Eyjafjallajökull case study

Question 1

Location

Answer 1

Southern iceland, East Volcanic zone, 75 miles east of the capital city, Reykjavik

Question 2

Date

Answer 2

14th of April 2010

Question 3

Rating on vei

Answer 3

4

Question 4

Tectonic context

Answer 4

• Composite stratovolcano
• Constructive plate margain separating the NA and Eurasian plate
• Lies on mid-alantic ridge
• Located below glacier 109km of land
• Subglacial eruption, icecapped stratovolcano
• 16 years of eqs preparing for the eruption

Question 5

Factors leading to vulnerability

Answer 5

• A setteld weather system with winds blowing towards europe
• Volcano sits on glacier - ice melts - flooding
• 16 + of eqs
• Ash fine and abrasive
• Proximity to population - farmers
• Icelands global connectivity - major transalantic flight routes - amplified the global impact
• Aviation industry were not prepared

Question 6

Primary impacts

Answer 6

• Ash plume 8.5km high
• Tephra 1.3km 3
• Very fine ash and persistent lasting 39 days
• Blew towards europe and blocked the sun
• Rescuers wore face masks to prevent choking on ash clouds
• Homes, Roads, services disrupted, crops destroyed from ash
• Areas flooded due to glacier melt water 150m icecap melted and local roads along the Markafjot river washed away - the flood water was 15^c
• Ash fall poisioned animals in nearby farms - 20 destroyed and farmers kept animals inside due to water supplies being contaminated with fluroide and sulphur
• Minor health problems eye irritation, sore/dry throats and asthma due to decline in air quality
• 0 deaths

Question 7

Secondary impacts

Answer 7

• Ash caused respiratory problems for locals
• 24h after high altitude winds carried ash southeastwards - led to a no fly zone in areas over 4mg of ash per cubic metre
• Air operators lost millions of pound per day as tourism was high due to easter holidays - $200m per day from 6 day ban, 8 million passengers affected
• Largest closure of perishable goods to europe
• Cancelled sporting events
• No fresh food imported
• Kenya lost around 3m a day as couldnt transport their flowers, crops were dying, had to lay off over 5000 workers

Question 8

Short term responses

Answer 8

• Areas around the volcano evacuated - 700 people
• European red cross societies mobilised volunteers, staff and other resources to help people directly and indirectly affected
• Provided food for farming populations and counselling and psychological support for mostly traumatised children
• Diggers in position to dam rivers - prevented wide spread flooding of the markarfjot river
• It was recommended that the locals wore breathing masks and goggles outside.
• The hardening of deposited ash and the fact that it contained fluoride which can be dangerous to animals meant that livestock had to be kept inside during times of ash fall. Fluoride causes long term bone damage and could lead to broken bones and teeth
• The National Trust allowed free entry for foreign visitors if they showed their airline ticket proving that their flight had been disrupted.

Question 9

Long term responses

Answer 9

• Eu developed integrated structure for air craft management - As a result, nine Functional Airspace Blocks (FABs) will replace the existing 27 areas.
• Icelandic government rebuilt riverbanks - higher than before
• Inspired by iceland was established with the strategic intent of depiciting the countrys beauty, the friendliness of its people and the fact that it was very much open for business
• Futurevolc was set up in 2012 to integrated european volcano monitoring
• There was further research into the effects of ash on aircrafts
• Reconstruction of roads and local flood defences
• Over 80 seismometers, 120 gps antennas to monitor this acitivty and it gets sent to met office in iceland which can predict volcanoes
• Build solid houses and prepare old buildings to withstand the ash and flooding

Question 10

Iceland today

Answer 10

• Tourism is the largest industry in iceland - 1.7million tourists per year
• Interactive educational experiences created Lava icelandic volcano and earthquake centre showing the geology of iceland
• Eyjafjallajokull vistor centre opened a year after to display what happened during the eruption and have had over 300,000 vistors since then
• Iceland are awaiting the eruption of Katla, but as eyjafjalljokull took 16 years it is uncertain when eruption will occur but are more prepared

Question 11

Benefits of the eruption to iceland

Answer 11

• European flights prevented some 2.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere (according to the Environmental Transport Association)
• passengers looked for other ways to travel than flying, many different transport companies benefited, increase in passenger numbers on Eurostar. It saw a rise of nearly a third, with 50,000 extra passengers travelling on their trains.
• Ash from the Eyjafjallajökull volcano deposited dissolved iron into the North Atlantic, triggering a plankton bloom, driving an increase in biological productivity

Question 12

Environmental effects of the Eyjafjallajökull eruption

Answer 12

The reduction in air traffic lead to 2.8 million tonnes less carbon dioxide being emitted into the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide contributes towards global warming.
*Deposited ash created fertile land for farming, increasing crop yields.

Question 13

Economic effects of the Eyjafjallajökull eruption:

Answer 13

Europe lost $2.6 billion of GDP due to the eruption.
*Lack of air travel disrupted manufacturing as the import and export of goods via aviation ceased. This meant that companies couldn’t get the parts they needed or ship their products out on time.
*Flowers and fruit, which have a short shelf life once picked, could not be transported, resulting in crops in Africa and the Caribbean being left to rot. It was estimated that Kenya lost £2.4 million a day during the event.
*A major local industry, the export of fresh fish, was badly affected leading to loss of income.
*Major airlines lost daily revenue of an estimated £130 million as they could not function. This amount does not take into account passengers who claimed compensation or cover for hotel costs. The International Air Transport Association estimated the loss to the European travel industry as £1.7 billion.
*Passengers who couldn’t fly used the Channel tunnel as an alternative way to travel creating more business for the tunnel. The Eurostar carried up 50,000 extra passengers a day over this period.
*Car rental companies gained extra business.
*On the London Stock exchange, the price of stocks and shares in companies which rely on air freight fell.
*Some small travel companies closed, citing the eruption as one of the factors that lead to their closure.

Question 14

Social effects of the Eyjafjallajökull eruption

Answer 14

Disruptions to industries caused people to lose their jobs or earn less money.
*On 18th April, during one of the worst periods, 313 airports across Europe were forced to close. At Heathrow on one day 1000 flights were cancelled. Airport closures caused inconvenience for passengers, resulting in them missing important events. 400,000 British people were stranded worldwide.
*Deposited ash in the local area became wet and compact, smothering young crops and pasture.
*Fluoride from the ash contaminated water supplies.
*Jökulhlaups resulted in flooding, washing away sections of Route 1, Iceland’s main route way which circles the whole country. This resulted in delivery trucks being temporarily held up.
*The ash blocked out the sun, meaning that the local area was in darkness.
*Those that lived near the volcano had more respiratory problems in the six months after the eruption than a control group in North Iceland, where no ash fell.
*Airspace was completely closed in many countries e.g. Austria, Belgium and Finland and partially closed in others, e.g. Germany, Italy and Poland.