The MARINEGEOHAZARDS Project – first step for early warning system (EWS) and cooperation about marine geohazards in the Black Sea

MARINEGEOHAZARD Project means “Set-up and implementation of key core components of a regional early-warning system (EWS) for marine geohazards of risk to the Romanian-Bulgarian Black Sea costal area” It is part of the  cooperation program Romania-Bulgaria 2010-2013, co-financed by the E U through the European RD Fund. Bringing together the expertise of the two countries, the MARINEGEOHAZARD project aims for the establishment of a joint regional early-warning system and of a common decision tool for protection of the local communities, from consequences of natural marine geohazards (earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis, etc.). This is a first attempt in this area and brings all risks in such innovative approach. The Project was executed during 2011-2013 and implemented an integrated EWS accompanied by a common decision-support tool, for the adequate detection, assessment, forecasting and rapid notification of natural marine geohazards of risk to the ROM-BG Black Sea coastal area. The future intention includes integration with other countries of BSEC.

The main results are:

• Definition and implementation of a unified and integrated approach to assess the marine geohazards of risk for the Black Sea common area.
• Installation of a real-time, fully automatic detection system comprising of deep Black Sea complex measurement stations (gauges and bottom seismometers), and on-shore seismicity monitoring system and digitalized GPS stations.
• Implementation of a common decision-support tool (DST) by provision of unique forecast and assessment software package and development of a joint database of scenarios, to facilitate and support management and mitigation of marine geohazards.
• Creation the regional technical capability to perform marine seismic measurements together with other countries.
• Preparation of the joint, updatable databank by integrating the existing national data, the real-time data from deep-sea gauges and OBS, remote sensing and national seismographic networks and performance of the coordinated marine geohazard investigations to fill-in the gaps.
• Clustering and enhance the regional expertise by training the staff and establishment of data exchange platform between national institutions.

Since the creation of the EWS all data are transferred to two regional centers - Varna and Constanta and can issue the early warning messages. The real problem is related to the lack of legislation for the dissemination of the warning to the public in real time. In the frame of the Project a lot of research and investigations have been done, common maps of the local and regional seismicity created and gaps identified. Several marine geo hazards have been localised and their threats quantitatively assessed (according the previous executed EU projects – TRANSFER and SCHEMA). Future cooperation with the BSEC countries is intended for transformation of the local EWS (BG-ROM) to the entire Black sea involving all threaten by marine hazards countries.