UNIT – V

APPLICATION OF SCIENCE AND

TECHNOLOGY FOR DISASTER
MANAGEMENT & MITIGATION
Content
🞂 Geo-informatics in disaster management
🞂 Disaster communication system
🞂 Land use planning and Development regulations
🞂 Disaster safe designs and constructions
🞂 Structural and non structural mitigation of disaster
🞂 Science & technology institutions for disaster
management in India.
Geo-informatics in disaster management

🞂 Remote Sensing (RS)

🞂 Geographical Information System (GIS)

🞂 Global Positioning System (GPS)

Remote Sensing (RS)
Remote Sensing (RS)
🞂 Remote sensing is an investigative technique that uses a
recording instrument or device to measure or acquire
information on a distant object or phenomenon with which
it is not in physical or close contact.
🞂 The technique is used for accumulating important
information of the environment.
🞂 Remote sensing can collect data much faster than ground
based observation, covering a large spatial area at one
time to give a comprehensive view.
🞂 It has the capability of capturing images of distant targets
and in all weather conditions.
Applications of RS in disaster situations

🞂 The variation in terrain properties such as vegetation,

water and geology can be mapped using the RS data
such as satellite images and aerial photos.
🞂 Helping to locate the area of a natural disaster and
monitor its growing proportions providing information
on the disaster rapidly and reliably and thereby
ensuring that extent of damage is evaluated precisely.
🞂 Monitoring the disaster which provides in turn a
quantitative base for relief operations.
Geographical Information System (GIS)
Geographical Information System (GIS)

🞂 Geographical information system can be defined as a

system of hardware and software for measuring,
storing, retrieving, mapping, monitoring, modeling and
analyzing a variety of data types related to geographic
and natural phenomena.
Application of GIS in disaster situations

🞂 Drought
🞂 Earthquake
🞂 Floods
🞂 landslide
Global Positioning System (GPS)
Global Positioning System (GPS)
🞂 A critical component of any successful rescue
operation is time.
🞂 Prior knowledge of the precise location of landmarks,
streets, buildings, emergency service resources, and
disaster relief sites saves times and lives.
🞂 The global positioning system serves as a facilitating
technology in addressing these needs by helping the
users at any point on or near the earths surface to
obtain instantaneous three dimensional coordinates of
the their location.
Application of GPS in disaster situations
🞂 Pinpointing the location of damage sites and floodplains.
🞂 Playing a significant role in helping scientists to predict
earthquake in earthquake prone areas.
🞂 Using the precise position information provided by GPS
scientists can study how pressure slowly builds up over
time in an attempt to characterize and in the future perhaps
predict earthquakes.
🞂 Meteorologists responsible for storm tracking and flood
predication also reply on GPS.
🞂 GPS give quick information in the efficient operation of
their emergency response teams.
Disaster communication system
🞂 Early warning is the provision of timely and effective
information through identified institutions that allows
individuals exposed to hazard to take action to avoid or
reduce their risk and prepare for effective response.
🞂 Early warning information suggest people to take
necessary action when disaster is about to happen.
Early warning is the integration of four
elements
🞂 Risk knowledge

🞂 Monitoring and predicating

🞂 Dissemination information

🞂 Response

Early warning system operational

aspects
Land Use Planning
🞂 Land use planning is described as the process
undertaken by public authorities to identify, evaluate
and describe different options for the use of land,
including consideration of long term economic, and
environment objectives.
Purpose of Land Use Planning
🞂 Selecting the safe site for the building structures.

🞂 Relocating a community outside the hazardous and disaster

prone areas.

🞂 Formulation of land use policies for the long term

sustainable development.

🞂 Appropriate land use in the disaster prone areas, by

adjusting the land stability with agricultural development
strategies.
Purpose of Land Use Planning
🞂 Long term land use planning by incorporating all
geological related data available and identifying for
allocation of hazard free areas for industrial and urban
development.

🞂 High investment industries, other important

infrastructure should not be located in the areas that are
susceptible to damages.
Development regulation
🞂 Adoption of the culture of safety in construction to
follow bye laws and codes and usage of good quality
materials.

🞂 The government shall support these initiatives by

providing technical guidance to rebuild houses that can
sustain against shaking of the earthquake.

🞂 Manuals need to be developed outlining methodologies

for new constructions.
Development regulation
🞂 Identification of the vulnerable buildings in the state.

🞂 Building structures on the firmer ground or stiff soil

because stiff soil loss their strength with strong
vibrations.

🞂 Priority of buildings according to their importance.

Disaster Safe Design and Construction
Disaster Safe Design and Construction

🞂 The building should have a simple regular plan.

🞂 Long walls should be supported by reinforced concrete

columns.

🞂 Door and window openings in walls should preferably

be small and more centrally located.

🞂 The location of the openings should not be too close to

the edge of the walls.
Landslide Safe Design and Construction
Landslide Safe Design and Construction

🞂 The potential for the landslides and development erosion

can be greatly reduced or prevented with proper
development, proper construction techniques and regular
maintenance of drainage facilities.

🞂 Keep the surface drainage water away from vulnerable

areas, such as steep slopes, loose soils and non-vegetated
surfaces.

🞂 Improve soils ability to resist erosion by stabilizing

slopes by increasing vegetation and trees.
Flood Safe Design and Construction
Flood Safe Design and Construction
🞂 Avoid residing on river banks and slopes on river sides.

🞂 Build at least 250 meters away from the seacoast/river banks.

🞂 Build proper drainage system in all flood prone area, so that the
water can be drained off quickly to prevent accumulation.

🞂 Construct the building with a plinth level higher that the known
high flood level.

🞂 Construct the whole village or settlement on a raised platform

higher than the high flood level.
Structural Mitigation Methods

🞂 Structural mitigation :

◦ Structural mitigation is defined as a risk reduction effort

performed through the construction or altering of the
physical environment through the application of engineered
solutions.

◦ Building codes, relocation, Construction of community

shelters, structural modifications etc.
Non-structural mitigation methods

🞂 Non-structural mitigation:

◦ Non-structural mitigation is defined as a measure that

reduces risk through modification in human behavior or
natural process without requiring the use of engineered
structures.

◦ Legal framework, land use planning, training and education,

public awareness, incentives and financial framework.
Science and technology institutions for
disaster management in India
🞂 India meteorological department (IMD)
🞂 Central water commission (CWC)
🞂 Indian national centre for oceanic information system
(INCOIS)
🞂 Geological survey of India (GSI)
🞂 Defense research & development organization (DRDO)
🞂 Indian space research organization (ISRO)
🞂 Department of atomic energy (DAE)