🟠✅Natural Hazards Introduction Flashcards
Risk meaning
The probability of loss
Capacity meaning
Capacity - ability if people, orginisation and systems using available skills and resources
Fatalism meaning
Fatalism - belief that all events are predetermined - (fate / an act of God)
Adaptation meaning
Adaptation - process of change, allows individual/community to cope better
Fear meaning
Fear - frightened of something that could potentially be dangerous
Mitigation meaning
Mitigation - reducing loss
Acceptance meaning
Acceptance - accept risks that hazards present because the advantage is greater
Vulnerability meaning
The conditions determined by physical, social, economic and environmental factors or processes which increase the susceptibility of an individual, a community, assets or systems to the impacts of hazards.
Hazard meaning
Potential threat to human life / properties caused by an event
How do you classify natural hazards
Geophysical -a hazard originating from solid earth (such as earthquakes, landslides and volcanic activity)
Hydrological - caused by the occurrence, movement and distribution of water on earth (such as floods and avalanches)
Atmospheric / climatological - caused by atmospheric processes and the conditions created because i freeze (eg. Wildfires and droughts)
3 aspects of hazards
Incidence - frequency of a hazard
Intensity - the power of a hazard
Magnitude - the size of the hazard (how intensity is measured)
What are the 3P’s
Preparation
Prediction
Prevention
Preparation
Governments might consider how they can educate / prepare their population for a disaster.
Can enforce laws and building codes to govern what can be built and to what standard so hazard impacts from tropical storms / earthquakes can be reduced.
Prediction
Mechanism that tries to predict when and where a hazard will occur.
Eg. Satellites / river flow meters / sulphur dioxide meters / tilt meters
Prevention
Methods put in place to prevent hazard / hazard impacts on a population or the environment.
Eg. Fire breaks / controlled burning for wildfires
Eg. Better building laws for tropical storm hazard prevention
Why has the amount of natural hazards being reported increased?
Changes in climate conditions, especially the warming of global temperatures increases the likelihood of weather-related natural disasters. Hotter global temperatures increase the risk of droughts as well as increase the intensity of storms and create wetter monsoons.
Better technology so improved reporting.
Short term responses
Search and rescue teams
NGO’s donating food, tents and water
Medical help from NGO’s
Providing aid money
Body recovery
Mid-term responses
Re-connection of water / electrical supplies
Ongoing medical rehabilitation
Possible council in
Rebuilding of homes / creation of permit and temporary structures
Rebuilding transport links
Re-opening of schools / hospital
Long term responses
Countries providing long term aid (donation)
Countries creating enterprise zones to encourage investment
Improvement in warning systems
Improved education of hazard risks
Creating new shelter and evacuation routes
Rehoming of orphans / help return of refugees
What is the parks model?
Shows the effects of a hazard on the quality of life over a period of time as well as the responses to the hazard over time.
Which natural hazards report the greatest social and economic loses worldwide?
Economic
HIC’s as they have more developed and expensive buildings so when these get destroyed it costs much more to repair them compared to cheaper building in LIC’s.
Areas that have large exportation rates with other countries as it effects other economies.
Social
Areas of high density mean higher number of houses closer together increasing the risk from a natural hazard.
LIC’s have less prevention and mitigation methods often sacrificing the wellbeing and lives of their population (poorer healthcare and infrastructure)
Social impacts of a natural hazard
Primary
Loss of lives
Injuries
The amount of people effected (eg. Typhoon Haiyan 14.1million people)
Secondary
People evacuated
Refugees living in hazard zones
Homelessness
Areas doubling in population due to migration of people
Illness and disease breakouts (due to flood / dirty water / loss of sanitation)
Political impacts of a natural hazard
Can cause vulnerability within the country and within the population.
Puts pressure on the countries leader, if they do a good job in responding and preventing the disaster people can form a positive opinion on them, if not they will be viewed negatively.
Economic impacts of a natural hazard
Primary
Peoples houses destroyed
Haiyan = 90% tacloban destroyed
Crop destruction (eg. Haiyan = 1.1million tonnes)
Secondary
People stealing food and drink from local businesses to survive
Fishing waters contaminated
Schools staying shut (due to destruction)
International trade and farm work disrupted
Reduction in tourism