Hazards Flashcards
What is a hazard?
- A hazard is an event which has the potential to cause harm to the environment, people or the economy
- Natural hazards occur when natural events interact with humans
What does Degg’s model show?
- interaction of people and natural events overlapping is what leads to a natural disaster because harm occurs to the population
How does the UN define the word disaster?
‘A serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society involving widespread human, material, economic or environmental losses and impacts, which exceeds the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its own resources’
What are 3 types of natural hazard?
Geophysical – caused by land processes eg. earthquakes, volcanic activity and mass movements
Atmospheric – caused by climatic processes – eg. tropical storms and wildfires
Hydrological – caused by the movement and distribution of water – eg. floods
Factors affecting the severity of an event?
- magnitude
- population density
- preparedness
- scale
- economy
- demographic
What is the influence of economic factors on hazard perception?
- Quality of housing and infrastructure is likely to be higher in wealthier areas – this may mean that people feel safer (dominance)
- Increased spending on preparation and prediction – this may mean that people are more aware of the risks and able to evacuate
- More investment in education – this may mean that people understand the potential dangers and are more likely to take action to minimise risk
What is the influence of cultural factors on hazard perception?
- Cultural values and beliefs may affect whether people trust scientists and government officials – this may mean they underestimate the risk
- Some cultures believe that hazards are an act of God – this may mean that they don’t want to evacuate
- People who have previously experienced hazards may be more fearful – this may mean they are more prepared
What is fatalism?
Fatalism is when people believe that hazards cannot be avoided and so must be accepted – this often leads to people doing nothing in response to hazards
How can the risks of harm of a hazard be minimised?
- Prediction – using science and technology to predict where and when a hazard will occur so that warnings can be issued, potentially allowing people to evacuate
- Adaptation – changing behaviour to reduce potential losses – eg. improving awareness of hazards and practising earthquake drills
- Mitigation – working to reduce or prevent the occurrence of hazards – eg. building sea walls to prevent flooding in the event of a tsunami or tropical storm
- Integrated risk management – analysing potential risks and implementing a coordinated approach to manage and reduce risks
- Risk sharing – working together to reduce the risk and sharing the costs of hazard response – eg. buying home insurance – only some people need to claim but the cost is shared by everyone
What are the main factors affecting hazard response?
- Incidence – how often a hazard occurs. The more often a hazard occurs, the more likely that people will be educated and prepared with effective management strategies in place
- Intensity and magnitude – the size, strength or severity of a hazard
The greater the severity of a hazard, the larger the potential impact, and the greater the response required - Distribution – where hazards occur
In more hazardous locations people are more prepared for hazard events because they invest significant time and money to protect themselves
Japan has invested in earthquake-resistant buildings and earthquake drills - Level of development – the level of economic wealth and standard of living in a country. More developed countries are more likely to have mitigation and adaptation strategies in place and will be better prepared to respond to the hazard effectively
What does the hazard management cycle show?
The hazard management cycle is a model that shows how the events of one hazard event inform planning and preparation for the next hazard event
What are the stages of the hazard management cycle?
Response - Search and rescue and provision of emergency medical assistance and aid
Recovery - Restoring services and reconstruction of damaged buildings
Mitigation - Building flood barriers, setting up an early warning system
Preparedness - Earthquake drills, public awareness campaigns
- time taken during each stage varies from country to country based on factors such as level of development,
magnitude of the hazard, quality of governance and aid available - has the greatest impact on response and recovery stage
Outline the concept of the hazard management cycle?
- The hazard management cycle is a continuous loop which explains an approach to managing a known hazard
- Preparedness is concerned with using evidence and data from previous events to plan for hazards associated with the event. Good preparation is the key to minimising impact upon the population
- Response is concerned with deploying services and resources to save people and property from harm. Response is likely to involve emergency services such as fire and rescue teams in an earthquake
- Recovery is concerned with post disaster reconstruction and restoration of the local built and natural environment
- Mitigation is an extension to recovery. This is the active steps taken to minimise the negative impacts associated with the hazard. Constructing earthquake proof buildings or flood protection systems are examples of mitigation
What does the park model show?
Park’s model shows how people’s quality of life is affected by hazards.
It also outlines how people respond to hazard events
What does the vulnerability quadrant show?
physical exposure to hazards (risk) and human vulnerability to disaster (insecurity) - most vulnerable areas include places like Haiti with high risk and low security
Why are some people more vulnerable to hazards?
- poverty and weak economy
- failing political systems
- lack of education/training
- rapid urbanisation
What 3 stages does the park model show?
Relief – the immediate response including search and rescue, provision of emergency medical assistance and aid
Rehabilitation – a longer phase that includes temporary restoration of services and infrastructure e.g. temporary schools and shelters are set up
Reconstruction – permanent restoration which aims to provide the same or an improved quality of life than before e.g. through the rebuilding of infrastructure using aseismic designs
What are the 4 types of hazard perception?
- fatalism - losses are accepted as inevitable so people remain where they are
- adaptation - people see that they can prepare for and survive events by prediction/prevention and protection, dependent on economic and technological circumstances
- fear - people feel so vulnerable that they can no longer live in the area
- dominance - hazards can be predicted and understood better through scientific research
How can perceptions of a population be changed?
- education by governments - increased perception of fear so population more likely to evacuate - less risk to life
- adaptation so strategies can be implemented to reduce impacts eg. earthquake proof buildings - however this may increase perceptions of dominance due to reliance on technology
What is integrated risk management?
- identification of the hazard
- analyse risks
- establish priorities
- implement a risk reduction plan
- monitor and review the whole process
What is community resilience?
- sustained ability of a community to utilise available resources to respond to, withstand and recover from the effects of a natural hazard
- resilient communities can minimise the effects and make return to normal life as effortless as possible
How is the hazard management cycle used?
- appropriate actions at all stages of the cycle lead to greater preparedness, better warnings and reduced, or the prevention of hazard events during the next cycle
- leads to a greater capacity to deal with disasters so recovery is more rapid and long-lasting
Evaluate the hazard management cycle?
positives:
- encourages planning before so reduced impacts
- good for areas experiencing hazards infrequently who have the capacity to manage them
- certain areas can be prioritised
- can be applied to all hazards - flexible and relevant model
- long-term focus - builds resilience and long-term recovery/mitigation over time
negatives:
- not all countries can afford it - eg. LICs lack funding and governance to effectively implement all stages
- often much greater focus on response rather than mitigation/preparedness
- overlooks social factors - applied in a top-down way
- recovery may take years or fail entirely - disparities in recovery efforts
Evaluate the park model
positives:
- visual and easy to understand - good for comparisons between similar hazards and clearly illustrates recovery process over time
- can be adapted for different events
- analyses resilience - shows whether or not a country has come back stronger
- takes into account temporal patterns
negatives:
- recovery isn’t always smooth or linear
- doesn’t account for inequality eg. assumes uniform recovery but ignores vulnerable groups
- doesn’t address compound hazards
- no focus on mitigation/preparation
- no spatial patterns - some areas may have been impacted much more than others
