Topic 1 - EQ2 - Tectonics

Question 1

What is a natural hazard?

Answer 1

A natural process such as an earthquake/volcano with the potential to cause human disruption (e.g. loss of life, injury, property damage, socio-economic disruption). A hazard would not be such without for example, people at or near its location. A hazard can be different in size depending on the expected magnitude/intensity and spatial extent

Question 2

What is a disaster?

Answer 2

A serious disruption of the functioning of a community or society involving widespread human, material, economic or environmental losses and impacts, which exceeds the ability of the affected community or society to cope with using its own resources. Disasters often have 500 or more total deaths.

Question 3

What is a catastrophe?

Answer 3

A disaster which has profound impacts on life and property. It either has resulted in over 2000 deaths, or over 200,000 made homeless, or the GDP of a country reduced by 5%, or dependence on aid from abroad for a year or more after the event.

Question 4

What is risk?

Answer 4

The probability of a hazard event causing harmful consequences (loss of life, injuries damage)

Question 5

What is vulnerability?

Answer 5

The geographical conditions that increases the susceptibility of a community to a hazard or to the impact of a hazard event.

Question 6

What is vulnerability dependent upon?

Answer 6

It is dependent on the ability to anticipate, cope with, resist and recover from a hazard.

Question 7

What is resilience?

Answer 7

The ability of a community exposed to hazards to resist, absorb and recover (‘spring-back’) from the effects of a hazard – it is determined by the degree of organisation and access to necessary resources.

Question 8

What is a disaster vs a catastrophe?

Answer 8

A disaster is over 500 deaths and a catastrophe is the next step up and is often considered to only be a catastrophe if it has over 2000 deaths.

Question 9

What is vulnerability vs resilience?

Answer 9

Vulnerability is the geographical conditions which increase the susceptibility of a community to natural hazards whereas resilience is the ability for a community exposed to natural hazards to resist, recover and ‘bounce back’.

Question 10

What is the equation for risk?

Answer 10

Risk = Hazard x Vulnerability

Question 11

What are 5 big factors which make the relationship between risk, hazards and vulnerability more complex?

Answer 11

1. Unpredictability
   Many hazards are not predictable, leaving people caught out by timing or magnitude
2. Dynamic hazards
   The threat of a hazard can increase or decrease over time. Human influence can affect this.
3. Lack of alternatives
   People staying in a region due to lack of options. This could be economic, lack of space or lack of skills
4. Cost-benefits
   The benefit of living in a hazardous location outweighing the costs. Perception of risk may play a role in this
5. ‘Russian roulette reaction’
   Acceptance that something will happen whatever you do

Question 12

What is Degg’s model?

Answer 12

The model says that disasters only occur when a vulnerable population is exposed to a hazard. It is demonstrated by a Venn diagram where the two circles are the hazard and the vulnerable population and where they overlap is the disaster.

Question 13

What is the pressure and release model?

Answer 13

There cannot be a disaster if there are hazards but vulnerability is theoretically nil, or if there is a vulnerable population but not an actual hazard event.

It is like a nutcracker with increasing pressure on people coming from either side (hazard and vulnerability). The ‘release’ idea is incorporated to conceptualise pressure of the disaster.

To relieve the pressure, vulnerability has to be reduced.

Question 14

What does the PAR formula expose about risk?

Answer 14

It shows how risk is multifaceted being not only the natural hazard but also the equal importance of vulnerability and antecedent conditions in affecting risk

Question 15

How does the PAR model help geographers reduce the risk from a hazard?

Answer 15

It enables geographers to see the conditions that create vulnerability and therefore suggest what should specifically be targeted to reduce the risk of a disaster (e.g. building regulations, high population density…) as we know the natural hazard itself cannot be stopped. It helps geographers to identify vulnerabilities and relieve the pressures of vulnerability.

Question 16

How can social and economic impacts of tectonic hazards vary considerably?

Answer 16

-Over time
-From place to place
-From minor nuisances to major disasters

Question 17

What factors mean that economic impacts are not fully proportional to the land area exposed to the hazard?

Answer 17

-Level of development and GDP per capita
-Total number of people affected
-Speed of recovery (resilience)
-Degree of urbanisation
-Amount of uninsured losses
-Value for tourism (e.g. Stonehenge destroyed vs just another field)

Question 18

Why are the impacts of earthquakes and their secondary hazards generally greater than those of volcanic eruptions?

Answer 18

•The concentration of active volcanoes in relatively narrow belts means that only a small land area lies in close proximity
•It is estimated that <1% of the world’s population is likely to suffer the impacts of a volcanic eruption, compared to 5% for earthquakes

Question 19

Why are less developed countries generally more vulnerable to hazards?

Answer 19

Because they tend to have other, more pressing problems (such as poverty and disease), they’re able to spend less money on preparing for hazard events. This is one key reason as to why natural hazards can quickly turn into disasters in less developed countries.

Question 20

What happened in 2010 in Haiti?

Answer 20

On 12 January 2010, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 struck near the capital Port-au-Prince. The resulting high death and injury toll made it one of the deadliest earthquakes on record.

Question 21

Which governmental factors made the impacts worse in Haiti?

Answer 21

-High level of corruption at both national and local government level led to lack of resources and commitment to improve the country’s infrastructure and living standards.

-Lack of disaster preparation meant that government officials, police and emergency services (and ordinary Haitians) = didn’t know what to do and how to react when the earthquake struck + a quarter of Haitian government officials and first responders had been killed by the initial earthquake (plus government buildings were destroyed) so IGOs were needed to provide emergency services.

-Political corruption and governmental mismanagement = international organisations were unwilling to channel aid money through the Haitian government directly. Bottom-up projects done instead and IGOS brought in their own staff from overseas at huge cost. Has this hampered Haiti’s ability to become self-sufficient?

Question 22

What were the impacts of the Haitian earthquake?

Answer 22

-Much of Haiti’s infrastructure, which was already poor, was severely damaged during the earthquake. Roads, port infrastructure, bridges… were all destroyed

-Haiti had only one airport, several ports and a few main roads. When these became damaged crucial foreign aid supplies were prevented from arriving or being distributed effectively. This slowed down rescue efforts and ultimately led to more deaths and an even greater total impact.

-At least a quarter of government officials were killed and key government buildings were destroyed, making the already unequipped government even less able to organise recovery and relief efforts.

-In October 2010, an outbreak of cholera (a potentially fatal infection caused by poor sanitation) occurred - and, as of 2016, is still ongoing. A lack of medical supplies and trained health care workers caused the disease to spread to the extent that by 2015 over 9000 Haitians had died and 720,000 had been affected. Final estimate death toll at 220,000.

Question 23

What were the developmental factors that made the impacts of earthquake in Haiti worse?

Answer 23

-Haiti is a developing country. It is poor, has had a history of limited economic development, and its limited resources were being spent on more immediate, short term issues, such as disease, rather than earthquake preparations.

-A lack of building controls and regulations meant that many of the buildings in Port-au-Prince were poorly built slum housing, this was made worse by the extreme density of buildings and people. These buildings could not sustain the ground shaking and simply collapsed. The dense urban environment also made it a difficult place for rescue teams to work.

-Many Haitians were (and still are) living in poverty, so they didn’t have the resources nor adequate education to prepare for or cope with the effects of the earthquake.

Question 24

What were the geographical factors that made the impacts of the earthquake in Haiti worse?

Answer 24

-It had a shallow focus (13 km), which increased the amount of ground shaking.

-Liquefaction on looser soil caused many building foundations to sink.

-The epicentre was only 24 km
from Port-au-Prince - the country’s capital and its most densely populated city
(home to 2 million people).

Question 25

What happened in 2011 in Japan?

Answer 25

On 11 March 2011, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck under the Pacific Ocean, 100 km east of Sendai on the eastern coast of the Japanese island of Honshu.

Question 26

What were the governmental factors that reduced the impacts of the earthquake in Japan?

Answer 26

As a highly developed country, Japan had the financial resources and commitment to prepare for a hazard event:

-Good building construction:
 -Strict building regulations meant that Japanese buildings were better able to withstand an earthquake (75% of buildings in Japan are constructed with earthquakes in mind. compared to 0% in Haiti).
 -A low level of corruption meant that building regulations were strictly enforced.

-Well-developed disaster plans:
 -Areas vulnerable to tsunami already had ten-metre-high walls, evacuation shelters and marked evacuation routes, which helped to reduce the loss of life.
 -Many offices and homes were equipped with earthquake emergency kits (containing drinking water and basic medical supplies).
-An early warning system detected the earthquake one minute in advance - giving people some warning.

-Education and preparedness for earthquakes and tsunami. Emergency drills are regularly practiced in both schools and businesses.

Question 27

What were the developmental factors that reduced the impacts of the earthquake in Japan?

Answer 27

-Education and preparedness for earthquakes and tsunamis were good as drills were often practiced in schools and businesses

-The Japanese government responded immediately. Within 24 hours, 110 000 defence troops had been mobilised.

-Immediately after the earthquake, all radio and TV stations switched to official earthquake coverage, which told people what was happening and what they should do.

-The Bank of Japan offered US$183 billion to Japanese banks, so that they could keep operating (protecting the country’s economy).

-Japan quickly accepted help from rescue and recovery teams from over 20 countries. By comparison, in Haiti foreign rescue teams were delayed by poor and damaged infrastructure and the lack of government coordination. In China, whilst the government was able to mobilise rescuers and equipment from across the country, it wasn’t used to accepting help from other countries. As a result, it didn’t have any procedures in place, so it took several days before international rescue
teams were allowed in.

Question 28

What were the impacts of the Japan earthquake?

Answer 28

-The resulting seawater displacement from the earthquake caused a tsunami to spread in all directions - at hundreds of kilometres per hour. The waves reached a staggering 10 metres high in places, and surged up to 10 km inland.

-The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant was severely damaged by the tsunami and released dangerous levels of radiation into the air (forcing 47, 000 people to be evacuated). Today, an exclusion zone of 20 km still exists around Fukushima due to the radiation from 2011.

Question 29

What happened in 2008 in China?

Answer 29

On 12 May 2008, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.9 struck Sichuan, a mountainous region in south-west China.

Question 30

What were the impacts of the China earthquake?

Answer 30

-Over 45.5 million people in ten provinces and regions were affected (5 million of whom were made homeless; the highest recorded homeless count from a disaster in history).
-The earthquake also triggered landslides that led to a quarter of the earthquake-related deaths.
-Death toll at 69,000

Question 31

What were the developmental factors that affected the impacts of the earthquake in China?

Answer 31

-The earthquake’s location meant that the damage was concentrated in rural areas and small towns (not a densely populated city like Port-au-Prince - this undoubtedly made a difference when comparing the death tolls in the two earthquakes)

-China is a large country with a growing economy (particularly in 2010), so it had the money available to pay for rescue, aid efforts, rebuilding of homes and infrastructure and the restoration of medical and emergency services (Haiti did not have this luxury)

Question 32

What were the governmental factors that affected the impacts of the earthquake in China?

Answer 32

-The corrupt government officials often ignored building codes and accepted bribes to allow builders to take shortcuts. The resulting poorly constructed buildings could not withstand the ground shaking and collapsed. The effects of the corruption were particularly evident in Sichuan, where thousands of schools fell down (killing 5335 children), while properly built government buildings nearby remained standing.

-China’s strong central government was able to respond quickly and effectively to the disaster:
 -Within hours, over 130 000 soldiers and relief workers were being sent to the affected areas. Troops parachuted or hiked into isolated mountainous areas to reach survivors
 -Medical services were quickly restored, which helped to avoid the outbreaks of disease seen in Haiti.
 -People in danger from landslides were safely relocated.
 -The government pledged $USI0 billion for rebuilding works, and Chinese banks wrote off the debts of any survivors who did not have insurance.
 -Within two weeks, temporary homes, roads and bridges were being built.

Question 33

What are the 4 scales to measure the magnitude of tectonic hazards?

Answer 33

Earthquakes:
-Richter (measures amplitude of waves on a logarithmic scale of 0-9)
-Mercalli Scale (measures the experienced impacts of quakes on a scale of I-XII)
-Moment Magnitude Scale (MMS) (measures the quake in terms of energy released on a logarithmic scale of 0-9)

Volcanoes:
-Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) (measures the relative explosivity of a volcanic eruption on a logarithmic scale of 0-8)

Question 34

Are all scales used to measure magnitude perfect?

Answer 34

No. They do not all take everything into account which is why it is better to use multiple if possible.

Question 35

What is a hazard profile?

Answer 35

A hazard profile is a diagram that shows the main characteristics of different types of tectonic hazard. It could be developed for a single hazard, or it could show multiple hazards, allowing comparisons to be made.

Question 36

Why are hazard profiles valuable?

Answer 36

Hazard profiles are valuable in that they help governments and other organisations to develop disaster plans. For example, the profile for the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami shows a high magnitude, rapid onset and widespread extent. Organisations using this profile to plan for future disasters might focus on making sure that early warning systems reach all countries that might be affected. They don’t help what has already happened but may be useful to ensure the area is ready for what could happen again based on past data.

Question 37

What is the main limitation to the actual value of hazard profiles?

Answer 37

However, predictions may be wrong due to the fact it is based on past data and hazards are not the same and not of the same magnitude in one location every time.

Question 38

What is the hazard profile bi-polar scale?

Answer 38

The Hazard Profile bi-polar scale is a technique to understand and compare the physical characteristics of different types of hazards (earthquakes, tsunamis or volcanoes) or the same hazard (constructive or destructive boundary) to help identify and rank hazards. This enables resources and the response action to be focus appropriately. Some hazard profiles include the impact of the hazard as an additional extra to help profile how the hazard results in contrasting consequences in different locations and to different hazards.

Question 39

What can profiling the vulnerabilities and the hazards do for our understanding of risk?

Answer 39

By profiling the vulnerabilities (using the PAR model) and the hazard (using the hazard bi-polar scale) we now have a greater understanding of the overall Tectonic Risk (vulnerabilities x hazard)

Question 40

Out of Haiti, Japan and China, which disaster had the worst hazard profile?

Answer 40

Haiti due to the huge death toll and human cost. However, Japan actually had the worst physical hazards, but as Japan was adequately prepared and is a very developed country this was not reflected in the human costs.

Question 41

What does economic development do for hazard preparation and vulnerability minimisation?

Answer 41

Economic development gives communities and countries access to the resources, organisations and technology needed to cope with hazard events. With increasing income, people are better able to ensure their own safety by living in ‘safe’ locations and in ‘hazard-proofed’ properties.

Question 42

Which non-economic aspects of development are also significant to hazard vulnerability minimisation?

Answer 42

The development of social infrastructure:

• Access to education - people can be made more aware of the hazard risks and what do in a
hazard event.
• Access to healthcare - the better the health, the better people are able to withstand the health and food risks resulting from a hazard.
• Housing - poorly built buildings unable to withstand shockwaves leads to serious injuries and
death.

+Political development:
Governance - poor governance increases vulnerability

Question 43

What 3 principles is governance built upon?

Answer 43

-Authority
-Decision making
-Accountability

Question 44

What does good governance embody?

Answer 44

Good governance embodies the recognition and practice of a range of principles, such as transparency, the rule of law, equity, consensus and participation.

Question 45

How does poor governance affect hazard vulnerability?

Answer 45

Poor governance in the form of corrupt local and national government and weak political organisation increases hazard vulnerability in two ways:
• By failing to invest properly in infrastructure that might mitigate the impacts of a tectonic
hazard, e.g. failing to invest in warning systems, ‘hazard-proofing’ buildings etc.
• By being ill-prepared to deal with the emergency situation immediately following a hazard.

Question 46

How do stakeholders beyond the political authorities have a role to play in good governance?

Answer 46

Other stakeholders (people and organisations), both public and private, have a role to play in good governance. They do so by observing the key principles of good governance, such as accountability and participation in responsible decision making. They are also responsible for reducing vulnerabilities to hazards, particularly if such stakeholders are in charge of buildings or infrastructure in a hazard risk area.

Question 47

Which geographical factors can increase hazard vulnerability?

Answer 47

• Population density - higher density means more people at risk.
• Urbanisation - more people and businesses means more at risk and the vulnerability.
• Isolation and inaccessibility - particularly critical in the immediate aftermath of a hazard event when there is an urgent need to provide emergency aid.
• Community spirit - strong spirit can help boost morale and the collective wish to survive the hazard.

Question 48

How does the Swiss cheese model aid our understanding of disaster prevention?

Answer 48

Each layer of ‘cheese’ is another layer that could have prevented the disaster happening – the holes in the Swiss cheese are the weaknesses. A disaster happens when all weaknesses align in a single trajectory of accident opportunity.

The model highlights that a disaster can be linked to a single hazard event, but there is a cascade of other events that provide context for the hazard resulting in losses and disastrous consequences.

Question 49

What was the Swiss cheese model initially developed for? What can be criticised about it?

Answer 49

Stopping disasters in aviation.

The main issue is the actual physical hazard - that hole simply cannot be patched up as it is simply a matter of nature.

Question 50

(Not Haiti, Japan and China) What are our developed, emerging and developing earthquake case studies?

Answer 50

Developed: New Zealand 2010 and 2011
Emerging: Iran 2003
Developing: Nepal 2015

Question 51

What happened in New Zealand in 2010 and 2011?

Answer 51

In September 2010 and Feb 2011, the Canterbury region endured a series of major earthquakes. These earthquakes caused deaths and considerable destruction in Christchurch and the surrounding area. However, the Canterbury economy was resilient

-Disruption to industrial production, goods exports and activity was short lived as the region’s manufacturing hub escaped significant damage and agricultural sector was largely unaffected
-Rebuild costs of around NZ$20 billion were largely insured losses
-Financial markets largely ignored the earthquake’s impacts
-Indicators suggest that business activity has been quite resilient as business confidence quickly recovered.

However, the tourism industry did suffer badly. Int’l visitors were down 40% in the 2011-12 period.

Question 52

What happened in Iran in 2003?

Answer 52

26,000 people died in a 6.6 magnitude earthquake. The earthquake was shallow, with an focus depth of 7km.

Iran experienced such bad effects due to the fact that lots of buildings were old and exceptionally vulnerable to shaking as they were built out of organic materials like earth and had very heavy roofs. More recent construction in the city had been of poor quality. This was compounded further by the fact that the Iranian seismic building code had not of been effectively enforced, the loss of medical facilities quickly after the quake and sub-optimal response from the relevant authorities.

Question 53

What happened in Nepal in 2015?

Answer 53

Nepal in 2015 encountered a 7.8 earthquake killing 9000 people and injuring a further 22,000.

Such impacts can be explained by the the fact the country struggles geographically in a multitude of ways. It has low development in a mountainous and physically harsh landscape. The Kathmandu valley has a very high population density with a population of 2.5 million and growing at four percent per year. 85% of the country’s population is rural with agriculture as the main employment sector. There is a vulnerable, isolated population, unable to absorb shocks as well as households in better positions. Poverty is rife, many people build their own houses, often ignoring correct building code - a recipe for disaster.