Vulnerability analysis and risk assessment II: Infrastructures and utility systems

Modern societies and economies become more complex and sophisticated and, at the same time, more vulnerable to multiple hazards. Taking into consideration the rapid climate change, anthropogenic activities, growing urbanization, uncontrolled land-use and increased vulnerability of population and infrastructure, as well as interactions between different components of the urban system, the total risk is even higher. Therefore, the need to estimate the associated vulnerability and risk is of high importance towards the increase of society resilience and robustness to natural hazards. The Research Unit of SDGEE has a long experience in vulnerability and risk assessment projects as coordinator (SYNER-G) or major partner. Our expertise focuses on:

• Classification and inventorying of all elements at risk (buildings, lifelines, utility systems, transportation networks and infrastructures)
• Development of fragility curves for different hazards (earthquakes, landslides, liquefaction, tsunami)
• Vulnerability and risk assessment based on detailed hazard analyses, considering site effects and in­duced phenomena at infrastructure, city or regional scale
• Systemic and network analysis considering interaction between elements and systems
• Assessment of expected damages and losses, GIS mapping with damage distribution
• Socioeconomic losses. Damage restoration priorities and mitigation measures