natural hazards

• A natural hazard is a natural event (for example, flood, volcanic eruption, earthquake, tropical storm) that threatens people or has the potential to cause damage, destruction and death.
• Tectonic hazards are created through the movement of the Earth’s tectonic plates.
• Hazards to humans created in the atmosphere, such as tropical storms, droughts and tornadoes, are atmospheric hazards.
• Hazards originating on or near the Earth’s surface, such as landslides, flooding and mudflows, are considered geomorphological hazards.
• Hazards posed by living things, e.g. forest fires, are biological hazards.
• Hazard risk is the probability or chance that a natural hazard may take place.
• Factors that affect hazard risk from natural hazards:

  • Urbanisation: densely populated areas are at greater risk of natural hazards
  • Development: higher-income countries (HICs) are better equipped to cope with natural hazards than lower-income countries (LICs) due to better infrastructure, emergency response, monitoring and predicting systems, health care systems, and resources for protection like earthquake-proof buildings
  • Land use: Changes such as deforestation and urbanisation can increase hazard risk for climatic and geomorphological hazards
• • Climate change: The magnitude and frequency of some climatic hazards like droughts and tropical storms will be influenced by climate change
  • Geographical location: Some places are more at risk of natural hazards based on their location, e.g. countries around the Pacific Ring of Fire are more prone to volcanic eruptions and earthquakes