These chapters provide valuable and comprehensive information on a variety of hazards, including both scientific and social aspects of disasters. The work introduces the concept of large, medium and small scale hazards, and includes many useful case studies as well as working examples of theoretical concepts. As readers will acknowledge, today the distinction between natural and technological hazards is becoming blurred and a new concept of NATECH hazards is evolving. For permanent hazards (such as tides, wind waves, coastal erosion and climate change) routine predictions are made, whereas for evanescent hazards (including droughts, sea level rise, and coastal subsidence), monitoring of various parameters is the norm. Only for episodic hazards (for example hurricanes, winter storms, tsunamis, and river floods), early warning systems are used, with varying degrees of success. The book explores how, for certain episodic hazards like tornadoes, landslides, forest fires, snow avalanches, and volcanic eruptions, the early warning systems are still in various stages of development. Readers will gain knowledge of theoretical and practical concepts of risk evaluation which assist in better understanding of disaster dynamics, and readers will become better equipped in quantification of disaster risk and vulnerability. The author explains how risk reduction initiatives, taking into account stakeholders’ participation and perception, can provide a roadmap to building resilient communities and cities. This book will be useful not only to practitioners of disaster management but also to research scholars and graduate students. It is highly readable and will appeal more broadly too, to all those who are interested in the very latest thinking on, and expert analysis of, hazards and disasters.
The problems and issues of natural hazards and disasters, both globally and in Canada, are becoming increasingly important since the costs of extreme natural events have been escalating, and significant vulnerabilities exist in Canadian society. Without thoughtful and effective mitigation, these costs and human suffering are likely to continue to increase. An assessment of knowledge, research, and practice in risk, hazards and disasters fields is a fundamental step towards the goal of prevention and mitigation. This book on natural hazards and disasters in Canada is the first comprehensive interdisciplinary publication on this subject, and is the result of a national assessment on this topic. A variety of papers from the physical and social sciences explores both the risks associated with these hazards, and adaptive strategies that can be used to reduce those risks. Audience: This excellent collection of papers is intended for academics, professionals and practitioners involved in hazard reduction activities who wish to obtain a better understanding of Canadian natural hazards.
This report presents the results of a study that compares country practices in the management of the financial implications of disasters on government finances for a set of OECD member countries and partner economies particularly exposed to natural hazards.
Climate change is increasingly of great concern to the world community. The earth has witnessed the buildup of greenhouse gases (GHG) in the atmosphere, changes in biodiversity, and more occurrences of natural disasters. Recently, scientists have begun to shift their emphasis away from curbing carbon dioxide emission to adapting to carbon dioxide emission. The increase in natural disasters around the world is unprecedented in earth's history and these disasters are often associated to climate changes. Many nations along the coastal lines are threatened by massive floods and tsunamis. Earthquakes are increasing in intensity and erosion and droughts are problems in many parts of the developing countries. This book is therefore to investigate ways to prepare and effectively manage these disasters and possibly reduce their impacts. The focus is on mitigation strategies and policies that will help to reduce the impacts of natural disasters. The book takes an in-depth look at climate change and its association to socio-economic development and cultures especially in vulnerable communities; and investigates how communities can develop resilience to disasters. A balanced and a multiple perspective approach to manage the risks associated with natural disasters is offered by engaging authors from the entire globe to proffer solutions.
Disasters such as earthquakes, cyclones, floods, heat waves, nuclear accidents, and large scale pollution incidents take lives and cause exceptionally large health problems. The majority of large-scale disasters affect the most vulnerable populations, which are often comprised of people of extreme ages, in remote living areas, with endemic poverty, and with low literacy. Health-related emergency disaster risk management (Health-EDRM) [1] refers to the systematic analysis and management of health risks surrounding emergencies and disasters; it plays an important role in reducing hazards and vulnerability along with extending preparedness, response, and recovery measures. This concept encompasses risk analyses and interventions, such as accessible early warning systems, timely deployment of relief workers, and the provision of suitable drugs and medical equipment, to decrease the impact of disaster on people before, during, and after disaster events. Disaster risk profiling and interventions can be at the personal/household, community, and system/political levels; they can be targeted at specific health risks including respiratory issues caused by indoor burning, re-emergence of infectious disease due to low vaccination coverage, and gastrointestinal problems resulting from unregulated waste management. Unfortunately, there has been a major gap in the scientific literature regarding Health-EDRM. The aim of this Special Issue of IJERPH was to present papers describing/reporting the latest disaster and health risk analyses, as well as interventions for health-related disaster risk management, in an effort to address this gap and facilitate major global policies and initiatives for disaster risk reduction.
This textbook provides a thorough introduction to natural disaster risk management. Many aspects of disaster risk management, such as those involved in earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, floods, avalanches and mudslides call for similar prevention and preparedness instruments, management concepts, and countermeasures. This textbook assumes the viewpoint of a regional disaster risk manager who is responsible for a certain area, and for making the lives of the people who live there safer, regardless of the type of natural disaster that may occur. The same holds true for boosting preparedness and awareness in the population at risk. The book includes numerous examples of hazard mitigation concepts and techniques, as well as ways of intensively involving the local population in prevention schemes at an early stage. Furthermore, it provides an in-depth examination of the function of risk communication, both as an instrument for disseminating official information and as a function of public media. In closing, a chapter on risk splitting offers insights into insurance-based models for risk financing. This comprehensive book is a must-read for all students, researchers and practitioners dealing with natural disaster risk management.
This report explores how countries can strengthen the resilience of their agricultural sectors to multiple risks. A shifting risk landscape in agriculture – due to increasing weather variability, natural hazards, pests and diseases, and market shocks – will require public and private actors to consider the risk landscape over the long term, place a greater emphasis on what can be done ex ante to reduce risk exposure and increase preparedness, and prioritise investments that build resilience capacities both on-farm and for the sector as a whole.
Arguably among the regions of the world most vulnerable to climate change, Asia has different mechanisms for Climate Change Adaptation (CCA) and Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) activities. This title provides 19 case studies, from 13 countries and regions in Asia, that highlight different aspects of CCA-DRR entry points.
The 25 papers collected together in this volume present comprehensive coverage of all major aspects of landslide risk assessment, including the risk assessment framework, and methods for estimating probability of landsliding vulnerability and risk.
Globally, environmental impact assessment (EIA) is one of the most enduring and influential environmental management tools. This handbook provides readers with a strong foundation for understanding the practice of EIA, by outlining the different types of assessment while also providing a guide to best practice. This collection deploys a research and practice-based approach to the subject, delivering an overview of EIA as an essential and practical tool of environmental protection, planning, and policy. To best understand the most pertinent issues and challenges surrounding EIA today, this volume draws together prominent researchers, practitioners, and young scholars who share their work and knowledge to cover two key parts. The first part introduces EIA processes and best practices through analytical and critical chapters on the stages/elements of the EIA process and different components and forms of assessment. These provide examples that cover a wide range of assessment methods and cross-cutting issues, including cumulative effects assessment, social impact assessment, Indigenous-led assessment, risk assessment, climate change, and gender-based assessment. The second part provides jurisdictional reviews of the European Union, the US National Environmental Policy Act, recent assessment reforms in Canada, EIA in developing economies, and the EIA context in England. By providing a concise outline of the process followed by in-depth illustrations of approaches, methods and tools, and case studies, this book will be essential for students, scholars, and practitioners of environmental impact assessment.
