A REVISED OF THE SEISMICITY IN THE MAGHREB COUNTRIES –ALGERIA, MOROCCO, TUNISIA – USING PAST RECORDS: A METHODOLOGY

The main purpose of this work is to establish a uniform catalogue of all earthquakes reported in the Maghreb region, which satisfies the conditions of homogeneity, and to derive from this basic data set the general laws governing the space and time distribution of earthquake occurrences in the seismic source zones, and to evaluate the seismic hazard. For the Maghreb region, earthquake hazard constitutes a constant threat to human life and property, sometimes causing major economic losses and disruption. The rapid urbanisation, development of critical engineering works such as dams, nuclear power plants, and industrialisation of cities with modern types of buildings and the concentration of populations living or settling in hazardous areas are matters of growing concern, as they contribute to heavier loss of life and increase considerably the cost of disaster damage. The environment concerns and an increased official and public awareness of earthquake hazards have, in the last decade, led to a rapid rise of interest in seismicity and, seismic hazard and risk evaluations in the Maghreb countries. In order to assess the seismic hazard with a certain degree of reliability, an earthquake data of the region under survey which are as complete, homogeneous and accurate as possible are needed. For this purpose, and from the point of view of long term prediction and seismic hazard assessment, it is imperative that input data in the catalogues of the Maghreb countries be revised and homogenised. This remains a fundamental mean for an effective and reliable disaster Management.