This document contains detailed notes on Enquiry Question 2 of the Tectonic Processes and Hazards topic for the A Level Geography course. It includes all the information required to secure at top grade in this part of the course. These notes took me many hours to complete and are how I revised for ...
Tectonic
Processes
and Hazards
Enquiry Question 2: Why do some tectonic hazards develop
into disasters?
, 1.4 Disaster occurrence can be explained by the relationship between hazards,
vulnerability, resilience and disaster.
A perceived natural event that has the potential to cause loss of life and
Hazard
damage to property.
Risk The probability of a hazard event occurring and causing loss of life.
A high risk combined with an inability of individuals and communities to
Vulnerability
cope.
A hazard becoming a reality in an event that causes death and damage to
Disaster
property. UN defines it as over 500 deaths.
The ability of a community or society exposed to hazards to resist and
Resilience recover from the effects of a hazard. It is the ability to 'spring back' from a
hazard or disaster.
Mega-Disaster Over 2,000 deaths, or 200,000 homeless or GDP reduced by 5%.
A natural tectonic event is a physical occurrence resulting from the movement or
deformation of the Earth's crust that does not affect people.
As soon as the event disrupts normal daily lives it becomes a hazard, and the level of
severity may increase to cause destruction to property and death.
A natural hazard becomes a disaster or mega-disaster when the number of deaths and the
cost of damage (socio-economic impacts) increase to higher levels. The UN suggests 500 or
more deaths as a disaster, with a mega-disaster being when there is:
Over 2,000 deaths, or
Over 200,000 made homeless, or
The GDP of a country is reduced by at least 5%, or
Dependence on aid from abroad for a year or more after the event
The Tohoku 2011 tsunami in Japan was a mega-disaster because there were over 20,000
deaths but only a 3.5% fall in GDP. The Haiti 2010 earthquake was a mega-disaster because
it cost 100% of GDP, had 222,000 deaths and needed international air for several years.
Insured
Cost (US Tectonic Tectonic Losses (US
Tectonic Event Deaths
$m) Event Event $m) and % of
Total Losses
Tangshan,
Tohoku Tohoku
China 40,000
Tsunami 210,000 655,000 Tsunami
Earthquake (19%)
2011 2011
1972
Christchurch,
Kobe Haiti
New Zealand 16,500
Earthquake 100,000 Earthquake 222,570
Earthquake (69%)
1995 2010
2011
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