IOC/ITSU-XVII/3 - International Co-ordinating Group for the Tsunami Warning System in the Pacific, Seventeenth Session, Seoul, Republic of Korea, 4-7 October 1999

 

The Chairman, Mr. H. Gorziglia, opened the Seventeenth Session of the IOC International Coordination Group for the Tsunami Warning System in the Pacific at 10:00 on 4 October 1999. The Session was held at the new headquarters of the Korea Meteorological Administration in Seoul, Republic of Korea

Mr. H. Gorziglia started his welcome address by expressing thanks to the Government of the Republic of Korea for the kind invitation to host the Session. He extended thanks to the governments of the countries who sent their representatives to the last session of the ICG/ITSU in the last millennium. He expressed belief that the participation of internationally reputed experts in the field of early warning known for their keen interest in tsunami mitigation will be a main factor for the meetings success.

Mr. Gorziglia expressed concern that in spite of the fact of the high priority given to the programme by the IOC Member States, it has not found a reflection in national disaster mitigation plans and in increased financial support for the programme implementation. The fact that only 50% of the ICG/ITSU Member States sent their representatives to the Seventeenth Session is an alarming signal. He called on Member States not to wait for a tsunami disaster to happen but rather take necessary prevention measures in advance of the event. The commitment of Member States to support and followup the ICG/ITSU decisions is required. He invited the participants of the Session to study the progress achieved, identify drawbacks and failures of the system and formulate recommendations to the IOC governing bodies which may help in saving human lives and protecting property.

Dr. Moon Sung Euii, KMA Administrator, extended to all participants his warm welcome to Seoul and to the KMA Headquarters. He expressed belief that the discussions and recommendations of this meeting will introduce new ideas and measures in tsunami disaster prevention, which will be noted by governments, governing bodies of international organizations and decision makers, funded and implemented. Dr. Moon emphasized the need to promote international and regional co-operation in improving effectiveness of tsunami warnings.

He noted that a tsunami threat exists for the Republic of Korea because of the high potential of large earthquakes in the surrounding seas. He presented as an example, tsunami disasters of 1983 and 1993, caused by the earthquakes near northwestern Japan which struck the eastern coast of the country. These tsunamis showed a clear need in reinforcing the national seismic network and installing a realtime tsunami monitoring system at Ulleung Island. Further actions for improving the national warning facilities are planned. The national system will gain its capacity only when supported by the competent international bodies like ITSU. Dr. Moon expressed the hope that the Session in Seoul will be a landmark of ITSU activities in the Twentieth Century and contribute to the promotion of the tsunami programme in the years beyond 2000. He wished the Session to be productive, and the participants, a comfortable and memorable stay in Seoul.

Dr. I. Oliounine, the Deputy Executive Secretary IOC, invited participants to join him for a minute of silence in the memory of Prof. Mohammed El Sabh from Canada, who passed away at the beginning of this year, and who was closely associated with the ICG/ITSU for many years.

He then conveyed to the meeting, the greetings and best wishes from Prof. P. Bernal, the IOC Executive Secretary.

Dr. Oliounine introduced a quick glimpse into the past activities of the Group and stressed that IOC took the lead role in tsunami warning, thanks to its universal character and its objectives. He expressed satisfaction that after 40 years, the achievements of the ICG/ITSU were widely noted and received worldwide recognition. However, the objective to provide timely accurate and reliable tsunami warning services, regardless of near- or far-shore events to all the tsunami-prone areas in the Pacific still requires much work and attention. The ultimate success of the tsunami programme will depend on being able to make disaster reduction a public value. He invited the participants to critically assess the current state of science and technology used in disasters preparedness, identify ways for motivating an increasing broad range of people to work together in tsunami mitigation and make suggestions for future operational programmes to ensure continued progress.

Dr. Oliounine echoed Dr. Moon’s view that the full, effective and long-term implementation of the tsunami programme requires strong and committed partnership between Member States, international community and the private sector. The synergetic collaboration among all partners should be established. Regions should become active players, initiating projects under the leadership of experienced international teams.

In conclusion, Dr. Oliounine invited the Session to take a long-term view in the discussions and to formulate recommendations, which could be translated into practical benefits for all Member States. He wished the participants every success with the meeting and hoped they enjoyed the hospitality of the host country.

The Chairman thanked the speakers and invited the Representative of the Local Organizing Committee to provide information on local arrangements. Mr. Kim Sang-jo informed the Group of the logistical support, accommodation facilities and the cultural programme. On behalf of the Group, the Chairman thanked the local organizers for the arrangements made.

The Chairman then invited the Group to adopt the Provisional Agenda. It was adopted as presented in Annex I.

The Group decided not to nominate a Rapporteur for the Session and requested all Key Speakers for different agenda items to provide support to the Technical Secretary in developing the draft Summary Report.

The Technical Secretary introduced the List of Documents and the Provisional Timetable of the Session. The Group adopted the working procedures and decided to make the necessary modifications to the Timetable with the progress of the Session. It was further decided to create an intersessional drafting group to work on the future programme and budget recommendation. The Delegate of the USA, Mr. R. Hagemeyer, was appointed as Chairman of this Group. It was agreed to have other intersessional groups established, if the need arises.

The List of Documents with the modifications made is given in Annex IV. The List of Participants and List of Acronyms are given in Annex III and XIII respectively.

The Group expressed regret that New Zealand, the Philippines, the Peoples Democratic Republic of Korea and some other countries, and international bodies and programmes like SOPAC, IOCARIBE and WDC-A, Tsunami were not able to attend the Session due to various reasons.


 Informational Documents

Document Title Format/Type
ITSU-XVII Summary Report PDF  (853 KB)

 

 combined unesco ioc blue eng RHS 20220523   noaa logo rgb 2022

IOC Tsunami
Information Centres

   ITIC logo white circle 300dpi 200x200 20160816     CTIC logo 200x200 300dpi

       ITIC                  CTIC
       ITIC-CAR 

   New Logo IOTIC only 300DPI 200x200     NEAMTIC logo 200x200 300dpi

     IOTIC              NEAMTIC

Facebook 2023 New Icon With Wordmark


yt logo rgb light   vimeo logo blue

Hosted by:
UNESCO/IOC Project Office for IODE Oostende, Belgium
© 2024 International Tsunami Information Center | A UNESCO/IOC-NOAA Partnership
1845 Wasp Boulevard, Building 176, Honolulu, HI 96818, USA | Tel: +1 808 725 6050 | Fax: +1 808 725 6055