ITU-R response to disaster prevention, mitigation and relief operations. The Decisions of the 2007 Radiocommunication Assembly and the 2007 World Radiocommunication Conference

Emergency communications have been identified as one of the five key priorities of the ITU. The decisions of the RA and WRC are considered by many to be critical steps in the identification of practical measures to deal with disaster situations, particularly at the very early stages of emergency relief intervention. Through the adoption of Resolution 647 (Geneva, 2007), submitted jointly by Canada and New Zealand ^[1], the WRC recognized that it is crucial to make immediately available pre-identified and pre-coordinated frequencies, and/or flexible technologies, to allow near-instantaneous decisions on the use of available radio-frequency spectrum. It was also necessary and appropriate that the Radiocommunication Bureau (BR) be provided with explicit instructions on what mechanism(s) could best be utilized to achieve the desired objective of ensuring that radio-frequency resources are available to facilitate humanitarian assistance and ultimately save lives.

Consequently, the WRC instructed the Director of the Radiocommunication Bureau “to assist Member States with their emergency communications preparedness activities by establishing a database of currently available frequencies for use in emergency situations, which are not limited to those listed in Resolution 646 (Geneva, 2003), and by issuing an appropriate listing, taking into account Resolution ITU-R 53 of the Radiocommunication Assembly (Geneva, 2007)”. WRC-07 also invited ITU-R “to conduct studies as necessary, and as a matter of urgency, in support of the establishment of appropriate spectrum management guidelines applicable in emergency and disaster relief operations”.

In follow-up, the Radiocommunication Bureau has started by seeking the advice of the appropriate ITU-R Study Groups on the development of the database and, in particular, on the data elements to be identified for inclusion, taking into consideration  the purpose of the database, and the importance of the ease of data maintenance and update. Given the differences in the regulatory procedures that govern the use of frequencies by terrestrial and space services,  the part of the database dealing with the available frequencies or frequency bands for use by terrestrial radiocommunication services in emergency situations may be different from the part of the database dealing with frequency bands available for use by space radiocommunication systems,

The Bureau considered that, for the terrestrial services portion of the database, only a limited number of data elements may need to be submitted by administrations, namely:

• Administration of the Member State which submitted the information;

• Country or geographical area where the information is applicable;

• Contact address (telephone number, fax number, email address, etc.) of the Administration which submitted the information;

• Specific frequency or frequency band available for urgent situations in the indicated country or geographical area;

• Observations regarding the use of the indicated frequency or frequency band;

• Date of last update.

At their February 2008 meetings, interim Working Parties 5A and 5B of ITU-R Study Group 5 were invited to review these data elements and provide their advice regarding the concept and the contents of the database for the terrestrial services. Examining the information from the BR, Working Party 5A, with the endorsement of WP 5B, proposed that the following additional elements be considered for inclusion in the terrestrial portion of the database:

• Class of station;

• Designation of emission (bandwidth and class of emission);

• Simplex or duplex operation;

• Maximum transmitter power;

• Time-of-day operation;

• Call sign type.

The BR intends to issue a Circular Letter inviting Member States to provide the information detailed above, which will then be consolidated and posted on the web. The database will be updated regularly, after the receipt of new information. Working Party 5A also suggested that the Bureau take into consideration Recommendation ITU-R M.1826 on the use of the 4 940-4 990 MHz band for public protection and disaster relief (PPDR) applications, and to take note of the Recommendation currently being developed on the use of the VHF/UHF bands for PPDR purposes.. The Bureau will also seek the views of Study Group 4 concerning space services at its meetings scheduled for April 2008.

Resolution 647 also  instructs the Director of the BR to the facilitate online access to the database by administrations, national regulatory authorities, disaster relief agencies and organizations, in particular the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, in accordance with standard  operating procedures developed for disaster situations. The Director is instructed to collaborate with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and other organizations in the development and dissemination of standard operating procedures and relevant spectrum management practices for use in the event of a disaster situation.

Collaboration arrangements have been established between the Bureau and the Working Group on Emergency Telecommunications (WGET) of OCHA. The WGET is the focal point for discussions among interested parties on emergency telecommunications interoperability standards for disaster relief. Among the key areas for collaboration between OCHA/WGET and ITU/BR is the enhancement of coordination of frequency spectrum management and related issues for the UN, NGO and other actors in humanitarian response under the Tampere Convention, including the establishment and dissemination of standard operating procedures (SOPs). At a recent meeting held in February 2008, the WGET and BR identified focal points for the continued development of the database and standard operating procedures for spectrum management, in accordance with the instructions in Resolution 647.

Given the importance of this work, the February 2008 meeting of the Radiocommunication Advisory Group (RAG) advised the Director of the BR to inform the Deputy Secretary-General of ITU, Houlin Zhao, of the progress achieved in follow-up to Resolution 647.  The Deputy Secretary General serves as Chairman of the Inter-Sectoral Emergency Telecommunications Team, an internal ITU mechanism to ensure coordination across all three ITU Sectors on this priority topic.

Other recent initiatives in ITU on emergency communications are also linked to the work programme of the Radiocommunication Sector. For example, the “Global Forum on Effective Use of Telecommunications/ICT for Disaster Management: Saving Lives” was held 10-12 December 2007.  A very important component of the Forum was a workshop that explored the critical role of remote sensing technologies in providing timely and quality information to the disaster management community, especially as they make critical decisions for better disaster preparedness, conducting assessments and in responding to disaster situations

ITU has also launched several initiatives addressing the important issue of climate change. Studies carried out by the ITU-R Study Groups, many of which stem from decisions of WRCs, provide support for the development and utilization of different ICT systems such as weather satellites that track the progress of hurricanes and typhoons, weather radars that track the progress of tornadoes, thunderstorms, etc., and broadcast sound and television systems that warn the public of dangerous weather events. These systems are amongst those of the Global Observing System (GOS) in which the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and ITU, together with other UN agencies, administrations from many countries and different organizations around the world are collaborating.

For the Member States of the Americas Region, the importance of the work of ITU-R in the field of emergency communications, including climate change, cannot be overstated. All countries can potentially benefit from this work, regional organizations such as CITEL should continue to support these initiatives.