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6. Conclusions Large differences exist between countries in the way to deal with and live with natural hazard, for prevention (mapping, etc …) and for indemnity (principle of solidarity principle with compulsory insurance for each people, or State intervention). In the five studied countries, only France (since 1982) and Italy (since 1998) have engaged a juridical prevention mapping. But mapping is a slow process. On the 17,000 French Municipalities threatened (wholly or partly) by a major risk, only more or less 2,000 are covered by a PPR in 2002. The main reason arises from the little attention paid locally (in the city councils) regarding the restrictive aspect of this mapping, which can prohibit building projects in high risk zones (red zones). Also mapping is a delicate exercise and realism must be highlighted. It should be possible to delineate the risk zone, reasonably and objectively, with an updated knowledge, without extending unnecessarily the prohibited zone (to cover an improbable hazard) by over-anxiety, or on the contrary reducing the risk zone due to social and economic pressure and thereby putting the local population unnecessarily at risk. But often it is simply a question of assessment which can easily be corrected after an event which exceeds the specified limits (either in intensity or in extent). Therefore mapping methodologies are still to improve for the definition of the hazard level, for assessing the vulnerability (structural, but also functional and social) and therefore the risk level, and for delineating the zone. In this direction, the research initiated in the Alarm project should ameliorate, by using GIS techniques, the production of reliable and quickly elaborated documents.
References Maquaire, O. (in press), Geomorphic hazards and natural risks, In: The Physical Geography of Western Europe, Eduard A. Koster, (ed.), Oxford University Press, chapter 21, 15000 words and 22 figures. Panizza, M., Corsini, A., Marchetti, M., Pasuto, A., Silvano, S., Soldati, M. (2002) Landslide risk mapping in Italy : an example of pilot study for a municipality of South Tyrol. Meeting on “Natural risks and National development in Europe“, 22-25 October, Paris (France), pp. 25-28. Silvano, S., Pasuto, A., Galanti, E. (2002), The management of geological-hydrological risks. Meeting on “Natural risks and National Development in Europe“, 22-25 October, Paris (France), pp. 48-50.
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