Hazards Year 13
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_h6aynq
1. What is a hazard? - An event that has an impact on people
- The threat of substantial loss of life
- The threat of substantial impact on life. eg: life-changing injuries
- The threat of damage to property
- Loss of life from hazards likely to increase due to increasing human population.
- Can be caused by human actions (explosions, nuclear incidents) but mainly
natural (earthquakes, storms, volcanoes)
Although natural events can be a consequence of human actions like wildfires/
floods from poor land use management
- A disaster occurs as a result of a hazard. eg: living on a fault line is a hazard, but
an earthquake on a fault line has enormous impacts on people + property so is a
disaster.
2. Potential impacts - Depends on general factors: population of area affected + the magnitude of the
of natural haz- event
ards - Also the specific factors for each hazard: the type and explosivity of a volcano /
availability of vegetation to fuel wildfires.
- 3 main types of hazards: (although some overlap)
• Geophysical: driven by earth's own internal energy sources. eg: plate tectonics,
volcanoes, seismic activity
• Atmospheric: driven by processes in the atmosphere. eg: tropical storms +
droughts
• Hydrological: driven by water bodies, mainly oceans. eg: floods, storm surges,
tsunamis.
- Impacts can be primary/ secondary
Primary: immediate effect on the affected area. eg: destruction of infrastructure
, Hazards Year 13
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_h6aynq
Secondary: happens after the disaster has occurred. eg: disease, economic reces-
sion, contaminated water supplies
3. Perceptions of - Our perception of a hazard is determined by the effect it may have on our lives.
hazards (+ how long term the impact is)
- Natural event only becomes a hazard only if people are affected
- The pressure of increasing population and subsequent demand for land has
resulted in building in areas at increased risk.
- Population expansion itself increases the threat of a hazard. eg: increasing
population at the outskirts of urban areas may increase risk of wildfires
- Sometimes advantages of living with the threat of hazards. eg: fertile soil on
floodplains/ near volcanoes can be considered a risk worth taking
- Natural disaster can have catastrophic impact on economy in the country affected
+ globally
- HICs have little long term damage to the economy as there is enough wealth and
potential to rebuild infrastructure + support for those affected
- LICs much more reliant on aid in the immediate aftermath + also in long term
as they try to repair the damage.
- Many living in hazardous areas underestimate the risk + unwilling to leave
their livelihoods/home - ALSO affected by wealth - richer likely to have insurance
protection so content to evacuate
4.
, Hazards Year 13
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_h6aynq
Perception of - Affected by economic and cultural factors
hazards 2 - People react to hazards differently due to different ways we process + filter the
information we receive.
- When people are warned of a potential risk, they go through several stages (hear,
confirm, understand, believe, respond)
- Each stage is affected by age, gender, level of education + how often they receive
the warning.
5. Human respons- - Main aim to reduce risk to life + essential possessions
es to hazards eg: local scale: safeguarding property + saving possessions
globally: co-coordinating rescue + humanitarian aid
- The magnitude of the event + the original condition of the infrastructure affects
the speed of the international response
- Response times have been reduced by the development of the Automated
Disaster Analysis and Mapping System (ADAM):
a database that pools info from the US geological survey, World bank, World food
program
- This allows almost immediate access to information like the scale of the disaster/
what supplies are available locally. Previously, a manual search of several databas-
es took hours.
6. Hazard percep- - Doing nothing. An acceptance that hazards are natural events that we can do
tion: Fatalism little about + losses have to be accepted eg: earthquakes.
, Hazards Year 13
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_h6aynq
- Common response in LICs as they are less able to respond.
- Interference with natural processes can have detrimental impact on ecosys-
tems.
eg: forest fires can be hazardous to human activity but they are a natural regener-
ative process within the forest ecosystem + should be allowed to take their course
in certain circumstances
7. Hazard percep- - As technology improves, the method of predicting hazardous events becomes
tion: Prediction more sophisticated + accurate
eg: remote sensing + seismic monitoring gives clues to activity that may lead to
disaster + need to be acted upon.
- Advances in communications means that info from all parts of the world can be
shared + analysed quickly.
- Warnings can be communicated promptly + reach a greater number of those at
risk.
- Possible response in HICs
eg: 1970 cyclone in Bangladesh killed 300k-500k but in 2007 only 3500 died due
to the Bangladesh Meteorological Department predictions + broadcast warnings
over tv/ radio
8. Hazard percep- - Once we accept that natural events are inevitable, we can adapt our behaviour
tion: Adaptation accordingly so that losses are minimised/ mitigated
and Risk Sharing - Most realistic option for many + is effective + cost-effective for government.
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_h6aynq
1. What is a hazard? - An event that has an impact on people
- The threat of substantial loss of life
- The threat of substantial impact on life. eg: life-changing injuries
- The threat of damage to property
- Loss of life from hazards likely to increase due to increasing human population.
- Can be caused by human actions (explosions, nuclear incidents) but mainly
natural (earthquakes, storms, volcanoes)
Although natural events can be a consequence of human actions like wildfires/
floods from poor land use management
- A disaster occurs as a result of a hazard. eg: living on a fault line is a hazard, but
an earthquake on a fault line has enormous impacts on people + property so is a
disaster.
2. Potential impacts - Depends on general factors: population of area affected + the magnitude of the
of natural haz- event
ards - Also the specific factors for each hazard: the type and explosivity of a volcano /
availability of vegetation to fuel wildfires.
- 3 main types of hazards: (although some overlap)
• Geophysical: driven by earth's own internal energy sources. eg: plate tectonics,
volcanoes, seismic activity
• Atmospheric: driven by processes in the atmosphere. eg: tropical storms +
droughts
• Hydrological: driven by water bodies, mainly oceans. eg: floods, storm surges,
tsunamis.
- Impacts can be primary/ secondary
Primary: immediate effect on the affected area. eg: destruction of infrastructure
, Hazards Year 13
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_h6aynq
Secondary: happens after the disaster has occurred. eg: disease, economic reces-
sion, contaminated water supplies
3. Perceptions of - Our perception of a hazard is determined by the effect it may have on our lives.
hazards (+ how long term the impact is)
- Natural event only becomes a hazard only if people are affected
- The pressure of increasing population and subsequent demand for land has
resulted in building in areas at increased risk.
- Population expansion itself increases the threat of a hazard. eg: increasing
population at the outskirts of urban areas may increase risk of wildfires
- Sometimes advantages of living with the threat of hazards. eg: fertile soil on
floodplains/ near volcanoes can be considered a risk worth taking
- Natural disaster can have catastrophic impact on economy in the country affected
+ globally
- HICs have little long term damage to the economy as there is enough wealth and
potential to rebuild infrastructure + support for those affected
- LICs much more reliant on aid in the immediate aftermath + also in long term
as they try to repair the damage.
- Many living in hazardous areas underestimate the risk + unwilling to leave
their livelihoods/home - ALSO affected by wealth - richer likely to have insurance
protection so content to evacuate
4.
, Hazards Year 13
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_h6aynq
Perception of - Affected by economic and cultural factors
hazards 2 - People react to hazards differently due to different ways we process + filter the
information we receive.
- When people are warned of a potential risk, they go through several stages (hear,
confirm, understand, believe, respond)
- Each stage is affected by age, gender, level of education + how often they receive
the warning.
5. Human respons- - Main aim to reduce risk to life + essential possessions
es to hazards eg: local scale: safeguarding property + saving possessions
globally: co-coordinating rescue + humanitarian aid
- The magnitude of the event + the original condition of the infrastructure affects
the speed of the international response
- Response times have been reduced by the development of the Automated
Disaster Analysis and Mapping System (ADAM):
a database that pools info from the US geological survey, World bank, World food
program
- This allows almost immediate access to information like the scale of the disaster/
what supplies are available locally. Previously, a manual search of several databas-
es took hours.
6. Hazard percep- - Doing nothing. An acceptance that hazards are natural events that we can do
tion: Fatalism little about + losses have to be accepted eg: earthquakes.
, Hazards Year 13
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_h6aynq
- Common response in LICs as they are less able to respond.
- Interference with natural processes can have detrimental impact on ecosys-
tems.
eg: forest fires can be hazardous to human activity but they are a natural regener-
ative process within the forest ecosystem + should be allowed to take their course
in certain circumstances
7. Hazard percep- - As technology improves, the method of predicting hazardous events becomes
tion: Prediction more sophisticated + accurate
eg: remote sensing + seismic monitoring gives clues to activity that may lead to
disaster + need to be acted upon.
- Advances in communications means that info from all parts of the world can be
shared + analysed quickly.
- Warnings can be communicated promptly + reach a greater number of those at
risk.
- Possible response in HICs
eg: 1970 cyclone in Bangladesh killed 300k-500k but in 2007 only 3500 died due
to the Bangladesh Meteorological Department predictions + broadcast warnings
over tv/ radio
8. Hazard percep- - Once we accept that natural events are inevitable, we can adapt our behaviour
tion: Adaptation accordingly so that losses are minimised/ mitigated
and Risk Sharing - Most realistic option for many + is effective + cost-effective for government.
