Understanding Extreme Geohazards: The Science of the Disaster Risk Management Cycle

European Science Foundation Conference
November 28 to December 1, 2011, Sant Feliu de Guixols, Spain

NATURAL DISASTERS AND CULTURAL HERITAGE: INTERNATIONAL RISK PREVENTION AND MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES

Anna Vigorito
University of Salerno, Cava Dei Tirreni, Salerno, Italy, avigorit@yahoo.it

Recent praxis has chronicled several episodes of destruction and damage to cultural heritage linked to the occurrence of natural disasters and catastrophes: damage caused by the tsunami that in 2004 struck South-East Asia or those caused by the earthquakes that devastated the Island of Haiti in 2010 are just some such examples. The phenomena cited threaten first and foremost the “physical” conservation of tangible cultural heritage (e.g., monuments, buildings, archaeological sites, etc.). The mobilisation of the international community in relation to these events renders an examination of the international regulations concerning the protection of cultural properties from the risks of disasters particularly interesting.

In this respect, the important role played by the 1972 UNESCO Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage is worthy of mention. The agreement - whose field of application is limited to properties of outstanding universal value entered in the World Heritage List or in the World Heritage List in Danger - states that the obligation to protect, preserve, value and pass to future generations the cultural (and natural) heritage of the world is the responsibility of the State in whose territory the good to be safeguarded is located. The State to which the cultural property belongs should above all else make maximum use of the means available to it and, only if necessary, make recourse to the international assistance and cooperation system foreseen in the agreement: intervention by the international community, therefore, is complementary to national action and may be activated only in support of the States that do not independently have all the necessary means to ensure the adequate protection of their own heritage.

As to the forms of international assistance provided by the Convention, these are divided into emergency assistance, conservation and management assistance, and preparatory assistance: in the case of risks related to natural disasters, an important role appertains especially to the first and second type.

In particular, the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the 1972 Convention provide that emergency assistance “may be requested to address ascertained or potential threats facing properties […] which have suffered severe damage or are in imminent danger of severe damage due to sudden, unexpected phenomena”.

Conversely, when damage to the heritage has already been caused by a natural disaster but there is no situation of impending damage or urgency, the most appropriate form of assistance is that of conservation and management. To complete and improve the system just described, in 2007 UNESCO launched the Strategy for Risk Reduction at World Heritage Properties that assists the States Parties to the 1972 Convention since they (1) integrate heritage protection initiatives in the national disasters management policies; (2) take actions for the protection of cultural heritage in all its manifestations. In fact, in addition to tangible heritage, natural disasters can also have adverse effects on the so-called intangible cultural heritage: we refer to the case where a cultural site that is inhabited by indigenous groups who still lead a traditional way of life is damaged or destroyed; in these cases, the structural damage to the site forces the resident populations to emigrate and possibly to disperse, undermining the conservation and transmission of important elements of their cultural identity to future generations.