Tong Wildfires In China Photos

Response to Earthquakes in China A Case Study of Wenchuan Earthquake

Tong Mingkang President of ICOMOS CHINA March 11 2009

I. China’s cultural heritage and natural disasters it faces 37 world heritage sites, including 26 cultural, 7 natural and 4 mixed.

registered immovable monuments and sites 400,000, under state-level protection 2,351, under province-level protection 8,831, under city/countylevel protection 58,371

110 cities and 251 historically and culturally towns or villages have been proclaimed as famous places.

cont i nent al ear t hquakes wi t h a magni t ude of 7. 0 or above i n t he 20t h cent ur y

China is one of the countries suffering the most intensive and serious earthquakes and having the largest earthquake deaths in the world.

35%

65%

ot her ar eas

Chi na’ s t er r i t or y makes up onl y 7% of t he l and ar ea of t he wor l d 7%

Chi na

deat hs caused by ear t hquakes i n t he 20t h cent ur y

590000 49%

610000 51%

93%

ot her ar eas

Chi na

ot her ar eas

Chi na

II. Damage to cultural heritage caused by Wenchuan Earthquake

Beijing

Wenchuan

The sketch map of Wenchuan Earthquake

14:28, May 12, 2008 Wenchuan County Sichuan Province West China 8.0 Richter scale

seismic intensity map

Striking： 417 counties, Gansu

16 provinces and municipalities, Shaanxi

440,000 km2 area. 69,227 dead. 17,923 missing. 374,643 injured.

Sichuan

1,486,407 rescued and relocated. economic losses 800 billion RMB,

Gansu Shaanxi

Sichuan

In the worst-hit area of Sichuan, Gansu and Shaanxi provinces, 134 monuments under state-level protection and 242 under province-level protection as well as 4,000 pieces of museum collection have been damaged to various extents.

Cultural heritage resources of Qiang ethnic group have suffered huge losses in the earthquake, as they are all distributed in the worst-hit area.

Qiang village in Taoping post-earthquake

before earthquake

Qiang village in Taoping post-earthquake

before earthquake

Damages to historic buildings caused by the earthquake are categorized by four types: A. Buildings that completely collapsed;

Lingbao Monastery, located in Sichuan province, before earthquake

post-earthquake

B. Structures heavily damaged and buildings that partially collapsed;

C. Structures partially damaged;

D. Structures left basically intact, but with decorations damaged.

After-quake surveys indicate routine maintenance is vital to the protection of Oriental wooden and brick-and-stone structures against earthquake attacks. crack

III. Actions taken to rescue and protect earthquake-hit cultural heritage The first step was to immediately launched mechanisms for disaster relief and reconstruction.

emergency

Local staffs are surveying damages to cultural heritage on the spot

temporary measures being taken instantly damages

to

prevent

from

further

The square of Jinsha Site Museum after earthquake

The second step involved launching surveys and assessments on the damages and after-quake protection.

Expert is reviewing protection plans.heritage. Expertsgroup are assessing damages to cultural

Some of the plan and design texts

The third step mobilized qualified institutes nationwide to provide technical aid.

To sign counterpart aiding agreement

The fourth step included implementing projects to rescue and protect quake-hit cultural properties in a scientific, step-by-step manner.

rescue and protection project of Dujiangyan Irrigation System, the World Heritage

before professional cleaning

after professional cleaning

before professional cleaning

after professional cleaning

Recyclable roof tiles are sorted out and place in order.

Inscribed carvings and building components are numbered and stored collectively.

The fifth step was to give priority to the rescue and protection of the cultural heritage of Tibetan and Qiang ethnic groups.

rescue and protection project of Qiang village in Taoping

rescue and protection project of Diaolou tower in Maerkang

Training courses have been offered to local artisans in the restoration of Tibetan and Qiang cultural property.

IV. Some experiences and ideas to share with colleagues

A well-developed, effective precaution and relief system should consist of five elements : 1.The improved laws and regulations. 2.The scientific emergency response mechanisms and plans. 3.The detailed archives on cultural heritage resources. 4.The effective monitoring and assessment systems. 5.The well-established institutions for cultural heritage conservation.

Following principles should be abided by during post-quake rescue and protection: 1.Priority for structure rescue. 2.Priority to the protection in original site. 3.Priority to traditional approaches of restoration. 4.Priority to earthquake precaution and disaster relief. 5.Distinguishing while in-site cleaning.

Colleagues who delivered condolence letters are as

Colleagues who donated

follows:

are as follows:

Gustavo Araoz, Vice

Dinu Bumbaru, Secretary

이상해, President of ICOMOS

President of ICOMOS and

General of ICOMOS

Korea

Secretary General of

Canada 김병모, Korean cultural

ICOMOS USA Mounir Bouchenaki, Director General of ICOMOS

Lazar Sumanov, Executive

ambassador from Institute

Committee Member of

under Korea Commission of

Macedonian nationality of

Cultural Heritages

ICOMOS 이혜은, Executive Committee

Francesco Bandarin, Director of World Heritage

Jukka Jokilehto,

Member of Korean

Center of UNESCO

internationally renowned

nationality of ICOMOS

expert on cultural heritage Masaru Maeno, President of

Jean-Louis Luxento, former Secretary General of

Amund Sinding-Larsen,

ICOMOS and a colleague

President of ICOMOS

form Belgium

Norway

Sheridan Burke, former Vice

Pat Wijeratne, former

President of ICOMOS and a

President of ICOMOS Sri

colleague from Australia

Lanka

ICOMOS Japan

Mrs. Benedicte Selfslagh, Executive Committee Member of ICOMOS Peter Phillips, President of ICOMOS Australia Mrs. Kristal Buckley, Vice President of ICOMOS Mrs. Sheridan Burke, former Vice President of ICOMOS Mr. Robert Moore, Australia Expert

The World Heritage Committee provided 80, 000 US dollars to be spent on the assessment of damages to World Heritage sites Mt. Qingcheng and Dujiangyan Irrigation System and the Habitat of Giant Panda. Chinese participants were invited to present reports on China’s solutions at international conferences such as the ICOMOS AsiaPacific Regional Meeting in June, the 32nd session of the World Heritage Committee in July, and the 16th ICOMOS General Assembly in September 2008. From 9 to 13 February, 2009, China and Japan held a joint symposium in Sichuan to exchange views on the practices and experiences in protecting cultural heritage against earthquakes, and post-quake rescue and protection of cultural heritage.

Thank you!