Η
the climate crisis taking place on a global level and extreme phenomena
disasters, particularly those related to flooding, have prompted
the global community to the necessity of taking countermeasures, the
the application of which is achieved on the one hand by scientific recording and analysis
of the phenomena and preparation for their consequences, and on the other hand with
public information and awareness.
One
an important sector - among others - that is heavily affected by the consequences of these
extreme flood events are cultural heritage sites. In the Region
There are many stone arched bridges on Epirus as a result of the intense
the relief and the complex dissection of the hydrographic network, which
are architecturally declared monuments of exceptional aesthetic value and constitute
part of the region's cultural identity. We note that only within
Within the boundaries of the Vikos-Aoos Geopark, there are 65 single-arch, double-arch and triple-arch bridges.
stone bridges.
The
Vikos-Aoos Geopark on the occasion of the International Day dedicated to the «Reduction of
»International Day of Disaster Risk Reduction" (Global Day for Disaster Risk Reduction) (13 October), which is celebrated by the
The European and Global Geoparks Network and UNESCO, organised a two-route walking expedition from October 7th-13th
within the Vikos-Aoos Geopark with the aim of public awareness
the necessity of reducing the risks from natural disasters. This year (2020),
The slogan for this day is that we must, within the decade that
we are going through and by 2030, there will be a significant increase in the number of countries in
global level that implement national and local strategies for reduction
of the dangers from natural disasters.
The routes that were chosen for this event in the Vikos Gorge Geopark
The path «Skala Vitsas- Misiou and Noutsou Bridges- Kokkoro» was Aoou, as was the one at
Vikos Gorge, from Klidonia Bridge to Papingo Bridge.
in the context of the research programme of the Hellenic Geological Survey
and Mining Research, which concerns the on-site inspection of the bridges of
that are vulnerable to flooding, the participants
were informed by the geologist Dr. Panagiotis Pascho, about the risks that
face the bridges, as well as those factors that act
additive positives or negatives (e.g. presence or absence of riparian vegetation) to
potential disasters. Executives from Anaptixiaki participated in the events
Epirus SA, which is the management body of the Geopark, professors and
associates of the University of Ioannina (Laboratory of Geography and
Environmental Education), geologists of the IGME - Epirus Region, staff of the Environmental Education Centre
Konitsa and teachers of Konitsa Gymnasium.
