Global Hazards

What are the main types of

physical risks facing he world
and how big a threat are they?
Areas at risk
 Key terms
• Asthenosphere - the lower layer of the crust
• Benioff zone- is a deep active seismic area in a
subduction zone .
• Desertification
• Drought
• Earthquake- destructive, constructive,
conservative
• Epicentre
• Focus
• Flood- discharge, recurrence interval, flood
frequency curve
Key terms

• Hurricane
• Typhoon
• Cyclones
• Lahar
• Lava
• Active, dormant, extinct
• Caldera
 Key terms
• Liquefaction
• Magma
• Richter scale/Mercalli scale/ Moment
Magnitude
• Seismograph- instrument measures p, s and
l waves
• Strom surge
• Tornado
• Tsunami
• Volcanic plume
Disaster risk equation

• R= HxV
• C
• R= Risk of disaster
• H= hazards
• V= Vulnerability
• C= Capacity to cope decreases
Global warming

• Assessing the risk of Global

warming
• Watch the DVD – Inconvenient
Truth- Al Gore
• Global warming swindle
• Gives you a perspective from
both sides.
How and why are natural hazards now
becoming seen as an increasing
global threat?

• Disasters of the Week: Archives 2005

• BBC NEWS | World | Europe | Italy rescuers
comb quake rubble
• This website gives you statistics of the
frequency of the top six global natural
hazards
• http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/to
p10/article/0,30583,1686204_1686252_1690
260,00.html
• List them
Human and natural activities causing
increasing disaster scenarios

• We will look at storms, floods

and population change
• YouTube - Increase of natural di
sasters and famines
The increase of natural disasters-
Physical and Human factors

• Global warming
• El- Nino and La Nina
• YouTube - Ocean & Atmosphere - El Nino,
Walker Circulation
• YouTube – Deforestation
• YouTube - poverty and world hunger
• YouTube - Immigration Numbers Rise --
Environment Suffers
• YouTube - China: Changing horizons,
changing diet
Why are some places more hazardous
and disaster prone than others?

• You need to explore the local area to

assess the risks to natural hazards such as
flooding and global warming
• Chatham vs. Dover
• Do primary data collections and secondary
data research on the internet. Use
maps(past/present)
• Get data from the local authority
• Environmental assessments
• Use a world map- explore plate boundaries
• YouTube - Plate Tectonics Explained
Disaster hotspots

• http://www.worldmapper.org/pos
ters/worldmapper_map247_ver5.
pdf
Case studies to learn

• California coast (pages 31-32)

• Phillipines- a vulnerable
location (pages33 -34)
• Learn these case studies.
Global warming- short term
phenomenon or part of a longer
term climate change?
• Longer term- pollen analysis,ice
cores, past glacial/sea level change
• Medium term- historical records, tree
rings, retreating glaciers
• Short term- scientific research from
weather, ocean, polar ice and
ecosystem change
Is climate change unprecedented or is
it caused by human beings?

• Watch the DVD – “Inconvenient

Truth”- Al Gore
• “Global warming swindle”- video
• These resources will allow you
to make up your own mind
about Climate change.
Case studies

• You need to learn about

environmental and ecological
impacts on the Arctic region
• The complexities of economic
impacts across the African
continent and how it could lead
to disasters for poor people
Africa- the economic
impact on the poor
• Pages 45-46
• Why is this region susceptible to disaster?
• What climate change is occurring on this
continent?
• Give reasons
• How does this impact on food production?
• What is arable land?
• What is water stress/
• How will water stress impact on the African
community by 2020?

• What indirect impacts are there?

• List three examples and explain your answer.
The Artic

• YouTube - NORTH POLE ICE

CRACKING (global warming,
Arctic, climate)
• YouTube - Ice cap in north pole
is gone before 2027
You need to
• How does sea level rise impact on
the South Sea Islands?
• BBC News | Sci/Tech | Islands
disappear under rising seas
• Or Bangladesh? BBC News Player
• Research the different scenarios and
models in predicting future trends in
rising sea levels
• Explore the concept of a “Tipping
Point”
Strategies for coping
with Climate Change
• You need to weigh up
adaptation strategies using a
range of examples of each
• Kyoto agreement 1995
• Agenda 21
• Act Local , Think Global- what
are we doing in the UK?
How do we tackle the global
challenges of increasing risk and
vulnerability in a more hazardous
world?
• How is the UK trying to alleviate
the problems to make the world
more sustainable?
• Plant a tree
• Innovation
• Alternatives to coal and oil
• Reducing our carbon footprint
• Alternatives to fossil fuels