LOCAL-SCALE HAZARDOUS AREA: San Francisco Bay Area, California Flashcards
1
Q
What is the physical nature of the seismic hazard?
A
- San Andreas Fault (conservative margin)
- Bay Area has seven major fault systems
- liquefaction risk zone
2
Q
What is the nature of the atmospheric hazards?
A
- drought and wildfires no longer seasonal
- floods and storms in winter due to 85% of marshes destroyed
- Mediterranean climate
3
Q
What is the economic character?
A
- GDP of $700 billion
- high tech industry e.g. Silicon Valley
- tourism
- heavy industry in Oakland
- many multinational corporations have headquarters nearby e.g. Google
- house price twice national average
- lots of infrastructure
4
Q
What is the social character?
A
- 7.15 million
- densely populated
- homelessness
- housing shortage
- high levels of crime and education
- arts and music hot-spot
- faulty hazard perception (fatalism)
5
Q
What is the political character?
A
- progressive
- nine county government
- liberal area
6
Q
Loma Prieta , 1989 earthquake social impacts
A
- 63 deaths
- house loss
7
Q
Loma Prieta, 1989 economic impacts
A
- liquefaction
- upper level of two-storey freeway collapsed
- $6 billion cost
8
Q
Loma Prieta 1989 political impacts
A
lower turnout in municipal elections
9
Q
South Napa 2018 social impacts
A
- historic building damaged
- 1 dead
10
Q
South Napa 2018 economic impacts
A
- $1 billion cost
- infrastructure damage
11
Q
What are the community’s responses to the risks?
A
- retrofitting and aseismic buildings
- building codes
- insurance
- Emergency Response Plan (ERP):
– organisation/response levels
– Emergency Operations Centre
– volunteer communications - Resilience Plan:
– FEMA approved mitigation
– “Resilient SF” in accordance with issues e.g. aging infrastructure
– $425 million bond to shore up Embarcadero Seawall
– 2019 - mayor issued retrofitting order
