The South Eastern part of Europe is the most seismically active region on the continent, and consequently the region with the highest seismic hazard and risk in Europe.  Unfortunately, the level of earthquake monitoring is far below the European average.  Some countries at present do not have seismological observations at all.  This shortcoming will be addressed by the first meeting of South Eastern Europe seismologists of the concerned countries.  From 16 to 18 November 2003 Slovenia will host more than 30 seismologists from 12 member countries of the Stability Pact.

The objective of the meeting is to prepare a project proposal for upgrading seismological networks in South Eastern Europe focussing on the following points:

-        Active participation of the countries involved in the project

-        Regional and international co-operation

-        Permanent improvement of the seismological observation in the region

The project implementation will consist of two phases and will take care of:

-        New equipment for the seismological stations

-        Education and training of the station operators and data analysts, and

-        Funds for the meetings and the participation in the international seismological conferences.

In a initial phase, technical solutions for seismological network development and the real-time data exchange will be specified.  The partners that would ensure long-term sustainability and the operations of these networks after the project end will be identified, and the agreements on co-operation will be signed.  In the second phase, the equipment for the seismological stations and for data transfer will be bought and installed.  The education and training of the station operators and data analysts will be a continuous task.  The project cycle is expected to last 3 – 5 years.

The new seismological infrastructure will guarantee the essential seismological data and its rapid distribution to the national and international centres involved in the disaster prevention and relief.  It will also provide high-quality data for research and for the realistic assessment of the earthquake hazard.

The meeting will be attende by leading seismology experts and will be organised by the Seismology Office of the Environmental Agency of the Republic of Slovenia, European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (Paris) and the Disaster Preparedness and Prevention Initiative of the Stability Pact (Brussels).  The event will take place in the Training Centre for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief in Ig near Ljubljana.  It is another indication of Slovenia's leading role in Disaster Preparedness and Prevention within the region, as well as it is a chance to improve and enhance the seismological observations in all participating countries.