BUCHAREST - RISK AND URBAN STRATEGY By Cristina Olga Gociman - Bucharest Mott: “We educate ourselves to consider accidents as natural, and evi as perfectly normal. This way of ‘considering things isthe easiest and ‘most frequent, wanting to forget the existence of the irremediabl Emil Cioran 1. Introduction: Bucharest ~ a capital exposed to disaster Bucharest ~ capital of Romania is one of the European towns exposed to earthquakes. With an area of 228 km? and a population of 2,021,000 people, a great density in the central area, high buildings built between the 2 world wars, Bucharest had during the earthquake from March 1977 over 1500 dead and damages of over $ 1,000,000, In this context, the efforts of the specialists and central administrative authorities are focused ‘on the implementation of a risk reduction management regarding disasters, by direct methods ~ consolidation, as well as by indirect methods — of legal type, for developing and urban strategy. The analytical mapping of the disaster sources, of the exposed elements and vulnerabilities of those, finding zones of maximum risk can lead to a direction of the urban development, to a strategy for projection of territory planning and to generating new organizing administrative policies on security zones. For the proposal of a multi-level security system building, vicinity, zone, town, the intervention and protection competences have a territory on hierarchy and known criteria, Organizing and dissipating of a poly-centric system of secure zone centers — shelter implies a considerable financial effort, but they will generate system to support the logistic, a psychological support for the population and the specialized intervention units. Also, they can become the structure generating the reconstruction. Considering the number of persons that have lost their lives during the earthquakes in the last century, Romania is situated among the first countries in Europe, and Bucharest is the European capital known as the most sensitive to earthquakes, mainly because of its: Geographical position -approximately 100-170 km from the epicentral area of Vrancea, distance that can be compared to the depth of Vrancea’s focal points, ‘)The existence, in the central area of a number of several hundred tall buildings with pillars and reinforced concrete girders, most of them built before 1945 b)The lack of knowledge, in the period of time surrounding the construction of such buildings, as far as technical norms necessary to the realization of reinforced concrete structures that can resist earthquakes (Terrain conditions, characterized by the manifestation of reaccuring long periods of land movement, at medium and high magnitudes. Intermediate Earthquakes Depths: 100-150 km Magnitude: M=7.0 on the Richter Scale Affected Zone: Half of Romania’s territorySuperficial Earthquakes Depth: km Magnitude: 7.0 Affected Zone: Banat, Craiova, Maramures Semis Sa aE interval (4 5 years) Date, Magnitudide (M), Intensity (I) Prognose Teginningot the oa wear Tex cnn Os ac 908 wee t=Vi 200817 eae M=73 1=1X ‘Middle of the century yar isae Mees_74 Op itv 19 M=65—14 Triple: ou. 1893 - Tram 883 Ma 59-62 10.sept.1893 Double: At the end of the a M=62-68 " can ama 14 Vivi 04.mar.1977 Led Bs Double: ost. 1990, vilevi may Losses caused by strong earthquakes in Romania during this century No. Date Time M Dead and Damages and economic losses ur) ter injured Vrancea zone — intermediate earthquakes T ~ serious damages to Tow buildings especially in epicenter area; 1940, Nov. 10 | 01:39 14 5000 dead | - high modern buildings damaged ‘many injured | and 1 crashed in Bucharest (Carlton block 14 floors) =$ 10 million damages 2. ~ 32900 buildings crashed and seriously damaged 1977, Mar. 4 19:21 72 1570 dead ~ 28 buildings before 1940 and 3 11300 injured | after 1940 partially crashed, other serious damages = $2 billion damages 3. 1986, Aug. 30 | 21:28 7.0 2 dead = 55000 buildings were damaged 558 injured _| in different stages 4, 1990, May 30 10:40 67 T dead = serious damages in epicenter area 100 injured | - non-structural damages are the majority 5. | 1990, May 31 [00:17 61 Moderate damages added to those beforei I = Banat zone__ _ 7] 1997, Ful 12 [1042 2dead | - serious damages in epicenter area 30 injured | (Banloc) rural buildings destroyed in. an area rarely affected by earthquakes | + thousands of disaster victims in | some villages | = local damages 2 | 1991, Jul 18-| 17:56 5.6 | Fewinjured | At least 615 houses damaged in : ____| Orsova zone 3. | 1991, Dec. 2 | 08:49 36 | Fewinjured | - serious damages in Voitex ~ 4500 disaster victims and 5000 i houses damaged Value of the damages and direct total losses in earthquake from March 14, 1977 No. Fixed assets, equipments, materials. goods Damages’ and losses’ value (millions of USS) T.__ | Constructions (buildings, water supply, etc.) Z 1420.1 2.__ | Equipments, installations, transportation 104.3 3.__| Raw materials, unfinished production and consuming goods _ 158.9 | 4. Total = 1683.3 | Value of the losses and indirect effects on short, medium and long term of the earthquake from Mareh 14, 1977 No. Type of indirect los Total value - | Gminions of uss) 1 Production losses _ 364.7 2. Export contracts lost, for 2 years 250.0 3.__| Additional imports for replacing the destroyed equipment 350.0 4, | Losses in tourism earnings for year 1977 - 30.0 '5.__| Loans and credits on variable terms — 180.0 [6.__| Total 1 (World Bank) [ 1175.0 7.__| Unpaid work for recovery, donations, contributions 1000.0 8.__| Repairs in own houses __ 675.0 9. [Total II (World Bank + other sources) 2850.0 2. Risk management by the fundamental principal of durable development ‘The two contemporary crises, of the environment and of the development are converted to a new ‘ethics of ecology, economy and culture, opening the legal premises for a new socio-political dialogue. ‘The need for a different kind of development, capable to ensure, on the long run, economic growth, the betterment of the environment and the conservation of natural resources, defined as a development that responds to their own need was named Durable Development in the Brundtland Report. The definition of durable development is followed, in the Brundtland Report by its explanation through two integrated notions: ‘© the concept of need - in particular the essential needs of the least favored who need to have priority ‘© the concept of limits, imposed by the current state of technology and social organization over the ability of the environment to respond to our current and future needs.