nepal Flashcards
nature and causes
- 7.9 magnitude
- 25th April 2015
- 11.56am
- Indian subcontinent pushes against Eurasia
- constant crashing of plates forms Himalayas
natural risks to be managed
o Landslides and few boulders o Avalanche on Mt Everest o Loss of forest and wetlands o 9 million animals dead or injured o Kathmandu = raised land 1m and shifted 3m south o Red panda, musk deer and taha affected o Springs dried up o Kathmandu valley = liquefaction o 19 cubic metres of sediment
cultural risks to be managed
- loss of property
- loss of life
- effects on infrastructure
- effects on jobs
- effects on physical and mental health
economic impacts
o $2 billion to rebuild home, hospitals, gov offices, historic buildings
o Gov handed out money ($1260) to each family with quake victims killed
o Estimated total value of damage and loss = $7 billion
o Damage to tourism industry
o Increased unemployment and decreased productivity
o Communication cut off to Asia
o Damage to agriculture industry
social impacts
o Lack of helicopters and poor communication o Villages cut off from cities because of landslides o Quake destroyed communication links o People live in tents o 200 million tents needed, water, food and medicines also needed o Schools shut o Loss of jobs and source of income o Cause of poverty o Tent cities established o Loss of livestock/animals o Food shortage o Medicine running low (edible herbs)
environmental impacts
o Avalanches around Mt Everest
o World heritage land forms destroyed e.g. temples
o Aftershocks caused land movement and erosion
o Landslides caused farming land to be lost
o Increased sediment in rivers and water sources caused downstream flooding
o Following rains and monsoons caused floods, sediment, waterborne diseases
physical vulnerability factors
1) proximity to earthquake - plate boundary
2) nature - rocks and soil
3) distance from coast
4) time of year - monsoon weather
human vulnerability factors
1) decision to live in EQ zone
2) buildings
3) failure dams - flooding
4) economic - LEDC with low GDP
5) education
6) government - building regulations
7) technology
magnitude
o 7.9 on Richter scale (large)
o Amount of built up stress due to long time between last major quake in 1935
duration
o Initial quake 30 seconds
o A complex area with many faults
o This causes large number of aftershocks
frequency
o There are lots of earthquakes in the region
o High frequency of quakes
o But a large one didn’t happen for a long time
scale of spatial impact
o Local to the fault
o In east west direction
distribution
o Quake and aftershocks were mostly in a line along the main fault and boundary
o Many occurring to east of Kathmandu
o Original movement triggered other movement – East to West on minor faults
how human activities intensify the hazard
- construction techniques
- location of settlements
- land clearance/ agriculture/ valleys
- tourism activities
city dwellers - stakeholder
- The educated city dwellers want to decrease vulnerability
- Want gov to take more responsibility but don’t expect it
- Not willing to move from area
- Would like guidance from gov
- Cost seen as too high by many poorer urban dwellers - especially to build to quake standards and retrofit
- Would but font expect gov grants to help rebuilding
rural farmers and villagers
- Used to looking after themselves
- Work together as a community
- Would like to receive help from gov but don’t expect it
- Have less access to money to rebuild
- Communities worked together with help from charities e.g. build for change, to retrofit
- Some people still living emergency accommodation
government
- At the time gov was writing new constitution and parties squabbled over it
- Did not view reducing vulnerability as priority
- Have now introduced new building codes
- Gov accepted help from India and China for rescue an relief and rebuild – short of money
- Gov slow to respond and slow to get NRA
- Money that had been pledged was lost
charities
- MSF, Red Cross, world vision, oxfam
- Key aim is to reduce vulnerability through aid and long term programs
- They want to reduce immediate impact and work with communities and gov to decrease vulnerability
- Poor gov response so some charities withdrew their offers to help
- See the cost of mitigation as a necessity to ensure reducing impact in the future
- Find cost effective strategies
- Encourage donations
- Provide simple low cost solutions
short term relief
o Distribution of essentials
o Oxfam distributed 58 000 hygiene kits
o Safe spaces for children set up
o Rescuers
o Local volunteers worked with army and international aid workers
o Tents were set up for people who lost their home
long term relief
o Building codes
o Donors pledged more than $4 billion USD to the NRA
o Rebuild infrastructure, small roads, schools and hospitals
o Oxfam installed waterproofed shelters and helped protect livestock
o World vison will focus on improving household income and food accessibility for households
o Restoring safety
mitigation
o Gov created a new public body, the National Reconstruction Authority (NRA)
o Building more disaster resilient infrastructure
o Build and maintain strong relationships with all stakeholders, local authorities, organisation, humanitarian agencies
o Long term shelter assistance will include repairing, retrofitting or reconstructing affected houses as part of a community based project
preparation for future hazards
o Region wide research and recovery initiative
o World vison will provide the equipment needed and train health workers and community volunteers
o Organise national workshops
o World vision will establish referral mechanisms and provide training in child protection
retrofitting housing
o Education of local builder to strengthen old houses
o Straps to build roof
o Strengthen foundation
S – provides long term skills for builders
E – Cheaper to retrofit
E – improves safety of houses in long term
aid groups
o Immediate relief + long term projects to improve resilience, reduce vulnerability and exposure
S – sometimes not what is needed
E – provides money + aid to rebuild and recover
E – have long term projects as well as aid
