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Global hazards case studies (Australian Drought (Why is Australia so dry?,…

- - - - Steep valley sides
      - Lack of vegetation
      - Impermeable rock
      - Saturated ground
      - Heavy rainfall over a short period of time
      - Small, round basin
  - - - Wind blowing anti-clockwise around the low pressure area
      - Air arrived into Boscastle from SW direction
        » warm, moist tropical maritime air mass
        » brings convection rainfall
      - Trough line caused very heavy rain and thunderstorms
      - A line of convergence formed near the coast line
        » produced very heavy rain
      - Heavy rain prior to August 2004 saturated the ground
      - Rainfall in the highlands was channelled into Boscastle
      - over 60mm (two months worth) of rain fell in 2 hours
      - 2Bn litres of water flowed through the valley
      - River rose in height by 2m in one hour
    - - No flood barriers
      - Old sewer and drainage system
        » Filled up very quickly
      - Bridge caused material to get stuck behind, creating a temporary dam
      - Residents had never experienced a major flood event and so were unprepared
      - Urbanisation
        » impermeable surface
        » Stops infiltration and increases surface run-off
  - - - 1000 residents and tourists affected
      - 58 properties damaged and 6 completely destroyed
    - - £2Mn worth of damage
      - 25 businesses destroyed
      - Tourism industry devastated – 90% of Boscastle's income is from tourism
      - Roads blocked by water, silt and debris
        » Difficult to get emergency services
      - 100 cars, vans and campervans washed out to sea
    - - 4 bridges carried away
      - Trees uprooted and carried downstream
  - - - Police, fire brigade and coast guard responded in minutes
      - 150 airlifted to safety by 7 RAF helicopters
      - Temporary shelters put up for those evacuated
      - National media coverage
    - - 1850 tons of silt and debris cleared
      - Rivers Jordan channel relief made longer
      - River straightening to move water out of town more quickly
      - River banks and flood walls were raised
      - New technology developed to help predict flooding events more accurately
      - £4.5Mn dedicated to flood defense scheme
- - - - Abnormally hot weather
      - Failed rains
    - - Mismanagement of available water resources
      - Water meters and methods were out of date
        
        Agriculture was wasting water
        
        Farmers upstream were using too much water
  - - - ^rural suicide rates
      - Rural communities had no water
      - Mass migration to wetter areas
      - 13 dairy farms closed
    - - Farmers had to sell cattle
      - Wheat production and exports dropped by 46%
      - Food prices increased
      - Energy and water prices increased by 20%
    - - Grassland transformed into scrubland
      - Increased number of wildfires
      - Loss of vegetation, wildlife, biodiversity and soil erosion and sanitation —6Mn sheep died
      - River Murray dried up in places—down 50%
      - Water quality dropped
      - Toxic Algal outbreaks
  - - - Govt. dedicated $10Bn to national water management plan
      - Water management policy reform
      - Grey-water recycling
      - Desalination plants
      - Drought resistant crops
      - Tougher restrictions on industrial use
    - - Precision Agriculture
        
        A farming management concept of observing, measuring and responding to inter and intra-field variability in crops
- - - - Social:
        
        3Mn people affected
        
        over 230 000 deaths
        
        300 000 injured
        
        1.3Mn made homeless
        
        Several hospitals collapsed
      - Economic:
        
        30,000 commercial buildings collapsed
        
        Businesses destroyed
        
        Damage to the main clothing industry
        
        Airport and port damaged
    - - over 2Mn inhabitants left without water
      - Looting became a serious problem
      - Destruction of many government buildings hindered the government's efforts to control Haiti, and the police force collapsed
      - Damage to port and main roads
        » help and reconstruction were prevented from arriving or being distributed effectively
      - Displaced people moved into tents and temporary shelters
        » outbreaks of Cholera
      - Frequent power cuts
      - Many dead bodies in the streets and under the rubble
        » health hazard in the heat
        » mass graves
    - - Shallow depth—waves maintained more energy
      - Struck in most densely populated area of country
      - Haiti is the poorest country in W hemisphere—$600 GPD pc
      - Buildings were in poor condition
      - 3Mn inhabitants of Port au Prince with majority living in slum conditions
      - Only one runway—control tower was badly damaged
      - Port unusable
      - Shortage of doctors
      - Not enough water and food
      - Lack of trucks and people to distribute aid
  - - - Dominican Republic provided emergency water, medical supplies and heavy machinery for search and rescue
      - Emergency rescue teams arrived from many countries, eg. Iceland
      - Medical teams began treating the injured, temporary field hospitals set up by the Red Cross
      - Many people around the world pledged money
      - UN troops and police sent to help distribute aid and keep order
    - - Schools being rebuilt
      - Small farmers being supported so crops can be grown
      - 'Cash for work' programs paying Haitians to clear rubble
      - Money pledged by organisations and governments