Do we need the United Nations Framework Convention on Earthquake Risk?

Like climate change, earthquake risks disproportionately affect poor and developing countries, making it imperative for a global organization like the United Nations to create a parallel earthquake risk treaty.

Written by Afroz Shah, University of Burnie Darussalam

Citation: Shah, A, 2023, Do We Need UNFCCC on Earthquake Hazards?, Templor, http://doi.org/10.32858/temblor.308

The earthquake disaster that occurred on February 6, 2023 in Turkey highlights the profound and devastating impact that earthquakes can have on people and their property. The occurrence of earthquakes and the risks associated with them are well known and are the result of years of scientific knowledge accumulated by seismologists around the world. Scientists work to inform the public and governments of the potential for major earthquakes on known faults and provide evidence-based recommendations on how to prevent these potential hazards from becoming disasters. The earthquake risk profile of many developed countries, such as Japan and the United States, has improved greatly because these countries have the resources to implement recommended risk reduction strategies and are led by well-equipped administrations that make it possible to take action. We need a framework and a plan to help developing countries also implement hazard preparedness.

More than 160,000 buildings collapsed or were destroyed in the February 2023 earthquake in Turkey. Credit: Adem, CC BY-SA 4.0

challenges in developing countries

Many developing nations are unable to implement hazard preparations, and this is often reflected in the loss and damage statistics when medium to large earthquakes strike. For example, many more than 80,000 lives might have been saved in the 2005 Kashmir earthquake had current scientific wisdom about building construction been exercised on the ground. Unfortunately, what we are seeing in Turkey in 2023 indicates a lack of structural integrity in some of these buildings as well, similar to what was observed in Pakistan decades ago.

The science and technology of earthquake-resistant buildings have greatly improved living standards in many tectonically active regions around the world. Unfortunately, events such as those discussed above indicate that this scientific knowledge is not practiced on the ground in many parts of the world, painting a dangerous picture for people who live near active defects. The developing world is already facing enormous challenges and risks to millions from ongoing crises such as poverty, hunger, availability of clean water, risks related to climate change and more, and earthquake risks have the potential to exacerbate these ongoing issues. Many of these countries, such as Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, are waiting for the next big earthquake, which will be a big challenge to face.

Despite the knowledge of the potential for large and destructive earthquakes, it can be difficult for developing countries to adequately prepare for earthquake hazards because they are already dealing with many other societal needs that are just as important as addressing them.

The Pakistani city of Muzaffarabad is located in a picturesque valley. The 2005 Kashmir earthquake destroyed parts of the city and is estimated to have killed around 80,000 people. Credit: Obaid747, CC BY-SA 3.0

Proposal: an international framework

To help highlight the issue of preparing for earthquake hazards and the need for their introduction, I propose the creation of an international platform for discussion and circulation of barriers and solutions for earthquake preparation with the drive to improve the overall safety measures needed to address these hazards. Currently, there is a similar successful platform to address the threats of climate change.

The threat of global warming led to the establishment of the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 1988, which was tasked with looking at global warming and global climate change. Over the next decade, the IPCC’s rhetoric on climate change reached most parts of the world and it established the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1992. The Climate Change Treaty entered into force in 1994. Today, the United Nations Convention United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) worldwide reach 198 concerts; It is the only organization working globally to improve global resilience to climate disasters through cooperation, financing, integration, deliberation, and other assistance mechanisms. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change makes decisions requiring countries to mitigate, adapt to, and care for loss and damage from climate change; These agreements are done democratically by vote.

Many UN organizations currently address earthquake risk, such as the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction which was formed in 1999 to help implement the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction. The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction was enacted in 2015. However, none of these risks specifically addresses earthquake risk.

Earthquake hazards disproportionately affect poor and developing countries, making it imperative for a global organization such as the United Nations to create a parallel earthquake hazard treaty. This will provide a platform for the global North and South for deliberation, integration, collaboration, finance and exchange of ideas, with the incentive to make the world a safer place with regard to earthquakes. The United Nations Framework Convention on Earthquake Hazards (UNFCEH) can bridge the gaps between developing and developed countries, improving overall preparedness for earthquake hazards.

Annual UN conferences such as the Conference of the Parties (COP) to deal with climate change are an important tool for ensuring that other countries and organizations meet on the global stage, which is why the climate change discourse has gone so far. This successful model can be applied to earthquake risk and resilience. Seismology is lagging behind in terms of access, which may be one reason for the lack of understanding of why some hazards become monsters in developing nations.

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