3.1 plate tectonics

Question 1

what is tectonic disaster risk?

Answer 1

• refers to potential damage to properties, injuries and loss of lives from a disaster in a given period of time.
• determined as a product of interaction between tectonic hazard, vulnerability and exposure to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions

Question 2

what is disaster risk management?

Answer 2

• refers to plans and actions that are in place to prevent disaster risk before occurrences of tectonic hazards, reduce disaster risks as tectonic hazards occur and manage disaster risks after occurrences of tectonic hazards.

Question 3

how would preventing disaster risk before the occurrences of tectonic hazards manage disaster risk?

Answer 3

• designing hazard-resistant buildings to ensure structures can withstand hazard, and do not collapse easily, hence, preventing disaster risks
  example: Tapei 101
• skyscraper in earthquake-prone zone
• has a weighted damper near the top of the building to balance out ground shaking from earthquakes
• this reduces sway of building during an earthquake and threat of building collapsing decreases

Question 4

how would reducing disaster risk as tectonic hazards occur manage disaster risks?

Answer 4

• tsunami and warning systems enables evacuation and reduces potential loss of lives

Question 5

how would managing disaster risks after occurrences of tectonic hazards manage disaster risk?

Answer 5

• strategies include insurance coverage and offers financial payouts to rebuild when properties are damaged or destroyed
• brings quicker recovery from impact of tectonic hazard

Question 6

how do disaster risks and losses hinder development?

Answer 6

brings about serious environmental, social and economic consequences which affects individuals and countries

Question 7

how do disaster risks and losses hinder development? (environmental consequences).

Answer 7

• tectonic hazards, can bury huge areas of forests and wetlands, destroying entire ecosystems and causing biodiversity loss
• debris from landslides pollutes river, killing aquatic life
• debris may block rivers, causing floods that can damage nearby ecosystems

Question 8

how do disaster risks and losses hinder development? (social consequences).

Answer 8

• tectonic hazards, e.g. tsunamis, can result in injuries and loss of lives as people drown and get hit by fast-moving debris carried by waves
• people may become homeless as houses are destroyed.
• might be forced to live in temporary housing which lacks proper sanitation, resulting in poor standards of living
• seawater brought inland by tsunamis may contaminate wells and other sources of drinking water, causing water pollution which can result in spread of diseases such has cholera

Question 9

how do disaster risks and losses hinder development? (economic consequences).

Answer 9

• tectonic hazards can cause destruction of homes and properties
• individuals may suffer financially as it is costly to repair/rebuild damaged homes
• business owners can lose incomes caused by damage to their properties
• government need to spend money to rebuild and repair damages from tectonic hazards

Question 10

how does consequences hinder development of countries?

Answer 10

• when countries channel money to rebuilding after tectonic hazard, development slows down as less money can be invested in other areas such as infrastructure and education
• costs are detrimental to developing countries where the need for development is the highest and where funds may be lacking
• poverty reduction progress may be affected as people are driven into poverty and standards of living drops when they lose source of income and homes
  example: 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami
• pushed the proportion of people living below poverty line in. Aceh, Indonesia from 30% to 50%
• many lost homes, jobs, sources of income which hindered Aceh development

Question 11

why is it important to reduce disaster risk?

Answer 11

• important for disaster-prone developing countries as
  -> social, economic and environmental consequences can be very severe, may hinder development
  -> developing countries are often disproportionately affected by tectonic hazards because they lack capacity

example: Mw 7.0 Haiti earthquake in 2010 vs Mw 9.0 Tohoku, Japan earthquake in 2011
- tohoku had a lower death toll despite the higher magnitude as they had more earthquake- resistant buildings. japan could recover from earthquake and tsunamis due to available resources unlike Haiti

Question 12

how did some developing countries manage to reduce disaster risk?

Answer 12

• investment and planning
  -> reducing disaster risk is a cost-effective investment, preventing future losses, contributing to sustainable development
  -> additional investments to reduce disaster risks are often small compared to costs incurred from disasters
  -> minimises cost of rebuilding and lessen the threat to development gains
  example: Mw 8.8 Chile earthquake in 2010
• had modern earthquake- resistant buildings
• resulted in lesser building damage
• lower casualties compared to 2010 Haiti earthquake