Disaster Risk Reduction for Hydro-geo Hazards in the Region of Silk Road

Session No: NH9.3/GI2.6

Convener: Peng Cui  

Co-conveners: Alessandro Pasuto, Yu Lei, Fang Lian, Javed Iqbal 

Introduction

What is known as Silk Road, was a trade route active since the Han Dynasty (207 BC-220 BC) which played an essential role in connecting East and West in terms of exchanges of goods, technology and civilization. In recent years a new interest arose about it especially after the launch of the big project named "Belt and Road Initiative". Nowadays it covers more than 70 countries and 4.4 billion people (63% of the world). However, due to the active underlying geological structure, rapid tectonic uplift, and climate change, the frequency of natural hazards (e.g. Floods, landslides, debris flow) dramatically increased in this area. In addition to that, haphazard urbanization and human activities amplified the disaster risk and associated loss. As concern this aspects the Sendai Framework and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development proposed clear targets to reduce disaster loss and risk and make human settlements resilient and sustainable in local, national and regional levels.

To promote a safe, green, and resilient Silk Road, several main challenges need to be addressed:

1. Major gap in terms of common geological and meteorological background of natural hazards along the Belt and Road with few shared information and an unclear coordination mechanism. 
2. Under climate change, natural hazards showed new characteristics in terms of formation, triggering criteria and mobility which is yet to be understood. 
3. The demand of understanding disaster risk and risk assessment in this area. 
4. Mechanisms to deal with the trans-boundary disasters.

The proposed session would like to focus on the wide area interested by the Silk Road and call for contributes submission on (but not limited to) the following topics:

• Disaster information collection and data sharing
• Understanding physical nature of disaster: Mechanisms, physical process
• Disaster risk assessment and reduction
• Typical trans-boundary disaster events and collaboration mechanism
• Affordable solutions for disaster management, such as early warning system, community-based risk management
• Haphazard urbanization, human activities and negative impact on disaster risk