FROM THE PRESIDENT

These past months, we have had to face devastating earthquakes in Turkey and in Greece. These awful events highlight once again all the efforts we, engineers and scientists, have to make to mitigate the seismic risk. The political issues play also a very important role in this mitigation, as it is obvious that technical efforts have no value if regulation and legal control on construction do not support them. This legal control is absolutely necessary, but is not sufficient. The scientific and technical measures concerning structural performance are not sufficient either, when it is not balanced by economical considerations. But we have to enlarge our thoughts to the entire world. Rich countries of the European Union are not sufficiently aware of the fact that less rich countries can consecrate less money to earthquake protection than they can. In my opinion, low cost earthquake-resistant construction is the major issue to be settled in the mitigation of seismic risk in more or less poor countries. But it should be also a constant subject of concern for rich countries where the amount of money is not unlimited and where people want to consecrate it to other purposes. In conclusion, I feel that the lower the extra-cost of aseismic protection is, the more efficient the protection against earthquake will be. This should be constantly in the mind of code-makers and designers.

We, association, have also a role to play. This is very difficult, as we have little money to finance our activities, mainly the WG and TG, which should be able to work on these subjects. However, our work can help, as many of us are also involved in research programs, code making and other activities. Our Executive Committee is working on several subjects, to improve our functioning (which could result in a modification of our statutes), also in the control (to help and promote their work) of the TGs and WGs.

Feed back experience is a very important issue, to counter-balance the theoretical thoughts that we all have in mind. We are beginning an effort to organise our post-seismic missions within a European scheme. I think that it would be beneficial to all national associations that we can, at least in certain cases, organise common missions under the auspices of our European Association. A first step has been made, when trying to set up a chart between associations interested in participating in post-earthquake missions, but we should put forward our efforts.

I encourage all national associations to participate in our European works and wish all members of national associations (therefore members of the European association) a very good year 2000.

Philippe Bisch

President