URBAN AND ENVIRONMENTAL-ISSUES IN EAST AND SOUTHEAST-ASIAN COASTAL LOWLANDS

Rapid progress has been made in the application of geologic principles for land use planning in large Asian cities and coastal areas. The ra pid Tate of growth of most Asian cities makes it imperative that geosc ientists continue to develop thematic maps derived from basic geologic maps at appropriate scales for layman. More work needs to be done to make coastal zone managers more aware of the important contributions t hat geoscientists can make to the resolution of resource conflicts in the coastal zone. Thematic maps prepared by Geological Surveys for pla nners have proven useful in a number of countries in East and Southeas t Asia. Effective programs for providing all types of geological infor mation to planners have been developed in China, Malaysia, Indonesia a nd the Philippines. A number of countries in South Asia also have prod uced large-scale geological and thematic maps for land-use planners. E specially good progress has been made in Bangladesh, India and Pakista n. India has had an environmental geology programme for over 20 years and the Geological Survey of India has prepared thematic maps for plan ners in dozens of its larger cities. However, more should be done to s how the usefulness of geologic data for planning decisions. Thematic m aps prepared by geoscientists are not yet in widespread use in Asia. G eologic maps, for the most part, should be reinterpreted before they c an be used by planners and decision makers. More research should be fo cused on what types of information planners need and how it should be transmitted to them by the Geological Survey. Planners and geologists continue to work in isolation in more than 50% of the Asian countries. Social and economic problems receive far more attention than single g eologic events that can destroy a city in a few seconds and take the l ives of tens of thousands of people. The author believes, and hopes, t hat by the year 2000 environmental and urban geology will be one of th e highest priorities for Geological Surveys in the region.