hazards -responses and risk management of seismic hazards

Question 1

how are the responses of hazards categorised?

Answer 1

.preparedness
.mitigation
.prevention
.adaptation

Question 2

what is meant by preparedness?

Answer 2

.increasing awareness of the hazard through actions to minimise the likely impact of the hazard

Question 3

what is meant by mitigation?

Answer 3

.actions aimed at reducing the severity of the an event -can involve direct intervention or post event support

Question 4

what is meant by prevention?

Answer 4

.actions aimed at preventing large scale events occurring

Question 5

what is meant by adaptation?

Answer 5

.accepting that natural events are inevitable and changing our behaviour accordingly

Question 6

how is preparedness used to respond to seismic hazards?

Answer 6

.public education and practice -carrying out regular earthquake drills and instructions are issued by authorities in how to prepare eg -assembling ‘earthquake kits’, evacuation routes can also be planned and practiced in advance
.emergency services need careful organisation and planning
.people told to take out insurance

Question 7

how is mitigation used to respond to seismic hazards?

Answer 7

.tsunami protection -automated systems can be installed to give warnings eg -using bottom pressure sensors, attached to buoys to constantly measure the pressure of water
.regions with a high tsunami risk use warning systems to warn the population before the wave reaches land
.demolish older unsafe buildings .search and rescue after the event

Question 8

how is prevention used to respond to seismic hazards?

Answer 8

.fires can be a life-threatening secondary impact and ‘smart meters’ have been developed to cut off gas if an earthquake of sufficient magnitude occurs
.liquefaction -inserting vibrating probes into the soil at deep levels, and the trembling shakes the loose soil -the compression of the loose soil particles lessens the number of air pockets where water can settle

Question 9

what does the effectiveness of liquefaction as a prevention technique to respond to a seismic hazard depend on?

Answer 9

.dependent on clay content of soil, so doesn’t work everywhere

Question 10

how is adaptation used to respond to seismic hazards?

Answer 10

.designing and engineering life-safe buildings is very important, as the collapse of buildings contributes to 75% of deaths
.in informal housing, wooden buttresses can be used to strengthen corners which helps prevent collapse
.take out insurance