Between Necessity and Legal Responsibility: The Development of EEWS in Italy and its International Framework (original) (raw)

2021, Frontiers in Earth Science

Earthquake Early Warning Systems (EEWSs) represent a technical-scientific challenge aimed at improving the chance of the population exposed to the earthquake shaking of surviving or being less affected. The ability of an EEWS to affect the risk and, in particular, vulnerability and exposure, may determine serious legal responsibilities for people involved in the system, as scientists and experts. The main question concerns, in fact, the relationship between EEWSs and the predictability and avoidability of earthquake effects-i.e., the ground shaking affecting citizens and infrastructures - and the possibility for people to adopt self-protective behavior and/or for industrial infrastructures to be secured. In Italy, natural disasters, such as the 2009 L’Aquila earthquake, teach us that the relationship between science and law is really difficult. So, before EEW’s become operational in Italy, it is necessary to: 1) examine the legislative and technical solutions adopted by some of the ...