Tectonic Processes and Hazards - 3 Management of tectonic hazards and disasters Flashcards
What has been the overall longer-term trend for natural hazards since about 1960?
- The total (aggregate) number of recorded hazards has increased over the last 50 years.
- The number of reported disasters seems to be falling, having peaked in the early 2000s (but that appears to be an anomaly to the longer-term trend).
- Number of deaths is also lower than in the recent past, but there are spikes with mega-events.
- The total number of people affected is increasing for some hazard and disaster types, especially meteorological and hydrological.
- The economic costs associated with both hazards and disasters of all types have increased significantly since 1960.
What is another important aspect of disaster geography?
Another important aspect of disaster geography is the spatial variation of tectonic impacts. It is wrong to assume that the locations of hazard impacts always translate into simple distributions. Data from the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED) and the International Red Cross shows that the number of disasters reveals a complex pattern when either viewed by world region or by level of development.
Why is reporting disaster impacts, especially deaths, controversial?
1 It depends on whether direct (primary) deaths or indirect (secondary) deaths from subsequent hazards or associated diseases are counted.
2 Location is significant because local or regional events in remote places are often under-recorded.
3 Declaration of disaster deaths and casualties may be subject to political bias. The 2004 Asian tsunami was almost completely ignored in Myanmar but perhaps initially overstated in parts of Thailand, where foreign tourists were killed, and then played down to protect the Thai tourist industry.
4 Statistics on major disasters are difficult to collect, particularly in remote rural areas of low human development countries (LHDs), for example the earthquake in Kashmir in 2005, or in densely populated squatter settlements, for example the Caracas landslides in 2003-2004.
5 Time-trend analysis (interpreting historical data to produce trends) is difficult. Much depends on the intervals selected and whether the means of data collection have remained constant. Trends (deaths, numbers affected, economic impacts) can be upset by a cluster of mega-disasters, as happened in the 2004 Asian tsunami or the 2011 Haiti earthquake, or even in the 2015 Kathmandu earthquake.
Why is location important for reporting disaster impacts, especially deaths?
Location is significant because local or regional events in remote places are often under-recorded.
What may the declaration of disaster deaths and casualties be subject to?
Political bias
Where are statistics on major disasters difficult to collect?
Statistics on major disasters are difficult to collect, particularly in remote rural areas of low human development countries (LHDs), for example the earthquake in Kashmir in 2005, or in densely populated squatter settlements, for example the Caracas landslides in 2003-2004.
Why is time-trend analysis (interpreting historical data to produce trends) difficult?
Much depends on the intervals selected and whether the means of data collection have remained constant.
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What are the key characteristics of tectonic mega-disasters?
- They are usually large-scale disasters on either an aerial/spatial scale or in terms of their economic and/or human impact.
- Because of their scale, they pose serious problems for effective management to minimise the impact of disaster (both in the short and longer term).
- The scale of their impact may mean that communities, but usually government as well, often require international support in the immediate aftermath as well as during longer-term recovery. This may be at a regional level (for example the Asian tsunami of 2004) or globally (for example Japan 2011). These events can affect more than one country either directly or indirectly.
Why do tectonic mega-disasters pose serious problems in terms of their scale?
- Because of their scale, they pose serious problems for effective management to minimise the impact of disaster (both in the short and longer term).
- The scale of their impact may mean that communities, but usually governments as well, often require international support in the immediate aftermath as well as during longer-term recovery.
What are tectonic mega-events and disasters often classified as?
Tectonic mega-events and disasters are often classified as high-impact, low-probability (HILP) events.
What has the impact of the globalisation of production and supply chains been?
The globalisation of production and supply chains has increased manufacturing efficiencies, but it has also reduced resilience in the case of some events. High-value manufacturing is often most at risk because of its just-in-time (JIT) business model. The consequences of HILP events spread rapidly across both economic and geographic boundaries, creating other impacts (economists might call these negative externalities) that are difficult to plan for. The Japanese earthquake in 2011, for example, led to a five per cent reduction in the country’s GDP. There were much wider knock-on impacts for global transnational corporations (TNCs) however, such as Toyota and Sony, which were forced to halt production.
Why is high-value manufacturing often most at risk?
High-value manufacturing is often most at risk because of its just-in-time (JIT) business model.