Explain why coastal California is considered a disaster hotspot? (15marks) A disaster hotspot is a country or area that is vulnerable/ disaster prone due the hazards that are; Geophysical, hydro- meteorological. A human factor that increases the risk is vulnerability which includes- population density, wealth and GDP (gross domestic products) which affects the impact of the natural hazard. California is considered a disaster hotspot as all of these factors contribute to an increased danger to human life, meaning it is susceptible to the following natural hazards: earthquake, tsunamis, volcanoes, droughts, wildfires, fog and smog, hurricanes and landslides. One hazard can often trigger others (e.g.
Since the degree of impact an earthquake has is measure on both the Richter and the Mercalli scale, it must be reasonable to assume that the power of an eruption is representative to the degree of how potentially hazardous the event may be. Eruption explosiveness can be measured by the Volcanic Explosivity Index. The higher the Volcanic Explosivity Index, the greater the potential hazard. The eruption type is a huge factor in the differences in the degree of hazards posed by volcanoes around the world. This greatly relates to the plate margin the volcano or volcanic belt is situated upon.
[Writer Name] [Subject] [Date] Comprehensive Personal Emergency Plan Earthquake Section One introduction A natural disasters is when extreme events which cause great loss of life and or property and create severe disruption to human lives, such as an earth quick. Natural disasters are a part of life that takes place unexpectedly affecting people and their living environment. Floods, hurricanes, earthquakes and tornadoes can be devastating. Even more devastating are the consequences of not being fully prepared (Smith, 101-106). As a student and residence of IUB (Indiana University Bloomington) its better for us to understand how earthquakes occur, we have to go in depth and explore the fundamentals of this natural phenomenon.
The Eastern side of the county must be accessed by a round-trip through adjacent Skagit County. Risks of potential natural hazards are listed in the above table. Whatcom County has a high vulnerability to earthquakes related to the location of oceanic and continental crusts. The University of Washington seismology lab reports up to 1000 earthquakes per year in Washington and Oregon. With a severe earthquake the county could be at risk for a Tsunami.
Compare and contrast the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake with the 1811 New Madrid Earthquake. Include these elements: type of faulting and offset, epicenter, magnitude, damage, duration, date, and area affected. California’s earthquake on April 18, 1906 which lasted around 45-60 seconds, is thought to be one of the most momentous earthquakes in history. The degree in which earthquakes are monitored and studied is due to the sheer size of its horizontal displacement and rupture length. As a result of this earthquake theories such as, elastic-rebound has been one of the models used to portray the earthquake cycle.
Eventually, the friction is overcome and the blocks slip abruptly, releasing pent-up energy with a huge “snap”—an earthquake” (The Plate Tectonic Model – Page 107). Plates diverge at volcanic zones by the ocean basins. These are long huge cracks were lava rises from below and freezes into the Lithosphere (About.com – Geology). In which plates move past each other is call a transform boundary. These are not that common as the converge or diverge plates and the most common one is the San Andreas fault of California [About.com – Geology].
To what extent can preparedness and planning mitigate the effects of volcanic hazards? (40 Marks) A volcanic hazard is any threat to life and infrastructure due to volcanic activity and related situations such as a landslide near the volcano. There are many different types of volcanic hazard and each can have different impacts on the economy, society and environment in a region. It is extremely important that disaster reduction measures, such as early warning systems and land use planning, are implemented to try to reduce these impacts. There are three main stages to consider when managing a volcano: before the eruption, during its critical period and evacuation.
Discuss the view that the impact of earthquake hazards depends primarily on human factors. (40 marks) Although earthquakes are a manifestation of a physical process associated with plate tectonics the hazards they produce are partly determined by human factors such as population density, urbanisation of the population, poverty and earthquake mitigation strategies such as local building codes, education of the population. However, human factors are not the only factors that turn earthquakes into hazardous events. Physical factors such as earthquake magnitude, frequency, local geology and liquifaction are also important as well exposure to tsunami or on low lying coasts also play an important part. A hazard can be defined as natural phenomena that produce negative effects on life.
However despite this, as 95% of earthquakes occur on plate boundaries there must be some kind of link between the two and plate tectonic theory can explain this. The theory suggests that the earth’s crust is split into plates which are huge slabs of rock that move due to the convection currents in the mantle. Where two plates meet it causes friction along the plate margin and this creates stresses in the lithosphere and tension in the rock builds overtime. When the strength of the rocks under stress suddenly breaks, they fracture along cracks called faults, sending a series of seismic
To what extent can preparedness and planning mitigate the effects of volcanic hazards? A hazard is a threat that has potential to cause the loss of life or injury, property damage, social and economic disruption or environmental degradation. A volcano is a surface landform resulting from the extrusion of magma from underground. Lava, ash, rocks and gases are all erupted. How hazardous a volcano is depends on a variety of human and physical factors that interrelate to determine the level of impact on human activity.