Speaker
Description
Urban areas are increasingly vulnerable to natural and man-made disasters, exacerbated by factors such as dense populations, inadequate infrastructure and unplanned development. Such disasters can have devastating consequences, including loss of life, economic disruption, and social upheaval. Recognizing the critical importance of urban resilience, experts and scholars stress the need for strategic planning and the development of sound emergency shelter systems (Zhu et al., 2023) for the safety and sustainable development of cities and enhancement of disaster management (Wei et al., 2020). These shelters should serve as vital lifelines, providing refuge, essential services, and a sense of security to the affected populations. As emergency planning determines the conditions of shelter for those displaced by an emergency, it also influences the design of everyday urban spaces. The process of formulating an emergency plan is similar and parallel to urban and regional planning. Unfortunately, the two disciplines are seldom sufficiently linked and exchanged, yet they have much in common. This study examines the critical role of urban emergency shelters in the overall urban system, providing an expertise of the legal instruments in Polish crisis management from local and supra-local perspectives and their relevance for effective urban planning in multi-risk situations. The Crisis Management Act describes the activity of public administration bodies as part of the management of national security. Despite many years of legislation in the field, the system has been defragmented due to the lack of relevant regulations. It also considers protective facilities and buildings and their condition in Polish cities, which has been severely neglected for decades. At the same time, the newly introduced Civil Protection and Civil Defence Act imposes new tasks on civil protection authorities to improve prevention and preparedness for possible incidents. Therefore, documents related to emergency situations at national, regional and local level over the last 20 years have been compared in terms of their contribution to spatial planning and building law. Key issues have been diagnosed based on the conditions and limitations identified. The results of the study highlight the need to improve the relationship between urban and emergency planning for non-emergency and emergency wellbeing and place-making in the urban fabric by introducing provisions (in the form of relevant regulations in spatial law) that specify detailed rules for the planning, design and distribution of emergency services.
References
Wei, Y., Jin, L., Xu, M., Pan, S., Xu, Y., Zhang, Y. (2020) Instructions for planning emergency shelters and open spaces in China: Lessons from global experiences and expertise, International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 51, p. 101813.
Zhou, J., Nie, G. and Liu, Y. (2024) Multi-criteria comparison analysis of spatial equity for emergency shelters in old and new urban districts: A case study in Wuhua District and Chenggong District of Kunming City, China. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 108, p. 104547.
| Keywords | spatial planning law; crisis management; civil protection; urban emergency shelter |
|---|---|
| Best Congress Paper Award | Yes |
