1.11 - Catania Flashcards
Where is Catania?
East Coast of Sicily, base of Mt Etna
When was Mt Etna’s last major eruption?
2006
What are some benefits of living in Catania?
Fertile soil and vineyards
What are some disadvantages of living in Catania?
Hugely vulnerable to eruptions and earthquakes, particularly lava flows
What is majorly disrupted by an eruption?
Catania airport can be closed
What are the four stages of the Hazard Management Cycle?
Response
Recovery
Mitigation
Preparedness
What are some examples of vulnerable infrastructure Catania has?
- Sapienza Ski Refuge
- The Round Etna Railway
- Catania Airport
What are some examples of vulnerable communities Catania has?
- rural communities- vineyards, olive groves Mediterranean agriculture on rich volcanic soil
- main roads around the edge of the island to Palermo and Messina Docks (to mainland Italy)
How is Catania’s summer tourism affected?
- ash is waterproof and very difficult to remove
- but Catania have built earth barriers / explosives to redirect lava flow
What does Catania require from the Italian government?
Financial assistance, £5-6 million to account for losses in tourism and agriculture
What do scientists do?
Use a multi-component gas analyser system to look for pre-eruptive degreasing of rising magmas
Why is it extremely difficult to decide who is responsible for what?
10 municipalities meet at one point
What are some examples of physical factors that can affect response to a hazard?
- geographical accessibility of location
- type of hazard - scale, impact, magnitude, frequency
- topography of region (e.g mountainous)
- climate (e.g. monsoon rain causes access problems)
What are some human factors that affect response?
- population density
- economic wealth and level of dependence
- degree of community preparedness
- technological resources and scientific understanding
Why does Sicily struggle to cope with eruptions?
- Each eruption is difficult since the crust fracture points are in different places and so lava viscosity and gas eruptions vary
- unexpected timings of minor eruptions