NH2
Earthquake, Tsunami and Volcano Monitoring in the Western Pacific

Main Organiser
Phil Cummins, Minerals & Geohazards Div., Geoscience Australia, GPO Box 378, Canberra, Australia 2601
phil.cummins@ga.gov.au

Co-Organiser(s)
Hiroshi Inoue, National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention, National Disaster Information Centre, International Seismic Network Laboratory.
inoue@bosai.go.jp

Hugh Cowan, Inst. Geological & Nuclear Sciences
H.Cowan@gns.cri.nz

Brief Description
The western Pacific region is especially at risk from earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions. In the last half of the 20th century such events have lead to thousands of deaths and billions of dollars in economic loss. At the same time, rapid progress in geophysical instrumentation and information technology has led to increasingly sophisticated methods for monitoring these phenomena, which in some cases may provide an early warning capability and in others may provide important information for post-disaster relief. Progress in the implementation of monitoring systems, however, have been sporadic owing to the disparate levels of risk exposure and economic resources available to countries in the region. In some countries, relatively sophisticated monitoring systems exist even where risk is low, while in other countries monitoring systems are virtually nonexistent even though risk is very high. The purpose of this session is to bring together earth scientists involve! d in the monitoring of earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanoes in the Western Pacific to compare the different monitoring systems currently in use, and discuss the potential for improving regional monitoring capabilities