CENTER FOR EARTHQUAKE HAZARDS REDUCTION

ACTIVITIES WILL BE IMPLEMENTED, UNDER PASAS WITH AID, BY LONG AND SHCRT TERM SPECIALISTS FROM THE US GEOLOGICAL SURVEY AND THE INTERAMERICAN GEODETIC SURVEY IN CONJUNCTION WITH COUNTERPART NICARAGUAN SCIENTISTS AT A CENTER FOR EARTHQUAKE HAZARDS REDUCTION (CEHR) TO BE BUILT IN NICARAGUA. A NETWORK OF 12 SENSITIVE SEISMOGRAPHS WILL BE INSTALLED AT A MINIMUM OF 12 SITES IN THE MORE DENSELY POPULATED AND SEISMICALLY ACTIVE WESTERN PORTION OF NICARAGUA, TOGETHER WITH RADIO EQUIPMENT TO RELAY ALL DATA TO THE CENTER. SEISMOGRAPH READINGS WILL BE TAKEN AND GEOLOGICAL FAULT LINES MAPPED OUT. NEW DATA WILL BE CORRELATED WITH EXISTING DATA TO DEVELOP A SEISMIC RISK MAP OF NICARAGUA DEPICTING THE REGIONAL PATTERN OF FAULTS AND OTHER STRUCTURES IN ORDER TO DETERMINE THE RELATIONSHIP OF REGIONS OF HIGH EARTHQUAKE ACTIVITY TO DENSELY POPULATED AREAS. DATA CORRELATION WILL ALSO PERMIT CONTINUOUS MONITORING OF NICARAGUA"S EARTHQUAKES AS A MEANS OF PROVIDING EARLY WARNING OF ERUPTION AND OTHER HAZARDS SUCH AS LANDSLIDES. IN ADDITION, EXISTING SEISMIC EQUIPMENT WILL BE AUGMENTED TO BUILD UP A NETWORK OF 10 STRONG MOTION ACCELEROGRAPHS AND 30 SEISMOSCOPES TO ANALYZE TYPES OF GROUND MOTION AND THEIR EFFECT ON LOCAL BUILDINGS. COUNTERPART NICARAGUAN SCIENTISTS AND TECHNICIANS WILL BE GIVEN ON-THE-JOB TRAINING BOTH IN NICARAGUA AND THE US IN THE USE AND REPAIR OF MODERN SEISMIC INSTRUMENTS, THE INTERPRETATION AND APPLICATION OF INSTRUMENTAL DATA, AND ENGINEERING GEOLOGY. NICARAGUA"S SCIENTISTS ARE EXPECTED TO MAINTAIN CONTACT WITH THE US GEOLOGICAL SURVEY AFTER THE INITIAL ASSISTANCE PHASE IS COMPLETED IN ORDER TO KEEP ABREAST OF NEW DEVELOPMENTS IS SEISMOLOGY AND EARTHQUAKE ENGINEERING SO THAT INFORMATION COLLECTED UNDER THIS PROGRAM CAN BE DIRECTLY LINKED TO THE DESIGN OF COMMUNITIES AND STRUCTURES. THE GON HAS AGREED TO ASSUME FULL COSTS FOR CONTINUED OPERATION.