and take advantage of them is a fundamen-
tal challenge to building urban resilience.
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 41
NRMDRM-9
Developing Effective Storm Water Drainage Systems Plan for Flood Management in the City Anjana VyasFaculty of Geomatics and Space Applications, CEPT University, Ahmedabad - 380009, Email: [email protected]
With rapidly increasing concentration of popula-
tion, economic activity, infrastructure and critical facil-
ities, the cities of Asia represent greater vulnerability
to disasters. Damage from floods has been increasing
in most countries. Floods are the most destructive
because they occur most frequently. Floods are ex-
cessive accumulations or flows of water which result
from heavy rainfall, cyclones, snow melt, high tides or
other causes, such as dam burst, embankment failure.
Although flooding is primarily a natural phenomenon
and occurs from time to time in all rivers and natural
drainage systems, human interventions such as de-
forestation, poorly developed land drainage systems,
greater agricultural land use and rapid urbanization
have exacerbated the occurrence and severity of
flood disasters. Mitigation offers the best and most
cost-effective approach to deal with floods.
Urban flood are of a different nature. It is an accu-
mulation of the rain water and parts of the city gets in-
undated for several days to a few hours. The impacts of
urban floods are widespread, but can include tempo-
rary relocation of people, risk of diseases, deteriorated
water quality and damage to infrastructure, crops,
buildings and vehicles. This paper emphasises on ur-
ban flood mapping, integrating storm water drainage
system with the rain fall, its intensity and time of con-
centration, based up on this the requirement of the
storm water drainage in the city identified.
This includes the use of remote sensing and GIS,
the scenario building of the flood occurrences as the
impact of varied rainfall intensities, the storm water
pipe lines, calculation of runoff and carrying capac-
ity, the identification of the deficit of storm water
lines, the identification of flood impact zones and
vulnerable land use. The model building is being car-
ried out using GIS.
NRMDRM-10
Ecological Social and Technological Dimensions of Resource Management for Reducing Disaster RiskA. K, Choudhary, DIRD, GGSIP, University, Delhi, Charulata, Swaimprabha IITT, PTU, Jalandhar.E.mail – [email protected]
Disasters are not random and do not occur by
accident. They are the convergence of hazards and
vulnerable conditions. Disasters not only reveal un-
derlying social, economic, political and environmen-
tal problems, but unfortunately contribute to wors-
ening them. Such events pose serious challenges to
development, as they erode hard-earned gains in
terms of political, social and educational progress,
as well as infrastructure and technological develop-
ment. Several studies have recently highlighted the
fact that investments in development are in jeopardy
unless precautionary action is taken toward reduc-
ing disaster risk Environmental degradation, settle-
ment patterns, livelihood choices and behaviour can
all contribute to disaster risk, which in turn adversely
affects human development and contributes to fur-
ther environmental degradation. The poorest are the
most vulnerable to disasters because they are often
pushed to settle on the most marginal lands and
have least access to prevention, preparedness and
early warning. In addition, the poorest are the least
resilient in recovering from disasters because they
lack support networks, insurance and alternative live-
lihood options.
The proliferation of new technologies and pro-
cesses for managing natural resources, including new
knowledge of the ecological, social and cultural di-
mensions of resource management, presents many
opportunities for reducing disaster risk.
42 | Abstracts
NRMDRM-11
Variability of the Thermohaline Structure in the Gauthami-Godavari EstuaryThota V. Narasimha RaoDeputy Director, National Institute of Oceanography,E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]
Observations of temperature and salin-
ity made during December, 1989 to October,
1990 at four anchor stations have been uti-
lized to describe the thermohaline structure in
the Gauthami-Godavari Estuary. The thermo-
haline distribution is dominated by the pres-
ence of two intrusions of cold high saline water
into the area at the bottom. The intrusion of cold
water (26.90C) of high salinity (32.8x10-3) was
maximally developed during April. This intru-
sion of cold high salinity water during April may
be due to upwelling into the estuary. Seasonal
variations in river flow caused marked changes
in the extent of salinity intrusion resulting in
vertical stratification. The upstream limit of the
mean position of the salinity intrusion is located
about 40 km from the mouth of the Gauthami-
Godavari River during low river discharge pe-
riod. The estuary could be classified as Type
A, a highly stratified or salt wedge estuary
during the flood season especially in the lower
reaches of the estuary and Type B, a partially
mixed estuary during the winter and dry sea-
sons. The estuary appears as a line on the
stratification-circulation diagram. Stratification
is stronger during the flood season than during
the winter and dry seasons. The stratification is
classed as Type 4 (Salt wedge) during the flood
season and Type 1b (Partially mixed) during the
winter and dry seasons.
Key words : Salinity intrusion, salt water
intrusion, salinity distribution, thermohaline
structure, Gauthami-Godavari Estuary, Gautha-
mi-Godavari River
NRMDRM-12
Disaster Risk Reduction in the Himalayan context - relationship between NRM and Community EngagementGargi Banerji and Sejuti Basu and Abhinaba ChakravartiPRAGYA
To share understanding of mountain environment is-
sues and strategies for DRR in view of increasing degrada-
tion of watersheds, and climate change impacts causing
increasing intensity / frequency of floods and landslides,
water scarcity and livelihood challenges in the cold desert
areas in the Himalayas and come out with concrete steps
for the way forward.
A four pronged approach involving a) field work
across 56 micro watersheds in the Western Himalayas [Kin-
naur, Chamba in Himachal Pradesh] and Trans Himalayas
[Ladakh in J & K and Lahaul & Spiti in Himachal Pradesh] to
collect the necessary data for the study; b) a PRA initiative
covering 65 villages to understand the socio-economic
issues on the ground; c) a multi-stakeholder workshop
involving state agencies, academicians and community
participants to gain an understanding of the interplay of
various factors; d) Mix of various mitigation interventions
carried out across 7 pockets across the target areas.
Based on the study a model relating environment
threat and adaptive capacity has been developed. The pa-
rameters considered were a) altitude bands; b) eco-deg-
radation; c) anthropogenic pressure; d) resource stress;
e) climate change; and f ) disaster risk for the threat ele-
ments. For the adaptive capacity the parameters consid-
ered were a) resource availability; b) ecological balance is-
sues; c) development status. Deliberation by the working
groups at the workshop has resulted in a set of actionable
elements being identified for a) preparedness; b) adapta-
tion; c) relief and d) recovery. Field trials for a mix of in-
terventions relating to water, fodder, rangeland regenera-
tion and food security issues have provided the means for
scaling and replication. The first hand involvement with
the disaster relief efforts during the flash floods in Leh in
Aug ’10 and the learning has been integrated.
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 43
NRMDRM-13
Water Resource Management for DRR - A Case study of Bero Block, Jharkhand State, IndiaKiran JalemAssitant Professor, Disaster Management Centre (DMC), Shri Krishna Institute of Public
Purnima KumariAdministration Research Scholar, Ranchi University, Ranchi
A resource is any useful information, material
or service. Natural resources are the components
of the environment (i.e. atmosphere, hydrosphere
and lithosphere), which can be drawn upon for
supporting life. In other words, natural resources
are goods and services supplied by our environ-
ment (including sinks for wastes). These include
energy, mineral, land (soil), food, forest, water, at-
mosphere (air), plants and animals.
The whole world is conscious about the con-
servation of our earth resources (all resources natu-
rally present over earth). Actually all these resourc-
es are for the earth dwellers whether it is an ant
or an elephant. The human is major manipulator of
all these naturally occurring resources that may be
water, air, soil or minerals. Exhaustible resources are
the earth’s geologic endowments i.e. minerals, fos-
sil fuels, non-mineral resources and other materials
which are present in fixed amounts in the environ-
ment. Unlike renewable resources, non-renewable
resources are finite in quantity and quality.Inex-
haustible resources have the inherent ability to
reappear or replenish themselves by recycling,
reproduction or replacement. These renewable re-
sources include sunlight, plants, animals, soil, wa-
ter and living. Due to its great abundance, water is
generally a very inexpensive resource. Compared
with other natural resources, water is used in tre-
mendous quantities. On a global scale, total water
abundance is not the problem; the problem is wa-
ter’s availability in the right place at the right time
in the right form. Global water is unequally distrib-
uted. Precipitation is seasonal land, therefore, the
amount of water in inland bodies (surface and
ground water sources) is variable. Irregularity in
the duration and intensity of rainfall often causes
floods and droughts. Scarcity of fresh water results
in serious regional disparities.
Thus visualizing the needs of our future genera-
tions and the importance for present generations,
we should use our water resources quite carefully,
logically and ethically. Such an approach of use of
water resources from the concept of management
and conservation of water resources. Thus man-
agement and conservation mean scientific utiliza-
tion of resources while maintaining their sustained
yield and quality. The exploitation of subterranean
water reserves is contributing to desertification in
many parts of the world, and as the subterranean
water level recedes, the soil near the surface dries
out and plants wither and die. This has already hap-
pened in many parts of India. If deforestation and
the indiscriminate exploitation of subterranean wa-
ter reserves continue, it is likely that many parts of
the world will face severe water shortages. The day
is not so far when water crisis is going to be a issue
of civil war. So, the only way to avoid such a catastro-
phe is to immediately implement a decentralized
approach and a proper management for water con-
servation. Successful management of resources for
water to satisfy the changing human needs, while
maintaining or enhancing the quality and quantity
of water and conserving water resources.
This paper is drawn from the original site re-
search work of Bero Block, that is 30 km away from
the Ranchi City in the state of Jharkhand. Case
studies were undertaken looking into the aspects
of go-environmental, hydrological and the system
involving. Master plan provisions are taken, good
practices and lessons and the suggested strategies
have been covered. The problem and challenges
of Global Water Crisis that aggravate disasters like
flood and drought have been discussed in this pa-
per. The broad methodology includes digitization
of water resources and attribute addition is done
with the help of GIS based on the information col-
lected during the field survey.
44 | Abstracts
NRMDRM -14
Natural Resource Management Policy Implications on Disaster Risk Management Practices: Insights from North-East CambodiaKathlyn K. H. SumayloProject Manager, IOM Cambodia’s Building Resilience to Natural Hazards in North-East Cambodia e-mail: [email protected]
Located in the fertile Mekong River Basin, Cambo-
dia is one of the most disaster-prone areas in South-East
Asia (IOM, 2010; NCDM PDNA, 2010). The kingdom, con-
sidered a Least Developing Country, has very high vul-
nerability levels in terms of human development indices
(NCDM and WFP, 2003a; MoP and WFP, 2003b) and low
adaptive capacity of institutions, livelihoods, commu-
nities, and ecosystems to natural disasters and climate
change (Helmers and Jegillos, 2004; Yusuf and Francisco,
2009).Cambodia suffered from deep social and cultural
intergenerational trauma, economic stagnation, large
population displacements into the Thai borders and
movements outside of the country, and institutional
fragmentation as a result of nearly twenty years of civil
war from 1975 to 1991. Following the signing of the Paris
Peace Accords in October 1991, which gave then State
of Cambodia its first comprehensive political settlement,
the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia
(UNTAC), was formed under UN Security Resolution No.
745 to “lead peace restoration efforts, to hold free and
fair elections leading to a new constitution and to spear-
head the rehabilitation of the country” (UN website). The
holding of Cambodia’s first democratic elections under
the auspices of the UNTAC in 1993 also paved the way
for the foundations of decentralized governance. With
the completion of the post-conflict repatriation of dis-
placed Cambodians, the multi-donor integrated devel-
opment project phases, Cambodia Area Rehabilitation
and Regeneration Project (CARERE) 1 and 2 and the
Partnerships for Local Governance, shifted their focus
from emergency post-war recovery and rehabilitation
to a developmental approach. This new approach ad-
dresses Cambodia’s long-term challenges and needs for
institutional governance, planning systems, infrastruc-
ture and capacities delivered under the government
program SEILA. Natural resource management was a
key output under the program’s objective on poverty al-
leviation, alongside delivery of rural infrastructures and
de-mining. Community-based natural resource manage-
ment was the centrepiece of the SEILA/CARERE’s NRM
program in Ratanakiri Province to address communal
lands, forests and water resources management (UNDP
CARERE website). The program, which was piloted in
Ratanakiri Province in the north-eastern region and in
two north-western provinces, produced trained Depart-
ment of Environment staff in forest protection; 12 com-
munity forest pilots; formation of two Provincial Land
Use Planning committees; and issuance of 7,600 land ti-
tles. At the height of the SEILA program implementation,
the first policy stipulation for disaster risk management-
the National Committee for Disaster Management Policy
Paper- was also released in 1995. Insights presented in
the paper were drawn from the findings of IOM’s vul-
nerability assessments to natural hazards in Ratanakiri,
Mondulkiri and Stung provinces in 2009 and 2010,
NRMDRM -15
Ecosystem approach to Disaster Reduction: Case of agroecosystems and drought in India.Divya AgarwalAccurate Institute of Management & Technology, Applied Sciences & Humanities Department, Greater Noida. 201 306, (NCR) India.
Anil K GuptaNational Institute of Disaster Management, New Delhi, India.
Pressure on natural resources is tremendous to
fulfil the demands of exponentially rising population.
Biogeochemical processes of clean-up are under vari-
ety of obstructions. Ecosystem services are constantly
perturbed resulting in frequent occurrences of a list
of hazards. Due to increasing tremendous pressure on
land and water resource, one of the most vulnerable
ecosystems is agro-ecosystems. Major biophysical fac-
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 45
tors are Drought, excessive evaporation due to global
warming, reduced soil fertility and soil erosion and pest
attack. Growing High Yielding varieties which are irriga-
tion and chemical fertilizer intensive is an unsustainable
proposition with a high frequency of periods of Droughts
in India. Modern agricultural techniques also cause vari-
ous environmental hazards, which in turn reduce the eco-
system resilience. An example of sustainable agro-eco-
system is described in order to reduce the vulnerability
of crops towards associated disasters in farms and vice-
versa. An approach to healthy ecosystem dynamics in
order to ensure positive multidimensional interactions is
devised based on the feed-back mechanisms of the com-
ponents. Depending upon the topographical factors, nu-
tritional requirements of soil, temperature, humidity, rain-
fall and other abiotic & biotic components, sustainable
agroecosystems forms the basics of respective Disaster
Reduction Framework with benefits in social, economic
and environmental integrity. Mixed-cropping, crop-ro-
tation, contour farming, terrace farming, drip-irrigation,
strip cropping, mulching, gully reclamation, horticulture,
use of scare-crows, biopesticides, biofertilizers are the
traditional innovative techniques. Ecological interactions
once strengthened will generate gradual mutual positive
feed-back mechanisms, a sustainable approach towards
Disaster Reduction.
NRMDRM -16
Flood Risk Mitigation Measures for the River Indus in Leh Town Zainab JalisStudent, M. Tech. (Environmental Science and Technology), Department of Civil Engineering, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi
Amir Ali KhanAssistant Professor, NIDM, New Delhi
Sirajuddin Ahmed Associate Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi
Due to its geo-climatic conditions and geo-
graphic location, the historic town of Leh, in Lada-
kh Region of Jammu and Kashmir, is highly prone
to natural hazards, which often converts into di-
sasters, sometimes of unprecedented nature. One
such disaster was faced by the town of Leh on Au-
gust 5, 2011in terms of flashflood resulting due to
cloud burst in the region. The impact of disaster
was very severe in the region due to exceptional
floods and lack of preparedness and mitigation
measures to handle such situations. The disaster
resulted in huge devastation in terms of human
lives lost and damage and destruction of physical
infrastructure.
The Indus River is the lifeline of the Ladakh
Region, which originates from a point near the
Mount Kailash and joined by a number of streams
and rivulets forming overall hydrological character
of the this Region. It flows south of Leh town, from
east to west. Its water is used for drinking, irriga-
tion and generation of power. In the north of Leh
town, rivulet namely Leh Nallah (Gangles Tokpo)
with its tributary streams form the natural drain-
age system with their own valley formation. The
Leh town has been growing in the Gangles valley.
Due to cloudburst, very high discharge in the
tune of 584 cum/sec was observed in the Leh Nal-
lah. The observed velocity of gushing water was
observed in the range of 7 – 20 m/s. The highest
flood level (HFL) in the Leh Nallah was GL+ 0.6 - 1.1
m along the various sections with average scour
depth varying from 1.1 - 2.9 m in habited areas.
High quantities of water entering the Nallah with
a very high speed resulted in devastating flash
flood, which swept away everything in its path. To
meet the challenge of flash floods in expending
town of Leh, a number of mitigation measures are
required to be taken up. The paper will attempt to
propose height of protection bunds to train the
river based on calculation of design discharge for
100 year return period with the help of extreme
value distribution function. Besides, the paper will
highlight other flood risk mitigation measures.
Further the paper will include channelization of
the Nallah and water storages to collect additional
amount of water during flashfloods.
46 | Abstracts
NRMDRM -17
Role of Water bodies in Climate-Disaster Resilience in Urban Areas
The Ramsar convention on wetland 1982, advocate
for conserving the wetlands of the country to maintain
the ecosystem. The increasing urban growth and esca-
lating demand of land and water has threatened the
existence of these water bodies. The Gorakhpur, located
in the tarai belt of Himalaya, is naturally endowed with
plenty of perennial freshwater ponds and lakes of dif-
ferent dimensions emerged by abandoned channels of
rivers. Ramgarh lake, one of the biggest in eastern Uttar
Pradesh, located in the south eastern part of the gora-
khpur city, plays an important role in the city’s drainage.
The waterbodies in the urban area enhance the water
holding capacity of the city in the disaster (floods) prone
city. The disposal of untreated domestic wastes dis-
charged into such water bodies, solid wastes dumping
on its banks, continuous encroachments due to increas-
ing land pressure etc are severely affecting the life of wa-
ter bodies including Ramgarh lake. Residents of several
localities depend on this water for their domestic needs.
Drinking and using the polluted water has affected the
health of these people. The lake plays an important role
in the city’s ecology and provides livelihoods to hun-
dreds of people living around. Ramgarh lake along with
103 other water bodies in the city are dying due to land
pressures and short term developmental policies. The
lake area has decreased from 1900 acres to 1700 acres in
last few decades and pollution level has crossed the per-
missible limit which severely affected only its flora and
fauna but snatches the livelihood of the people living
around it. Till the 1980s, there was considerable diversity
in the flora and fauna of the lake. Human interference
since then has affected both the fish, the fish trade and
those dependent on fishing for a living. Only a few fish
are saleable. Before 1980, there were 40 species of fish in
the lake. In 1990, 28 species were reported but by 2006
just 18 were reported existing. Commercially only three
indigenous species, rohu (Labeo rohita), catla (Gibelion
catla) and magur (Clarius batrachus) and three other hy-
brid varieties are found. Eight species have disappeared
and 14 are on the verge loss. Crabs, prawns and frogs too
are disappearing fast thereby affecting the overall ecol-
ogy of the lake and its sustainability.The present paper
argues that to enhance the resilience of cities like Gora-
khpur, to climate change and flood impacts, the natural
water ecosystems have to be protected and rejuvenated
through measures that include proper treatment of ef-
fluents (sewage) and solid waste management. The pa-
per also deals with the efforts of mobilized citizens of
Gorakhpur to save the lake and the approval of Govt of
India programme in this regard.
NRMDRM -18
Agroforestry model to improve economic and ecological viability in degraded tea lands in mid country of Sri LankaPrasad Dharmasena Department of Geography and Regional Development, University of Kashmir,Srinagar India
M.S.BhatDepartment of Geography and Regional Development, University of Kashmir,Srinagar India
Since the privatisation of most of the estates of
the plantation sector in Sri Lanka in 1994s profit mak-
ing became priority. This led to a rapid deterioration of
soil and other natural resources. However an exercise
on soil and environment conservation has been begun
by both the Tea Research Institute and Plantation Com-
panies in the country and understood the ill effects of
neglecting soil conservation, it is one of major reason
to decline annual income expected.
Soil is one of the most vital of our natural resources.
Together with water and air, it forms the very basis of life.
From the soil come food and other crops and plants that
provide medicine, clothing and so many other things we
need for daily life. And the retention of soil in its natural
condition and habitat prevents erosion, rivers and reser-
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 47
voirs silting and flooding this study was carried out in Wa-
tawala tea region of Sri Lanka. It is precious location envi-
ronmentally and geographically in respect of tea industry.
Otherwise, as a region the environmental impact
on the countries of the South Asia by soil erosion and
other forms of land degradation is all too familiar. Land
degradation causes $10 billion loss to South Asia annu-
ally. And soil erosion in marginal tea plantations con-
tributes $ 2.62 billion damage to south Asia annually as
a percentage it is 26.2% of total cost of erosion in the
region. So, this is not a regional issue, it became today
as a global economic and environmental issue. (FAO)
Agro forestry, which has direct and indirect ben-
efits to the user, is not only a soil conservation method,
but can be used as a system to increase economic vi-
ability of abandoned lands belonged to tea plantations
in Sri Lanka. This project has attempted to test the ap-
plication and viability to mid grown tea region of Sri
Lanka where steep slopes are the dominant landform.
In a period where conservation has become a
global activity, Sri Lanka should also make its contri-
bution to this global effort. This research attempts to
provide the reader with the importance of Agroforestry
in controlling soil erosion and environmental manage-
ment in Sri Lanka by analysing an Agroforestry model
which can be seen in Watawala Tea region.
Keywords: Soil erosion, economic viability, Agrofor-
estry, tea plantations
NRMDRM -19
Decentralized Solid Waste Management: The sole option of Urban Disaster ResilienceBK Singh and Shiraz A. WajihGorakhpur Environmental Action Group
The inevitable urban growth will increase the
heaps of solid waste in the city. The Gorakhpur city,
one of the fastest growing cities in the middle Ganga
plain, is experiencing unplanned development of ba-
sic urban system and poor waste management. At
present the Municipal Corporation Gorakhpur has not
operationalized any solid waste management plan in
the city. The city generates 350 tonnes of solid waste
daily. The whole garbage of the city is either dumped
into the low lands or remains on the road. This has led
its citizen a tough time in negotiating huge mounds
of garbage in going about their daily business. If it in-
creases with the same pace, then it is no doubt that
the load of solid waste will be ruinous to all- human,
animal and the entire ecosystem. This grim situation is
going to be aggravated due to climate change impact
including greater flood and water logging resulting in
a higher incidence of vector borne diseases.
In the vulnerability assessment conducted under
the ACCCRN (Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience
Network) process, it was revealed that the floods re-
lated city vulnerability is increasing due to three main
inter-related factors. The prevalence of open drains in
the city and non availability of solid waste manage-
ment cause the dumping of solid wastes in the open
drains and hence reducing the flow and water holding
capacity of drainage channels. The changing climate
characteristic are expected to exacerbate the vulner-
ability of the city by enahancing water logging and
vector and water borne diseases.
The present paper, based on the experiences of a
pilot project, will contribute to access the various fac-
tors that govern the sustenance of decentralized man-
agement of urban solid waste management. The com-
munity driven -and owned- model of the decentralized
solid waste management has proved to be a successful
model of community partnership in enhancing the ef-
fectiveness of basic services and contributing to reduce
the vulnerability of the city. The paper also highlights
the parameters about the technology and technical ex-
pertise, managerial influence, economic viability, com-
munity support including the socio-economic status
of the community and the influence of parallel gov-
ernment schemes. Our findings indicated that success
and long term sustainability of the model depends on
the sustenance parameters to a varying degree. It also
seeks out those factors that need to be addressed if the
system is replicated in other urban settings.
48 | Abstracts
NRMDRM -20
Disaster management in the Forestry Sector: Issues and ConcernsVRR SinghSilviculture Division, Forest Research Institute, Indian Council of Forest Research and Education, P.O. New Forest. Dehradun, 248006 e-mail: [email protected]
Exponential increase in human population,
shrinkage in available forests and natural resources,
splurge in human activities in the field of agriculture,
industry and urbanization, has led to prolific habitat
loss and degradation, pollution, land use and land
cover change, and habitat fragmentation. This has
in turn led to a multifaceted disaster in the form of
extinction of species and populations, degradation
of ecosystems, erosion of genetic diversity and envi-
ronmental potential, loss of ecosystem services and
erosion of support for human societies. With 60% of
the Indian landmass prone to earthquakes, 40 mil-
lion hectares prone to floods, 8% of the total area
prone to cyclones and 68% of the area susceptible
to drought, India has been placed in zones IV and VI
and the most affected are the forests and commu-
nities depended on forests. Forests are buffers be-
tween the society natural and anthropogenic disas-
ters such as forest fires, epidemics, invasive species,
man animal conflict, climate change, earthquakes,
landslides, flash floods, cloud bursts, avalanches and
droughts. These hazards kill hundreds of people and
destroy habitat, leads towards environmental degra-
dation with increasing poverty each year in the area.
In order to raise awareness and take action on
interlinking and integrating environmental concerns
in disaster management, we need to ask and address
a number of critical questions. These range from or-
ganization involved, to targets, scales of operation,
disseminated messages, delivery mechanisms, in-
tended effects, and partners. The answers to these
questions will help us identify the critical lacks, gaps
and mismatches, and develop viable policies and
strategies to not only increase environmental sus-
tainability, but also reduce the risks involved and en-
hance the security of people’s lives.
This paper addresses the complexity of issues
in implementing disaster management policies
in the forestry sector. Issues on methodology and
knowledge dissemination have been given special
emphasis. Examples have been drawn from field ex-
periences in handling disease epidemics in forestry
plantations, flash floods, cloud bursts, forest fires,
man animal conflict, earth quakes, landslides and in-
vasive species.
Key words: Forestry disaster management, issues and
concerns
NRMDRM-21
Addressing Disasters in Cold Deserts of Indian HimalayasGargi Banerji,Sejuti Basu, Abhinaba ChakravartiPRAGYA
To share understanding of mountain environ-
ment issues and strategies for DRR in view of increas-
ing degradation of watersheds, and climate change
impacts causing increasing intensity / frequency of
floods and landslides, water scarcity and livelihood
challenges in the cold desert areas in the Himalayas
and come out with concrete steps for the way for-
ward.
A four pronged approach involving a) field work
across 56 micro watersheds in the Western Himalayas
[Kinnaur, Chamba in Himachal Pradesh] and Trans Hi-
malayas [Ladakh in J & K and Lahaul & Spiti in Himach-
al Pradesh] to collect the necessary data for the study;
b) a PRA initiative covering 65 villages to understand
the socio-economic issues on the ground; c) a multi-
stakeholder workshop involving state agencies, aca-
demicians and community participants to gain an un-
derstanding of the interplay of various factors; d) Mix
of various mitigation interventions carried out across
7 pockets across the target areas.
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 49
Based on the study a model relating environment
threat and adaptive capacity has been developed. The
parameters considered were a) altitude bands; b) eco-
degradation; c) anthropogenic pressure; d) resource
stress; e) climate change; and f ) disaster risk for the
threat elements. For the adaptive capacity the pa-
rameters considered were a) resource availability; b)
ecological balance issues; c) development status. De-
liberation by the working groups at the workshop has
resulted in a set of actionable elements being identi-
fied for a) preparedness; b) adaptation; c) relief and d)
recovery. Field trials for a mix of interventions relat-
ing to water, fodder, rangeland regeneration and food
security issues have provided the means for scaling
and replication. The first hand involvement with the
disaster relief efforts during the flash floods in Leh in
Aug ’10 and the learning has been integrated.
NRMDRM-22
Community Based Mitigation and Preparedness for Disaster Risk Reduction based on Natural Resource Management
Dr. Sandhya Chatterji, Dr. Anil K. Gupta, Ms. Sreeja Nair
This paper is a case study based on the final eval-
uation of the Natural Disaster Risk Reduction through
Policy Change, Capacity Building and Community
Based Mitigation and Preparedness (NDRR) Project1
that aimed at supporting direct implementation of
the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) down to the
grassroots level. The project helped in increasing re-
silience of rural communities to address vulnerabili-
ties and reduce risks associated with natural hazards
through a combination of policy level work with
practical, risk-reduction initiatives in the four states
of Assam, Bihar, Orissa and Rajasthan that are prone
to flooding, drought, earthquakes, cyclones and fire.
The physical infrastructure constructed in Bihar,
Assam and Orissa under the project such as escape/
evacuation routes, protective stone bunding along
roads/fields or bamboo piling along river banks to
stem erosion, community shelters in safe places, cul-
verts and bridges to allow flood waters to recede, the
provision of boats for evacuation particularly of the
most vulnerable – aged, pregnant women, handi-
capped – and the provision of safe drinking water
from community raised tube wells have been par-
ticularly appreciated by people in increasing their
preparedness to deal with floods. In Rajasthan, the
cisterns and farm ponds have been a boon for com-
munities in water management and dealing with
drought conditions. The project has also led to some
improvement in farming systems for mitigating the
impacts of climate change. With assistance from
government agricultural institutions such as ATMA
in Bihar and CAZRI in Rajasthan, communities have
diversified crop production (such as introduction of
new variety of potatoes as a cash crop or flood re-
sistant paddy in Bihar and water retaining farming
method (farm bunding) in Western Rajasthan), and
taken up new techniques to improve overall crop
productivity.
The local institutions promoted by the project-
Village Disaster Management Committees and Task
Forces, and capacity building of members in early
warning, resource mobilisation, rescue and evacua-
tion, first aid, has promoted an attitude of self reli-
ance and provided communities with the opportu-
nity of being prepared and living in a safer future.
The ability of the VDMC and task forces to prepare a
village contingency plan to deal with disasters, and
establish a contingency fund, is a direct impact of the
project. The formation of CBOs has increased the ca-
pacity of targeted community considerably thereby
reducing the existing vulnerability to natural disas-
ters. SHG started for women have encouraged some
savings and credit activities though it is too early to
judge the financial viability of IGA. More important
however is that these groups have enabled women
to come together to voice collective opinion besides
building leadership qualities among the women
which in turn increased resilience and reduced vul-
nerabilities.
1In India the NDRR project is being implemented by Tearfund UK through two partners: Evangelical Fellowship of India Commission on Relief (EFICOR)and DiscipleshiCentre
(DC) in the four states of Assam, Bihar, Orissa and Rajasthan that are prone to flooding, drought, earthquakes, cyclones and fire.
50 | Abstracts
INTER DISCIPLINARY AREAS
IDDRM-1
Sustainable Urban Development: Integrating Land Use Planning and Disaster Risk ReductionPriti AttriInstitute of Environmental Studies, Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra
Anil K GuptaNational Institute of Disaster Management, New Delhi – 110 020
Smita Chaudhry, Subrat SharmaG.B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development, [email protected],[email protected],[email protected], [email protected]
Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) is an important
component for achieving sustainable development of
cities and making progress towards the implementa-
tion of the Millennium Development Goals. Despite the
growing understanding and acceptance of the impor-
tance of DRR and increased disaster response capaci-
ties, disasters and in particular the management and
reduction of risk continue to pose a global challenge.
Disaster risk arises when hazards interact with physi-
cal, social, economic and environmental vulnerabilities.
Urbanized areas have higher concentrations of people
and human- made structures including industrial fa-
cilities, therefore increasing the natural disasters risk
and secondary effects such as technological disasters.
Hazardous industrial sites have always represented a
threat for the community often provoking major acci-
dents, affecting the surrounding urban areas.
To ensure disaster resilient development in cit-
ies, there is need for better inter-agency coordination
across Ministries and various departments at national,
state and local level.
Convergence of DRR and land use planning is es-
sential not only for managing current risks but also
potentially higher risks in future. Effective land man-
agement can help to mitigate disasters and reduce
risks by avoiding human settlements in hazard prone
areas, control of population density and expansion.
Identification of disaster-prone areas as well as al-
ternative sites that are more suitable for development,
retrofitting and building of settlements and homes
adapted to disaster conditions, relocation of popula-
tion vulnerable to disasters, engineering measures and
construction of hazard-resistant structures are some
effective tools and strategies of DRR. Disaster risk con-
siderations should be integrated into sustainable de-
velopment policies, planning and programming at all
levels, with a special emphasis on disaster prevention,
mitigation, preparedness and vulnerability reduction.
Database of disasters in the urban context will help in
developing feasible multi-hazard risk and vulnerability
assessments for urban areas and likely hazard-scenarios.
Keeping these points into consideration, this paper dis-
cusses about integration of disaster risk reduction and
landuse planning for sustainable urban development.
Keywords: Disaster Risk Reduction, Urbanization, Vul-
nerability, Land use planning
IDDRM-2
To Assess the Challenges Posed by Polluted Groundwater on Public Health – GIS Approach, Kanpur region, Uttar PradeshDeepshikha PurwarM.Sc (Disaster Management), Jamshetji Tata Center for Disaster Management, Tata Institute of Social Sciences
Kanpur (India) is one among the most polluted
city in the world, and the main cause for this pollution
is tannery industry, flourishing since late 60s. The waste
effluents released by these industries are not only pol-
luting various surface and groundwater sources but are
also affecting human health and their socio-economic
well being. A hydro geochemical analysis conducted in
two such affected villages (study area), found fluoride
content in region’s groundwater was 8% more than
the permissible limit. Hexavalent chromium, used as
basic chrome sulphate in tanneries, which should be
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 51
nil in drinking water, was found beyond the limits.
The research paper aims at establishing a relation-
ship between the distribution of hazardous chemicals
in groundwater and the occurrence of various health
challenges for human health in the study area. The
absolute location of study area is (latitude 26.39622,
longitude 80.44092), eastern part of Kanpur city. This
study shows the incidence of various diseases in the
region, on the basis of distribution of hazardous chem-
icals in the groundwater, by mapping the population
affected by bone deformities and skin diseases on the
contour maps using kriging, a geostatistical gridding
method. Geographical information system and remote
sensing images were used to identify, locate, map and
analyze the hydro geochemical data and field health
data for modeling the hazard zones in the study area,
which would be helpful in targeting and planning the
remedial measures for health challenges and conser-
vation of groundwater and surface water sources.
Keywords: Kanpur, Public health, Pollution, Geo-
graphic information system, Hydro-geochemical
IDDRM-3
The Treatment of the Liquid Rejects from The Petroleum Refinery of Arzew–Algeria to the Mediterranean Littoral Menouar HanafiDepartment of Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences,The University of Science and Technology of ORAN ( ALGERIA ) E-mail : [email protected]
During the process of transformation in the refin-
ery of Arzew, some chemical products are brought into
the industrial water treatment, which reaches the long
term at their effectiveness, are rejected because they
are polluted. This pollution is known on the practical
level by the deterioration of the quality of the water
rejected into the natural environment and to the sea,
which bring to a degradation of the environment and
with a reduction of oxygene dissolved in aquatic en-
vironment. Large quantities of used water , domestic
and industrial , are cast each day, without any treat-
ment, directly to the sea, which can be a serious source
of pollution according to the degree of harmful effect
of products (used oils, solvents, various muds and dan-
gerous waste). The pollution in Algeria, is the origine
thus, of the serious medical dangers to the population,
and on the littoral, especially on the tourist structures
. ALGERIA currently follows a very severe and rigorous
environmental policy to fight the pollution.
In all the production factories, it is required to have
stations of processing waste and especially to treat the
used water. In the refinery of Arzew, which is on the
Mediterranean littoral, the waste water coming from
the zones of the production, is treated in two stations ,
where oils are recovered and the solid waste is eliminat-
ed, before this water is rejected to the sea . The station
contains two basins, first basin PPI (Parallel Plaques Inter-
ceptor) to eliminate the bulky solid waste . The second
API basin is a separator by gravity, which removes the
free compounds of oil and other solids. In end the water
purifyed will be evacuated towards the sea. The refinery
of Arzew works for a protection of the environment, and
to protect the littoral against the pollution, by the instal-
lation of the stations for the purifying of the used water.
Key Words : Pollution, Environment, Purifying,
Waste Water
IDDRM-4
Correlation of Neotectonic activity with landslide occurrence along Main boundary thrust in Dehradun regionB.C. Joshi Institute of Earth Sciences, Bundelkhand University, Jhansi
Significant neotectonic activity has been observed
in different parts of synclinal intermontane Dehradun
valley. Whole Dehradun region is undergoing strong
52 | Abstracts
denudation and contributing large amount of debris
which is being transported to the Doon Valley through
number of streams. Sahanshai Ashram, Shastradhara
and Maldeota Raipur section is marked by number of
prominent landslides showing active process along
faults. The area is characterised by phyllites, quartzite,
blainis, limestone, slates, sandstone and shale. Most
of the slides are noticed on the jointed and shattered
rocks. However, failure of slope on Doon gravel is due
to deformed sediments or action of water on the slope
or at toe portion during rainy season. This section is
marked by patches of flat surface at varying elevations
resting over the Pre Tertiary rocks. These deposits are
considered as part of Doon piedmont which has been
uplifted due to movement along Main Boundary Thrust.
IDDRM-5
Risk Perception of Inundation Events in MumbaiDavid J. HallauSPA Delhi, [email protected]
Risk perception is considered as being crucial for
the behaviour towards risks and for the decision to take
preventive measures. In order to develop an effective
risk management, the understanding of risks and the
influencing factors should be known. In this context
the issue of differences in risk assessment seems to be
important and the role it thereby plays in the respec-
tive living conditions of the people.Hence, the present
analyses the risk perception of the inundating events
in Mumbai in particular. By means of an empirical data
acquisition the perception is examined and compared
with four different population groups. Thereby, con-
siderable differences in the perception of risks can be
determined between the individual groups; which indi-
cates a close connection to their respective living con-
ditions.Therefore, an effective risk management has to
recognize these differences in the local perception and
respective assessment in individual groups of the risk
situations. In order to be able to offer an appropriate
assistance in coping with risk events like inundations, it
is crucial for the risk management to consider the indi-
vidual living conditions of every population group.
IDDRM-6
In Search of Alternatives for edge old disinfection technologiesMrinal Kanti Ghosh,Director, Dr. Ghosh Laboratories
For more than a century, the addition of chlorine
to drinking water has been saving millions of lives by
destroying microorganisms in unsafe water sources.
Substantial progress in innovation and technology has
been made ever since. Nonetheless, disinfection of wa-
ter, our most precious resource, is still usually accom-
plished by dosing either hypochlorite solution or chlo-
rine gas into the water. Amid rising quality standards,
the increasing magnitude of clean and safe water in
the food chain and growing health and environment
conscience, a different answer is required to address
the challenges of water disinfection in the 21st centu-
ry. I will discuss here, the alternative technologies and
methods along with the most suitable substitute for
chlorine. I will focus on delivery systems to generate al-
ternative solutions and outline the modern disinfection
proposition vis-à-vis the classical ways of disinfection.
IDDRM-7
Mapping different types of Conflict related incidents in Manipur using GIS TechniquesAnkit Jaswal, MA Disaster Management StudentJamshetji Tata Center for Disaster Management
Becoming an integral part of life in today’s sce-
nario, GIS plays a very important role in understanding
the basics of spatial patterns for having an in-depth
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 53
knowledge and clear understanding. Conflict is a so-
cial construct with social disagreement and when
taken in political terms, it can refer to war and even
to implication, and it can be one of the fields which
can be understood with help of GIS and through its
revolution and struggle for independence. It’s a very
relative term, dependent on contextual mechanism.
Dealing with the types of conflict incidents in north-
east region of India, GIS as a tool helps us to understand
the reasons behind the origin of conflict in the region
and the patterns in which the types of incidents took
place from one district to another in the state of Manipur.
As this research is a pilot project to develop a GIS
based methodology to study the conflict affected re-
gions in northeastern region of India, we took Ma-
nipur state as our research area, because it is one of
the most severely affected states of northeast for the
past few years. The purpose of the study is to under-
stand how conflict can be studied utilizing GIS.
Keywords: GIS, Conflict, Northeast, and Manipur.
IDDRM-8
Climate Change and Disasters in IndiaR K MallInstitute of Environment and Sustainable Development, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi – 221005 Email: [email protected]
R BhatlaDepartment of Geophysics, BHU, Varanasi-221005
A K GuptaNational Institute of Disaster Management, Ministry of Home Affairs, IIPA Campus, IP Estate, New Delhi -110 002
Climate change is evident from the observations
of increase in global average air and ocean tempera-
tures, precipitation and extreme rainfall, widespread
melting of snow and ice, storms/storm surges/coastal
flooding and rising global mean sea level, as recorded
in the Fourth Assessment Report of IPCC. In future, Cli-
mate change is expected to increase the frequency
and intensity of current extreme weather/ hydro-me-
teorological events, greater monsoon variability and
also the emergence of new disaster i.e. sea level rise
and new vulnerabilities with differential spatial and
socio-economic impacts on communities. This unprec-
edented increase is expected to have severe impact on
the hydrological cycle, water resource (drought, flood,
drinking water, forest & ecosystems, sea level / coastal
area /losses of coastal wetlands and mangroves), food
security, health and other related areas.
The impact would be particularly disasters for
developing countries, including India and further
degrade the resilience of poor, vulnerable communi-
ties, which make up between one quarter and one
half of the population of most Indian cities. Low level
technology development in the villages together
with social, economic and gender inequities enhance
the vulnerability and sufferings of the largely illiter-
ate, unskilled, and resource-poor fishing, farming
and landless labour communities. Their resilience
to bounce back to pre-disaster level of normality is
highly limited. These, in turn, impede sustainable de-
velopment widely undertaken in accordance with
the Millennium Development Goals (MDG). Under
these circumstances, the largely modern science
and technology-based sophisticated early warning
systems are unlikely to be of help to their fullest po-
tential. The Super Cyclone in 1999, Drought in 2002
/2009, Tsunami in 2004, Heat & cold wave and Flood /
flash flood in recent years in rural & urban areas are a
‘wake-up call’ from technological, social and econom-
ic points of view. This brings out the urgent need to
address sustainable alternate livelihoods to enhance
resilience. In these circumstances, vulnerability as-
sessment is a powerful tool in the examination of
societal well-being in the face of climatic change for
better management which must integrate knowl-
edge about the environment (climate, ecosystems,
water, associated pollution and change) with knowl-
edge about humans and their activities (agriculture/
forestry/fishing, resource management, political gov-
ernance, energy use, culture) to determine a holistic
picture of how sensitive particular places are and
how resilient to the kinds of changes that might be
associated with climate change.
54 | Abstracts
Advisory Committee
� Shri R.K. Srivastava (IAS), Executive Director of NIDM, Ministry of Home Affairs,
New Delhi
� Shri P .G Dhar Chakrabarti, Former Executive Director of NIDM and Director SAARC
Disaster Management Centre, New Delhi
� Dr. Dieter Mutz, Director, GIZ, Advisory Services in Environmental Management
(ASEM)
� Dr. Christina Kamlage, Senior Project Manager, Division of Environment, Energy and
Water, GIZ Berlin, Germany
Academic Advisory Council
� Prof.(Dr.) N.R. Madhava Menon, Former Dr. S. Radhakrishnan Chair on Parliamentary
Studies
� Dr.(Smt.) Indrani Chandrasekharan, Advisor (E&F), Planning Commission, Govt. of
India, New Delhi
� Prof. D. P. Singh, Vice,Chancellor, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi
� Prof. S .S. Singh, Director,The National Law Institute University, Bhopal
� Dr. S.S. Negi,Director, Forestry Research Institute, Dehradun
� Prof. V. K Sharma, Centre for Disaster Management and Environment Climate
Change and Drought, Indian Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi
� Prof. Christian Jochum, Director German Accident Commission / European Process
Safety Centre, Germany
� Prof. Santosh Kumar, National Institute of Disaster Management, New Delhi
� Prof. Dilanthi Amaratunga, Head, Centre for Disaster Resilience, University of Salford,
UK
� Prof. Mohammad Yunus, Head of Environmental Sciences, Babasaheb Bhimrao
Ambedkar (Central) University, Lucknow
� Dr. Luther Rangreji, Senior Legal Advisor, Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi
Scientific Advisory Council
� Shri S. K. Das, Director General, Central Statistical Organisation, New Delhi
� Maj. Gen.(Dr.) R. Siva Kumar, Director NRDMS, Department of Science and Technology
� Dr. Akhilesh Gupta, Advisor to Minister of Science and Technology, Climate Change
Programme Department of Science & Technology
� Dr. K. J. Ramesh, Advisor, Ministry of Earth Sciences, New Delhi
� Shri K.C. Gupta, Former Director General National Safety Council, Mumbai
� Dr. Sanjay Singh Gahlout, Deputy Director General, National Informatics Centre,
New Delhi
Conference Committees
International Conference on Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management | 55
� Mr. N. M. Prusty, Chief Mentor cum Director, Centre for Development and Disaster
Management Support Services, New Delhi
� Prof. Chandan Ghosh, National Institute of Disaster Management, New Delhi
� Dr. Rakesh Dubey, Director, Disaster Management Institute, Bhopal
� Dr. S S C Shenoi, Director, Indian National Centre for Ocean information Services,
Hyderabad
� Dr. Alfons Vogelbacher, Head of Unit Flood Information Centre, Flood Forecast Rivers
Danube and Inn at the Bavarian Environment Agency
� Dr. P. K. Aggarwal, Regional Facilitator, International Water Management Institute,
New Delhi
Organizing Committee
� Dr. Anil K. Gupta, Associate Professor, National Institute of Disaster Management
� Ms. Sreeja S. Nair, Assistant Professor, National Institute of Disaster Management
� Mr. Björn Kalscheuer, Project Manager, GIZ, Division Promotion of Democracy,
Administration Reforms, Economic, Environmental and Social Statistics Friedrich,
Ebert, Allee 40, 53113 Bonn, Germany
� Ms. Steffi Mallinger, Project Manager, GIZ, Division Environment, Energy and Water
Lützowufer 6,9, 10785 Berlin, Germany
� Mr. N. Raghu Babu, GIZ, Advisory Services in Environmental Management (ASEM).
� Dr. Sandhya Chatterji, Director, ifanos concept&planning, India (Consultants on
behalf of GIZ)
� Mr. Florian Bemmerlein- Lux, Director, ifanos concept & planning, Germany
(Consultants on behalf of GIZ)
ekDRM Secretariat
National Institute of Disaster Management
IIPA Campus, 5B – IP Estate, New Delhi 110002, India
Ph: +91,11,23725517, 91,11,23702443, 45,32
Fax: +91,11,23702442. 23702446
56 | Abstracts