Assessing Vulnerability Before, During and After a Natural Disaster in Fragile Regions: Case Study of the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami in Sri Lanka and Indonesia

Current approaches of measuring vulnerability to natural hazards generally use a rather static perspective that focuses on a single point in time?often before a hazardous event occurs. In contrast, the paper argues that vulnerability assessment should also take into account the changing dynamics during and after a disaster. This paper provides a comparative analysis of the situation in Sri Lanka and Indonesia within the context of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. The author presents concepts for measuring revealed vulnerabilities and methods of assessing the recovery process, and highlights the differing ways in which the tsunami affected the ongoing civil conflicts in both regions.vulnerability, dynamics, transition, natural hazards, fragile regions, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, coastal regions, tsunami

Tsunami impacts on shallow groundwater and associated water supply on the East Coast of Sri Lanka: a post-tsunami well recovery support initiative and an assessment of groundwater salinity in three areas of Batticaloa and Ampara Districts

Groundwater, Aquifers, Salinity, Natural disasters, Water supply, Drinking water, Wells, Rehabilitation, Mosquitoes, Disease vectors, Environmental Economics and Policy, Health Economics and Policy, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Coastal area management in South Asia: a comparative perspective (Background Paper prepared for South Asia Workshop on Fisheries and Coastal Area Management, 26 September-1 October 1996, Madras, India)

Most of the world's fisheries and fishing communities are supported by coastal areas. Consequently, the well-being and future of the fishery sector depend on the health of the coastal ecosystem. Not surprisingly, therefore, concern about coastal degradation and its impact on the fishery sector has long been expressed, notably at the first-ever conference of fishworkers and their supporters in Rome in 1984. Discussions then emphasized how the coastal environment is affected by activities within the fisheries sector as well as by other activities pursued in inland, inshore and offshore areas. It was in this context that the International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (ICSF) organized a workshop and symposium on Fisheries and Coastal Area Management in South Asia, in Madras, India, in 1996. To aid participants focus on the major coastal resources management issues, a background paper was prepared by ICSF. This paper explores efforts on coastal area management, more specifically in the South Asian region, and the extent to which the perspectives of actors in the fishery sector have been incorporated. It also deals with legislation of direct relevance to Integrated Coastal Area Management (ICAM)

Evaluation of spatio-temporal variability of ocean wave power resource around Sri Lanka

The paper presents a detailed analysis of the spatio-temporal variability of wave power resource around Sri Lanka, using computationally simulated 25 years of wave data that represents the prevailing ocean climate in the region. The computational wave model was validated against a measured wave dataset collected over a 44-month period at 70 m water depth off the coast of the south-west of Sri Lanka and compared with ERA-Interim Reanalysis wave data and, good agreement found. The analysis reveals that the ocean around Sri Lanka from the south-west to south-east have a substantial wave power resource. The available offshore wave power resource remains between 10 and 20 kW/s throughout the year although it is significantly modulated by the south-west monsoon which falls between May and September thus increasing the power up to around 30 kW/m. The inter-annual to decadal scale variability of wave power resource remains small. Wave power reduces when waves travel from the margin of the narrow continental shelf around Sri Lanka to shallow water areas closer to the shoreline. A significant longshore variability of wave power is also observed where the south-west coast of Sri Lanka has the highest available power under the prevailing ocean climate

Review of national fisheries situation in Sri Lanka

Fisheries are an important source of protein and employment for Sri LankaÆs population. The declaration of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in 1976 gave the country a water area larger than its land area. The coastal fisheries resources consist of small and large pelagic fish, demersal and coral reef fish, invertebrates, shrimps and crabs. The small pelagic fish contribute 70% of the catch from coastal waters with an estimated annual production of 152 752 t in 1997. Some of the fisheries resources in Sri Lanka have been overexploited, although the situation varies across resource types and regions. A major reason for this has been the lack of proper management, particularly at the time of the introduction of motorized craft and synthetic nets which virtually revolutionized the fishing industry. Valuable habitat such as coral reef, mangrove, sea grass and marshland are also extremely susceptible to degradation. Destruction of these critical habitats could lead to reduced coastal fish stocks. This paper provides a broad review of the national fisheries situation in Sri Lanka, presenting the environment status, coastal capture fisheries situation and fisheries management issues and opportunities. The main objectives for improving the fisheries management in Sri Lanka, as suggested by a national consultative workshop are: (1) promotion of sustainable exploitation of fisheries resources; (2) improvement of habitat protection; (3) maximization of the benefits from the fishery resources; (4) promotion of equitable distribution of the benefits; (5) maximization of the acceptability of interventions; and (6) maximization of the efficiency of institutional/legal system.Fishery resources, Catch/effort, Population characteristics, Coastal fisheries, Marine fisheries, Ecosystems, Economic benefits, Fishery industry, Capture fishery economics, Fish consumption, Fishery policy, Legislation, Fishery management, Demersal fisheries, Pelagic fisheries, Cephalopod fisheries, Socioeconomic aspects, Surveys, Marketing, Fishery organizations, Fishing gear, Crustacean fisheries, Trade, ISW, Sri Lanka,

Knowledge management for disaster resilience: Identification of key success factors

The number of reported disasters has increased steadily over the past century and risen very sharply during the past decade. These bring about the loss of lives, property, employment and damage to the physical infrastructure and the environment. Disaster management efforts aim to reduce or avoid the potential losses from hazards, assure prompt and appropriate assistance to victims of disaster, and achieve rapid and effective recovery. While knowledge management can enhance the process of disaster management, there is a perceived gap in information coordination and sharing within the context of disaster management. Identifying key success factors will be an enabler to manage the disasters successfully. In this context, this study aims to identify and map key knowledge success factors for managing disasters successfully through capturing the good practices and lessons learned. The objective of this paper is to present the literature findings on factors which support successful disaster management. Accordingly the identified factors were classified into eight main categories as technological, social, legal, environmental, economical, functional, institutional and political