Tectonic hazards: earthquakes and tsunamis Chapter 1 - Keith Smith 2013

Flashcards about environmental hazards.

What are environmental hazards?

Extreme events that threaten human life and assets via physical or chemical trauma on a large scale.

How is the term 'environmental hazard' limited in this book?

Events originating in the natural and built environments leading to human deaths, economic damage, and losses above predefined thresholds.

What are the two main types of environmental hazards?

Natural and technological hazards.

What is a natural hazard?

Any natural process that may cause loss of life, injury, property damage, or social and economic disruption.

Give examples of geological natural hazards.

Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, and avalanches.

Give examples of atmospheric natural hazards.

Tropical cyclones, tornadoes, hail, ice, and snow.

Give examples of hydrologic natural hazards.

River floods, coastal floods, and droughts.

Give examples of biological natural hazards.

Epidemic diseases and wildfires.

What are technological hazards?

Hazards originating from technological or industrial conditions.

Give examples of transport technological hazards.

Air accidents, train crashes, and shipwrecks.

Give examples of industrial failure technological hazards.

Explosions, fires, and the release of toxic or radioactive materials.

Give examples of unsafe public building technological hazards.

Structural collapse and fire.

Give examples of hazardous materials technological hazards.

Storage, transport, and misuse of materials.

What are natural-technological ('na-tech') hazards?

Extreme natural processes that lead to the failure of industrial structures.

What is a classic example of a na-tech disaster?

The Great Tōhoku earthquake in Japan.

What happened to the island of Honshu, north-east Japan?

Was struck by an earthquake of magnitude 9.0 on March 11, 2011.

What level of damage was sustained after the Tōhoku earthquake?

14,000 homes destroyed and 100,000 properties damaged and a death toll of at least 20,000.

What happened to the Fukushima I nuclear power station after the earthquake?

The tsunami flooded the coastal Fukushima I nuclear power station.

How are many physical processes in the Earth’s crust and atmosphere driven?

Driven by forces that operate on hemispheric or planetary scales.

What is one clear example of wider links and consequences of global interactions?

Global warming drives sea-level rise, leading to increased risks from coastal floods.

What is the approximate scale of causation for most environmental hazards?

Arises from entirely natural forces to examples subject to considerable human influence.

What factors amplify human vulnerability to hazardous events?

Poverty, ill-health, and environmental degradation amplify human vulnerability to hazardous events.

What identifies resources and hazards?

The human use of the environment identifies resources and hazards through human perception.

What determines human sensitivity to environmental hazards?

The physical exposure of people and their assets to potentially damaging events and the degree of human vulnerability.

What happens when an element fluctuates over a critical threshold beyond the 'normal' band of tolerance?

The element becomes a hazard.

What are the threats to people from environmental hazards?

Death, injury, disease, and mental stress.

What are the threats to goods from environmental hazards?

Property damage and economic loss.

What are the threats to the environment from environmental hazards?

Loss of flora and fauna, pollution, and loss of amenity.

How is hazard defined?

A potential threat to humans and their welfare arising from a dangerous phenomenon or substance.

How is risk defined?

The combination of the probability of a hazardous event and its negative consequences.