8-8B ESTABLISHMENT OF DISASTER PREVENTION AND MANAGEMENT CENTRE IN PUDONG NEW AREA, SHANGHAI

8-8B

Project Scope and Relationship to China's Agenda 21

This project is based on programme area 17B of China's Agenda 21, concerning promoting the establishment disaster prevention and mitigation systems, reducing losses caused by natural disasters. It is also related to programme areas 17A and 17C, concerning improving of natural disasters and reducing natural disasters caused or aggravated by human factors.

1. Background

As with many large urban areas in developing nations, Shanghai suffers from the symptomatic disorders of long-term neglect in infrastructure improvement. As a result it has a one of the highest population densities in the world and exhibits all traits of an overloaded system.

Under present circumstances, Shanghai would be catastrophically impacted in the even of a natural or man-made disaster. The fires and explosions in Shenzhen, Beijing, Nanjing, Qingdao and Fuzhou since 1993 illustrate the inadequacy of disaster prevention capability in China's major cities. Establishing and improving disaster planning, prevention and management systems for major urban areas is therefore extremely urgent.

The last several years of this century and the first decades of the 21st first century will be an important period for the revitalization of Shanghai and the entire Yangtze River region. The Pudong New Area (PNA) is the flag ship of this development. To ensure that the development effort proceeds smoothly, and that the economy, quality of life and safety in PNA continues to improve, thus creating a promising investment environment, an advanced Disaster Prevention and Management Centre (DPMC) meeting international standards needs to be established.

The proposed centre would contain the best available disaster management technology and trained personnel to address China's situation. The centre would be significant for PNA, the entire Shanghai municipality and its surroundings in upgrading disaster early-warning and management capabilities. It would assist in reducing damage in the event of a disaster by promoting risk reduction, disaster forecasting, response and mitigation. Thus the centre would foster sustainable social and economic development in the Shanghai area. This project is also an important integral part of the Chinese Government's response to the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR). It would also be a disaster prevention and management demonstration project that could be duplicated in other urban areas in China as well as other developing countries.

The proposed DPMC project has enjoyed the support of the Shanghai Municipal Government (SMG) and other relevant agencies. The SMG has included the establishment of DPMC into the PNA development plan. The project feasibility study has been completed identifying the technical and resource needs of the project. The study included evaluation of similar centres in the region and in developed countries.

Shanghai currently has access to real time satellite meteorological information from China's meteorological satellite, as well as a major fire, earthquake and traffic accident response system. The European Community has also donated three million ECU's to establish an automatic flood monitoring and warning system.

Integrated disaster prevention and management systems require complicated equipment and software. It includes communication hardware, data acquisition and processing equipment, and powerful computers to integrate and analyze the information for decision making. The integrated information is often displayed on large multi-media screens in GIS format in developed countries. This type of disaster management system is not currently integrated in Shanghai, thus each type of disaster is managed by a separate command centre which does not share information with other centres. Therefore the DPMC mandate includes integration of these systems into one command centre which utilizes information from all disasters for formulating preparedness and response strategies. The financial resources required to establish an integrated disaster management system such as DPMC are substantial since expertise and many technologies must be procured internationally.

2. Objectives

• Long-term Objectives
  To establish an integrated disaster prevention and management centre in PNA which would utilize advanced techniques and technologies in assisting local and regional authorities with timely disaster management decision making and relief mobilization.

• Immediate Objectives

  • To construct the centre and install equipment
  • To establish a disaster prevention and management system in PNA.
  • To develop and install an information processing system at DPMC.
  • To perform disaster preparedness and mitigation case studies at major facilities in PNA.
  • To integrate and upgrade the current decentralized disaster information and management systems in Shanghai.

3. Activities

• 3.1 Construct the centre and install equipment.
  • Construct the DPMC building which is to be located in or near the PNA Administration compound. It is designed to have four thousand square meters of floor space (above and below ground).
  • Install communications infrastructure and data integration hardware including cable, radio and microwave communication, mainframe computers, multimedia display screen, and disaster monitoring and forecasting network.

• 3.2 Establish a disaster prevention and management system in PNA.
  • Formulate a comprehensive disaster prevention and management plan for PNA.
  • Install a management organization and command system for DPMC.
  • Establish communication and information network connecting DPMC to branches of Shanghai Municipality.

• 3.3 Develop and install an information processing system at DPMC.

  • Install GIS system at DPMC.
  • Install a disaster simulation system.
  • Install a disaster identification and forecasting system.
  • Formulate an emergency management and contingency plan for major disasters.
  • Establish an emergency response and rescue procedure.

• 3.4 Perform disaster preparedness and mitigation case studies at major facilities in PNA.
  • Perform a disaster preparedness and mitigation survey at several major facilities in PNA and evaluate the results for effectiveness. The proposed facilities include the Shanghai Gaoqiao Petrochemical General Company and the Shanghai No.3 Iron and Steel Works.
  • Compile a "Guide to Disaster Prevention Design for facility Construction".
  • Institute disaster mitigation, response and management systems for industrial facilities.
  • Establish disaster information centres and warning systems in major facilities and integrate them into DPMC monitoring system.
  • Perform background studies for industrial disaster mitigation legislation and regulations.

• 3.5 Integrate and upgrade the current decentralized disaster information and management systems in Shanghai.
  The duration of this project will be 4 years. This project will be implemented by the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Science and Technology, the Shanghai Pudong New Area Administration, the Shanghai Office of IDNDR.

4. Inputs

The project proposes to adopt the best available technology for data acquisition and analysis, GIS, multimedia, and data transfer networks. It will also encourage exchanges between Chinese and international experts both in Shanghai and overseas through training programs, seminars and symposium on disaster prevention and management. To assist the centre in its task, managerial and technical personnel at DPMC will undergo capability development programs for disaster management.

5. Benefits

The implementation of this project will significantly improve disaster preparedness, prevention, mitigation and management capabilities in PNA and Shanghai as a whole. The proposed centre will be integrated into the national disaster management network and contribute significantly to disaster management capabilities in China. It is anticipated that the work of the centre will, over time, prevent the types of major urban disasters that have occurred in China from being repeated by promoting pro-active disaster risk reduction, preparation and management.