ST CLARE COLLEGE, PEMBROKE SECONDARY EUROPEAN STUDIES GROUP ELLIE BORG, NILAI BUGEJA, LEONARDO PROCOPIO, ALIZEE VELLA - BESAFENET

St Clare College, Pembroke Secondary European Studies Group (Ellie
Borg, Nilai Bugeja, Leonardo Procopio, Alizee Vella.
Theme: Natural and Technological Hazards
Introduction:
Major hazards are those threats that pose an especially significant threat
to the health and safety of people. Hazards can be split in two categories,
those originating from natural causes and others originating from
technological hazards.

Part 1: Natural hazards
A natural hazard is a threat of a naturally occurring event that has a
negative effect on humans and is called a natural disaster. Natural Hazards
are the result of naturally occurring processes that have operated
throughout Earth's history with the most hazardous process being
Geological Processes. Geological processes effect every human on the
Earth all the time but are most noticeable when they cause loss of life or
property. If the process that poses the hazard occurs and destroys human
life or property, then a natural disaster has occurred.
Among the natural hazards and possible disasters to be considered
are:
Landscape Fires
The ‘landscape’, ‘bushfire’ or ‘forest-fire’ problem is exemplified by the
destruction of homes and human lives by landscape fires raging out of
control. One of these fires can be caused either by man (by lighting up a fire
which then starts expanding) or by natural heat from the sun.

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Earthquakes
An earthquake is a sudden, rapid shaking of the ground caused by the
shifting of rocks deep underneath the earth’s surface. Earthquakes can
cause fires, tsunamis, landslides or avalanches and they can happen
anywhere without warning. Earthquakes can range in size from those that
are so weak that they cannot be felt to those violent enough to propel
objects and people into the air and wreak destruction across entire cities.

Tsunamis
Tsunamis are giant waves caused by earthquakes or volcanic eruptions
under the sea. As the waves travel inland, they build up to higher and
higher heights as the depth of the ocean decreases. The speed of tsunami
waves depends on ocean depth rather than the distance from the source
of the wave. Tsunami waves may travel as fast as jet planes over deep
waters, only slowing down when reaching shallow waters.

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Volcano Eruptions
Volcanic eruptions happen when lava and gas are discharged from a
volcanic vent. Deep within the Earth it is so hot that some rocks slowly melt
and become a thick flowing substance called magma. Since it is lighter than
the solid rock around it, magma rises and collects in magma chambers.
Eventually, some of the magma pushes through vents and fissures to the
Earth's surface. Magma that has erupted is called lava. Explosive volcanic
eruptions can be dangerous and deadly.

Landslides
A landslide occurs when a very large piece of rock, earth or any other
material precipitates down a steep slope destroying houses or even
villages. They happen when a layer of earth or rock separates from the one
below it causing a disaster. Unfortunately, there is nothing we can do to
avoid these fatal Landslides.

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Avalanches
Similar to Landslides, Avalanches are a fast downhill movement of snow
that can be caused either something natural like an earthquake or by a man
made object such as Skiis, snowmobiles or a vibration caused by an object.
It is estimated that an average of 100 skiers per year die due to an
avalanche.

Floods
A flood is an overflow of water which submerges a piece of land that is
usually dry causing a disaster and many deaths. They usually happen when
the sea level rises up all at once and people
 can’t do anything about. They can also happen due to a lot of rainfall but
there is a solution to them. One of these includes increasing vegetation
which absorbs a lot of water or creating many manholes.

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Hydro meteorological Hazards

Sea Level Rise
Sea level is the level of the sea’s surface, used in reckoning the height of
geographical features such as hills and as a barometric standard. The mean
sea level (MSL) is an average level of the surface of one or more of Earth’s
oceans from which heights such as elevations may be measured. A sea level
rise is an increase in global mean sea level as a result of an increase in the
volume of water in the world’s oceans. Sea level rise may be caused by the
following: ocean warming (thermal expansion), global warming, eustasy,
isostasy, melting of ice sheets & glaciers, decline in water storage on land
and ice loss from Greenland & West Antarctica. When sea level rises, even
a slight increase can have devastating ecological effects, and has negative
impacts on coastal habitats farther inland, it can cause destructive erosion,
wetland flooding, aquifer and agricultural soil contamination with salt and
lost habitat for fish, birds and plants.

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Hurricanes & Storms
A hurricane is storm with a violent wind, in particular a tropical cyclone in
the Caribbean. A hurricane is very strong and intense tropical weather
system that rotates in a large circular formation. Hurricanes conditions
occur when warm, moist air evaporates from the surface of the ocean and
rises quickly. This warm air meets cool air in the higher elevations that
causes condensation of the warm air vapor. The condensation turns into
storm clouds that make up hurricanes. A storm is a violent disturbance of
the atmosphere with strong winds and usually rain, thunder, lightning and
snow. Storms form when warm, moist air rises into cold air. The warm air
becomes cooler, which causes moisture, called water vapor, to form small
water droplets - a process called condensation.

Drought & Desertification
A drought is a period of time when an area or region experiences below-
normal precipitation. The lack of adequate precipitation, either rain or
snow, can cause reduced soil moisture or groundwater, diminished
stream flow, crop damage, and a general water shortage. A drought is
caused by drier than normal conditions that can eventually lead to water
supply problems. Really hot temperatures can make a drought worse by
causing moisture to evaporate from the soil. Desertification is a type of
land degradation in drylands in which biological productivity is lost due to
natural processes or induced by human activities whereby fertile areas
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become increasingly arid. Overgrazing is the major cause of
desertification worldwide. Other factors that cause desertification include
urbanization, climate change, overuse of groundwater, deforestation,
natural disasters, and tillage practices in agriculture that make soils more
vulnerable to wind. Drought and desertification are closely related.
Inappropriate land use, such as monocultures, and unsustainable land
management practices, such as deforestation, unsuitable agricultural
practices and overexploitation of water resources), can cause land
degradation that can be further aggravated by drought.

Part 2: Technological Hazards

Technological hazards are hazards originating from technological or
industrial accidents, dangerous procedures, infrastructure failures or
specific human activities that may cause the loss of life or injury, property
damage, social and economic disruption or environmental degradation.
Examples of technological hazards include industrial pollution, nuclear
radiation, toxic wastes, dam failures, transport, industrial or technological
accidents (explosions, fires, chemical spills)

Dam Failures
Dam failures or otherwise known as dam burst is a catastrophic type of
failure which is caused by the sudden, rapid and uncontrolled release of
confine water. A dam is a barrier across flowing water that obstructs,
which directs or slows down the flow, which often creates reservoir, lake
or impoundments. Most dams have a section which is called a spillway or
weir over or through were water flows either intermittently or

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continuously, and some have a hydroelectric power generation system
installed.

Radiological emergencies
Radiological emergencies or radiation emergencies includes nuclear
emergencies such as the explosion of a nuclear weapon, dirty bombs,
radiological exposure devices and nuclear power plant accidents. The
explosion produces an extraordinary amount of heat, light, pressure and
radiation. Nuclear explosions produce radioactive materials which can be
carried long distances by the wind.

Chemical emergencies
A chemical emergency occurs when a hazardous chemical has been
released, the result of the release can be very harmful for people's
health. Chemical releases can be unintentional like the case of an
industrial accident or it can be intentional like the case of a terrorist
attack where hazardous chemicals come from. Chemical accidents do

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happen at home and in the community, you may be exposed to a
chemical in these ways, touching the chemical or encountering clothing
or things that have touched the chemical in any way. Chemical
emergencies happen when the air is poisoned with harmful chemicals, or
when chemicals are used to contaminate food or put in drinking water.
These chemicals can be breathed in, absorbed through the skin or
ingested by eating or drinking water.

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