scholarly journals Computer-Aided Decision Making for Regional Seismic Risk Mitigation Accounting for Limited Economic Resources

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 5539
Author(s):  
Iolanda Nuzzo ◽  
Nicola Caterino ◽  
Antonio Novellino ◽  
Antonio Occhiuzzi
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Risk Reduction ◽  
Seismic Risk ◽  
Risk Mitigation ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Economic Resource ◽  
Existing Building ◽  
Seismic Risk Mitigation ◽  
Technological Platform

Seismic risk mitigation levels for an existing building are a balance between the reduction of risk and the cost of rehabilitation. Evidently, the more that is paid the more risk is reduced; however, due to limited public budgets a practical approach is needed to manage the risk reduction program when a portfolio of buildings is concerned. Basically, decision makers face a challenge when there are a large number of vulnerable buildings and there is no plan for how to allocate the appointed budget. This study develops a technological platform that implements a decision-making procedure to establish how to optimally distribute the budget in order to achieve the maximum possible portfolio risk reduction. Decisions are made based on various presumed intervention strategies dependent on building’s level of risk. The technological platform provides an interactive, user-friendly tool, available online, that supports stakeholders and decision makers in understanding what the best economic resource allocation will be after selecting the available budget for a specific portfolio of buildings. In addition, the ease of use enables the user to analyze the extent of risk reduction achievable for different budget levels. Therefore, the web platform represents a powerful tool to accomplish two challenging tasks, namely optimal budget selection and optimal budget allocation to gain territorial seismic risk mitigation.

Proactive Actions Based on a Resilient Approach to Urban Seismic Risk Mitigation

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 321-335
Author(s):  
Marco Vona
Keyword(s):  
Urban Planning ◽  
Emergency Management ◽  
Seismic Risk ◽  
Risk Mitigation ◽  
Housing Stock ◽  
Mitigation Strategies ◽  
Housing System ◽  
Management Tools ◽  
Natural Risk ◽  
Seismic Risk Mitigation

Background: Seismic risk mitigation is an important issue in earthquake-prone countries, and needs to be solved in those complex communities governed by complex processes, where urban planning, socioeconomic dynamics, and, often, the need to preserve cultural assets are present simultaneously. In recent years, due to limited financial resources, mitigation activities have often been limited to post-earthquake events, and only a few in periods of inactivity, particularly in urban planning. At this point, a significant change in point of view is necessary. Methods: The seismic risk mitigation (and more generally, natural risk mitigation) must be considered as the main topic in urban planning and in the governance of communities. In fact, in several recent earthquakes, significant socioeconomic losses have been caused by the low or lack of resilience of the communities. This is mainly due to the high vulnerability of private buildings, in particular, housing units. Results: Therefore, in recent years, several studies have been conducted on the seismic resilience of communities. However, significant improvements are still needed for the resilience assessment of the housing stock, both qualitatively and quantitatively. In this study, which is applied to the housing system, a proposal regarding a change in urban planning and emergency management tools based on the concept of resilience is reported. As a first application, a case study in Italy is considered. Conclusion: The proposal is focused on defining and quantifying the improvement of the resilience of the communities and this must be obtained by modifying the current Civil Protection plan. New tools are based on a new resilience community plan by encompassing urban planning tools, resilient mitigation strategies, and consequently, emergency management planning.

Seismic Risk Mitigation of Historical Masonry Towers by Means of Prestressing Devices

2010 ◽  
Vol 133-134 ◽  
pp. 843-848 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adolfo Preciado Quiroz ◽  
Silvio T. Sperbeck ◽  
Harald Budelmann ◽  
Gianni Bartoli ◽  
Elham Bazrafshan
Keyword(s):  
Seismic Risk ◽  
Seismic Vulnerability ◽  
Risk Mitigation ◽  
Numerical Models ◽  
Failure Mechanisms ◽  
Masonry Towers ◽  
Seismic Risk Mitigation ◽  
Historical Masonry ◽  
Observed Damage ◽  
And Behavior

This work presents the investigation of the efficiency of different prestressing devices as a rehabilitation measure for the seismic risk mitigation of historical masonry towers. As a first phase, the seismic vulnerability of theoretical masonry towers was assessed by means of numerical models validated with information from the literature, observed damage and behavior of these structures due to passed earthquakes (crack pattern and failure mechanisms), and mainly taking into account the engineering experience. Afterwards, the validated models were rehabilitated with different prestressing devices; analyzing the results and concluding which device or the combination of them improved in a better way the seismic performance of the masonry towers. Finally, the methodology will be applied in two historical masonry towers located in seismic areas; the medieval tower “Torre Grossa” of San Gimignano, Italy, and one of the bell towers of the Cathedral of Colima, Mexico.

Evaluating the cost and benefits of earthquake protection of buildings

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 263-278 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benedetto Manganelli ◽  
Marco Vona ◽  
Pierfrancesco De Paola
Keyword(s):  
Real Estate ◽  
Seismic Risk ◽  
Risk Mitigation ◽  
Tax Incentives ◽  
Seismic Retrofitting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Seismic Risk Mitigation ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Earthquake Protection ◽  
Real Estate Assets

Purpose The purpose of this study is the evaluation of the cost and benefits of earthquake protection of buildings to verify whether the legislative push, through tax incentives, will produce results and lead to a redevelopment of private real estate assets. Design/methodology/approach Through contingent valuation, this research aims to measure the propensity of homeowners to invest in the seismic security of their properties. The sample of homeowners was selected in a southern Italy city, which was characterized by a medium-high seismic hazard. The willingness to pay, once made independent from the family income, was compared with the actual cost of a seismic retrofitting technique to assess its cost-effectiveness. Findings The analysis developed on an example case shows that the economic sustainability of the intervention is only verified when considering the current tax incentives for this type of intervention. Practical implications Choosing to introduce a system to compulsory insurance against seismic risk could certainly be a strong incentive for the implementation of retrofitting interventions on private real estate assets. In this direction, investigations like this can be fundamental to establish the fair risk premium. Originality/value The need for effective seismic risk mitigation policies is also based on the growing awareness of the, often fatal, effects of seismic events, emphasized by the recent medium and high intensity events that hit Italy. The issue of the security of residential buildings is therefore a very topical issue in view of their high seismic vulnerability and the vast number of buildings requiring major seismic retrofitting. Therefore, the propensity of owners to intervene in improving the seismic performance of their properties can be crucial in seismic risk mitigation.

Seismic risk mitigation

2003 ◽  
pp. 250-283
Author(s):  
Francesco Mulargia ◽  
Robert J. Geller
Keyword(s):  
Seismic Risk ◽  
Risk Mitigation ◽  
Seismic Risk Mitigation
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