An Overview of the EU Actions towards Natural Hazard Prevention and Management: Current Status and Future Trends

Abstract

Earthquake, landslide and flood (ELF) hazards present trans-boundary consequences pose a serious problem to communities, form a roadblock to sustainable development and can lead to disasters when combined with vulnerability and insufficient capacity to reduce the risk. Key elements for an effective natural disaster mitigation are hazard identification and risk assessment, which must be based on scientifically sound methodologies and reliable and accurate data. The problem in the European Union (EU) and in the Black Sea area is widely recognised and a lot of efforts has already been made towards ELF disaster mitigation, evident by the numerous EU bodies formed, organisations established and projects funded. A brief review of the already applied and ongoing research shows a lag in the systematic ELF hazard assessment at local scales. ELF hazard assessment at these scales can provide results which can be directly used to make decisions regarding preventive measures and to plan effective post-event management actions. The proposed way to proceed is by ensuring applied research and technology transfer among partners from different countries, through the solution of problems such as the lack of reliable information and the lack of a ‘common ground’ in terms of methodologies used to assess ELF hazards and mitigation procedures adapted. The successful addressing of the afore-mentioned problems will provide the ability to systematically assess ELF hazards on regional and local scales, even in cross-border areas by providing comparable hazard maps which will support decision-making regarding the necessary mitigation measures.