headquarters of the Federation of Public Works.
The highest peaks of our planet are also the most vulnerable to the seismic activities that the Earth’s lithosphere has regularly produced since its birth. Life that appeared on our planet nearly three billion years ago has always suffered all the consequences, but most species have been able to adapt. During the last millennium, more than fifteen major earthquakes have hit the Himalayan arc hard, often placing Nepal and its capital, Kathmandu, in the center. Indeed, in 1255, a powerful earthquake would have taken 30,000 lives in the Kathmandu Valley, a third of its population at the time. In 1934, another earthquake of magnitude 8.3 killed more than 8500 people in Kathmandu. The last earthquake in 2015 caused nearly 9,000 deaths in central Nepal and irreparable damage from the Everest base camp to the historic center of Kathmandu classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The devastating impact of this latest tragic event could be greater than the country’s annual wealth production.

Nepal, a small country located in the heart of the Himalayas between two emerging giants: India and China; is now facing the greatest challenge in its history. This latest earthquake forces him to completely revise everything and to carefully revise the very design of traditional architecture as well as the dwellings in his mountains. Faced with this absolute challenge, the country must prepare a major reconstruction project that is likely to last at least a whole decade. It will require the mobilization of an exorbitant resource. This announced mobilization already augurs an unprecedented economic, social and environmental impact for the future of the Himalayan region.

Mrs. Martine Bassereau, Former Ambassador of France to Nepal and in particular Ambassador at the time of the earthquake, planned to honor with her presence this evening.

Find inLa Montagne & Alpinismeof December 2016 a file on the reconstruction of Nepal.

Federation of Public Works – 9 rue de Berri, 75008 Paris (Metro: Line 1, Georges V)

This conference is free of charge. Prior registration is required.

Source: www.ffcam.fr