Designing for Tsunamis: Seven Principles for Planning and Designing for Tsunami Hazards is the report of the multi-state mitigation project of the US National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program (NTHMP). Funding for this project was provided by the U.S. Department of Commerce and the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Eventhough the report focuses on the US pacific region it contains many interesting and import view points that may even be applicable to Indian ocean countries such as Sri Lanka. The following is an excerpt from the introduction to the report.
The purpose of these guidelines is to help coastal communities in the five Pacific statesAlaska,
California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington understand their tsunami hazards, exposure, and
vulnerability, and to mitigate the resulting risk through land use planning, site planning, and
building design. Emergency response and evacuation are only discussed in these guidelines as they relate to land use, siting, and building design and construction issues. These guidelines are intended for use by local elected, appointed, and administrative officials involved in planning, zoning, building regulation, community redevelopment, and related land use and development functions in coastal communities. The guidelines should also be helpful to state officials having similar responsibilities.
These guidelines are organized according to seven basic principles:
Principle 1: Know your communitys tsunami risk: hazard, vulnerability, and exposure
Principle 2: Avoid new development in tsunami run-up areas to minimize future tsunami losses
Principle 3: Locate and configure new development that occurs in tsunami run-up areas to minimize future tsunami losses
Principle 4: Design and construct new buildings to minimize tsunami damage
Principle 5: Protect existing development from tsunami losses through redevelopment, retrofit, and land reuse plans and projects
Principle 6: Take special precautions in locating and designing infrastructure and critical facilities to minimize tsunami damage
For each principle, the discussion includes background information on the topic, recommended
process steps for implementing the principle, and specific how-to strategies. Several case studies in the guidelines illustrate how communities in the Pacific region are addressing tsunami hazards. The guidelines also contain references and contacts for obtaining further information about planning for tsunami hazards. More detailed information on each of the topics discussed in the guidelines is contained in a companion set of background papers that were compiled during the preparation of these guidelines.
