PROTHEGO: PROTection of European Cultural HEritage from GeO - hazards

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Tangible cultural heritage includes various categories of monuments and sites, from cultural landscapes and sacred sites to archaeological complexes, individual architectural or artistic monuments and historic urban centres.Such places are continuously impacted and weathered by several internal and external factors, both natural and human-induced, with rapid and/or slow onset, including natural hazards, such as earthquakes or extreme meteorological events, cumulative processes as well as the effects of humans, especially in conflict situations.A clear picture of endangered sites is not available; UNESCO, WMF and ICOMOS are providing useful information but only on a limited portion of heritage. In particular, the list of List of World Heritage in danger in accordance with Article 11 of the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage mainly focuses on sites threaten by armed conflicts (e.g., Medieval monuments in Kosovo), or uncontrolled development (e.g., Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City, and the Dresden Elbe valley, recently delisted from the UNESCO World Heritage).New space technology based on radar interferometry (InSAR) is now capable to monitor, since 1992 and with mm precision, surface deformation for reflective targets named persistent scatterers, which consistently return stable signals to the radar satellites.Led by the Italian Institute for Environmental Protection and Research, and in collaboration with NERC British Geological Survey, Geological and Mining Institute of Spain, University of Milano-Bicocca and Cyprus University of Technology, the project PROTHEGO will make an innovative contribution towards the analysis of geohazards in areas of cultural heritage in Europe.The project will apply novel InSAR techniques to monitor monuments and sites that are potentially unstable due to landslides, sinkholes, settlement, subsidence, active tectonics as well as structural deformation, all of which could be effected of climate change and human interaction.To magnify the impact of the project, the approach will be implemented in more than 450 sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List in geographical Europe.After the remote sensing investigation, detailed geological interpretation, hazard analysis, local-scale monitoring, advanced modelling and field surveying for the most critical sites will be carried out to discover cause and extent of the observed motions.Active engagement of stakeholders from both academic and heritage conservation sectors will be undertaken via establishment of the Steering Committee and Demonstration Site Stakeholders.PROTHEGO will enhance Cultural Heritage management at National level, reinforcing institutional support and governance through knowledge and innovation, identifying, assessing and monitoring risks, strengthening disaster preparedness at heritage properties in the future.