Environmental Risks, Forecasting

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Supersites (eathquake sites) of the world scientific community has a interactive map showing the areas where big earthquakes are predicted to happen. Click the image to visit Supersites:

The forecast of members of the scientific community that massive casualties will be experienced in the next big disaster that will hit the Philippines is accurate.

One of the greatest concerns is that the target of the next big one is the Philippines national capital region: Metropolitan Manila.

With a nighttime population of more than 12 million, in daytime Metro Manila has a population volume of nearly 20 million or higher during peak seasons.

Metro Manila is also home to many international agency headquarters such as the Asian Development Bank and all the home offices of foreign embassies are located in the capital region.

Too many factors can account for the exactitude and correctness of the prediction of massive casualties – not the least amongst them, the lack of state-of-the-art data and information ferreting equipment. Scientific expertise and knowhow in the use of new technology for tidal wave, weather, seismic event, volcanic eruption forecasting is not necessarily lacking in the Philippines.

However, it must be conceded that the Philippines does not have enough or adequate experience in handling satellite launch, management and earth observation operations.

To compound the problem ten-folds it is learned through the media, that intervention by interest groups in purveying vital data to the public about earthquake faults, the shameless impunity with which big companies are shunting regulations against building big structures on top of sites highly vulnerable to earthquake faults, also compound the danger of the Philippines suffering a large multitude of people getting killed during a big disaster incident involving the shaking of the Marikina West Valley Fault System.

December 9, 2013

Dear Sir / Madame,

Greetings!

This is to formally invite your attention to  our determination to hold the international conference on geohazard mapping and relevant environment issues. Our group decided to launch a campaign in 2009 for sustainable crisis hazards mapping and relevant environmental concerns after returning from Mindanao, Philippines following the end of the effort in ending the highly expensive hotel billeting by Juma’a Abu Sayyap of selected staff members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) from Switzerland (Andreas Notter), Italy (Eugenio Vagni) and Philippines (Mary Jane Lacaba).

The purpose of the conference is to provide a fora within Southeast Asia for developed and developing countries, for consolidating databases, integrating and perfecting geohazard mapping and tagging - coordinates and all correlational information for disaster hot spot / safe spot zones, among others. When we began this effort, we noticed that mostly poor developing countries only, responded to our invitation. Understandably, nearly all or most of them required us to sponsor their travel and accommodations.

Our basic belief is in putting into action the requisites precluding taking of measures to prevent and mitigate both the risks of loss of lives and property and actual casualties during a disaster. Furthermore, to allow disasters to ravage our communities without prior mitigation measures becomes an extremely tedious issue due to the fact that certain quarters in the public sector are remiss in delivering aid to victims of calamities [e.g. recent super typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) here in the Philippines where it took more than one week for the government to respond].