ENVIRONMENTAL
ISSUES AND
POSSIBLE SOLUTION
MODULE - 2
Primarily disasters are triggered by natural hazards or human-induced, or result from
a combination of both.
In particular, human-induced factors can greatly aggravate the adverse impacts of
a natural disaster.
Even at a larger scale, globally, the UN Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate
Change (IPCC) has shown that human-induced climate change has significantly
increased both the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events.
While heavy rains, cyclones, or earthquakes are all natural, the impacts may, and
are usually, worsened by many factors related to human activity.
The extensive industrialization and urbanization increases both the probability of
human induced disasters, and the extent of potential damage to life and property
from both natural and human-induced disasters. The human society is also
vulnerable to Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) disasters.
Natural Disaster
Any occurrence that causes damage, economic destruction,
loss of human life and deterioration in health and health
services on a scale sufficient to warrant an extraordinary
response from outside the affected community or area.
Natural Disaster Likely to be Encountered
1. Earthquake.
2. Flood
3. Cyclone
4. Tornadoes
5. Hailstorm
6. Epidemics
Earthquake:- An earthquake is a phenomenon that occurs without warning
and involves violent shaking of the ground and everything over it.
It results from the release of accumulated stress of the moving lithospheric or
crustal plates.
The earth's crust is divided into seven major plates, that are about 50 miles
thick, which move slowly and continuously over the earth's interior and several
minor plates.
Earthquakes are tectonic in origin; that is the moving plates are responsible for
the occurrence of violent shakes. The occurrence of an earthquake in a
populated area may cause numerous casualties and injuries as well as
extensive damage to property.
Man Made Disaster
Any occurrence such as large fire, building collapse, Leakage
of chemicals that are hazardous to life, bomb blasts, communal
riots, road and train accidents and plane crash at airport or in
the habitable area that causes damage, economic
destruction, loss of human life, and deterioration in health and
health services on a scale sufficient to warrant an extraordinary
response from outside the affected community or area.
Floods:- India is highly vulnerable to floods. Out of the total geographical
area of 329 million hectares (mha), more than 40 mha is flood prone. Floods
are a recurrent phenomenon, which cause huge loss of lives and damage to
livelihood systems, property, infrastructure and public utilities.
It is a cause for concern that flood related damages show an increasing
trend. The average annual flood damage in the last 10 years period from
1996 to 2005 was Rs. 4745 crore as compared to Rs. 1805 crore, the
corresponding average for the previous 53 years.
This can be attributed to many reasons including a steep increase in
population, rapid urbanization growing developmental and economic
activities in flood plains coupled with global warming.
An average every year, 75 lakh hectares of land is affected, 1600 lives are lost
and the damage caused to crops, houses and public utilities is Rs.1805 crores
due to floods. The maximum number of lives (11,316) was lost in the year 1977.
The frequency of major floods is more than once in five years.
Floods have also occurred in areas, which were earlier not considered flood
prone. An effort has been made in these Guidelines to cover the entire gamut
of Flood Management. Eighty per cent of the precipitation takes place in the
monsoon months from June to September. The rivers a bring heavy sediment
load from catchments.
These, coupled with inadequate carrying capacity of rivers are responsible for
causing floods, drainage congestion and erosion of river-banks. Cyclones,
cyclonic circulations and cloud bursts cause flash floods and lead to huge
losses.
It is a fact that some of the rivers causing damage in India
originate in neighboring countries; adding another complex
dimension to the problem. Continuing and large-scale loss of
lives and damage to public and private property due to
floods indicate that we are still to develop an effective
response to floods.
NDMA's Executive Summary Guidelines have been prepared
to enable the various implementing and stakeholder
agencies to effectively address the critical areas for
minimizing flood damage.
Urban Floods:- Urban flooding is significantly different from rural flooding as
urbanization leads to developed catchments, which increases the flood peaks from
1.8 to 8 times and flood volumes by up to 6 times. Consequently, flooding occurs very
quickly due to faster flow times (in a matter of minutes).
Urban areas are densely populated and people living in vulnerable areas suffer due to
flooding, sometimes resulting in loss of life. It is not only the event of flooding but the
secondary effect of exposure to infection also has its toll in terms of human suffering,
loss of livelihood and, in extreme cases, loss of life.
Urban areas are also centres of economic activities with vital infrastructure which
needs to be protected 24x7. In most of the cities, damage to vital infrastructure has a
bearing not only for the state and the country but it could even have global
implications. Major cities in India have witnessed loss of life and property, disruption in
transport and power and incidence of epidemics. Therefore, management of urban
flooding has to be accorded top priority.
Increasing trend of urban flooding is a universal phenomenon and poses a great
challenge to urban planners the world over. Problems associated with urban floods
range from relatively localized incidents to major incidents, resulting in cities being
inundated from hours to several days. Therefore, the impact can also be widespread,
including temporary relocation of people, damage to civic amenities, deterioration
of water quality and risk of epidemics.
Landslide:- India has the highest mountain chain on earth, the Himalayas, which are
formed due to collision of Indian and Eurasian plate, the northward movement of
the Indian plate towards China causes continuous stress on the rocks rendering
them friable, weak and prone to landslides and earthquakes. The slow motion of the
Indian crust, about 5 cm/year accumulates stress to which natural disasters are
attributed.
Some landslides make unique, and unparalleled catastrophes. Landslides and
avalanches are among the major hydro-geological hazards that affect large parts
of India besides the Himalayas, the Northeastern hill ranges, the Western Ghats, the
Nilgiris, the Eastern Ghats and the Vindhyans, in that order, covering about 15 % of
the landmass.
The Himalayas alone count for landslides of every fame, name and description- big
and small, quick and creeping, ancient and new. The Northeastern region is badly
affected by landslide problems of a bewildering variety. Landslides in the Darjeeling
district of West Bengal as also those in Sikkim, Mizoram, Tripura, Meghalaya, Assam,
Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh pose chronic problems, causing recurring
economic losses worth billions of rupees.
A different variety of landslides, characterized by a lateritic cap, pose constant
threat to the Western Ghats in the South, along the steep slopes overlooking the
Konkan coast besides Nilgiris, which is highly landslide prone.
Some spectacular events of tragedies are reported as Varnavat
landslide, Uttarkashi District, Malpha landslide Pithoragarh district,
Okhimath landslide in Chamoli district, UK and Paglajhora in
Darjeeling district as well as Sikkim, Aizawl sports complex, Mizoram.
These are some of the more recent examples of landslides. The
problem therefore needs to be tackled for mitigation and
management for which hazard zones have to be identified and
specific slides to be stabilized and managed in addition to
monitoring and early warning systems to be placed at selected sites.
Cyclones:- Cyclones are caused by atmospheric disturbances around a
lowpressure area distinguished by swift and often destructive air circulation.
Cyclones are usually accompanied by violent storms and bad weather.
The air circulates inward in an anticlockwise direction in the Northern
hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern hemisphere.
Cyclones are classified as: (i) extra tropical cyclones (also called temperate
cyclones); and (ii) tropical cyclones. The word Cyclone is derived from the
Greek word Cyclos meaning the coils of a snake. It was coined by Henry
Peddington because the tropical storms in the Bay of Bengal and the
Arabian Sea appear like coiled serpents of the sea.
Tsunami:- The Earth's lithosphere is broken up into a bunch of discrete pieces,
called plates that move around the surface of the planet. There are seven or
eight major plates (depending on how they are defined) and many minor
plates. This motion is driven by the flow of the mantle rock beneath the plates
and by the forces plates exert at their boundaries where they touch each
other.
Earthquakes happen when plates move with respect to each other because
of the friction and stress at the edges of plates prevents them from slipping
smoothly at their boundaries. When one plate is forced to dive beneath
another plate, there is no way to do it except with some component of vertical
motion creating tsunami
Heat Wave:- A Heat Wave is a period of abnormally high
temperatures, more than the normal maximum temperature
that occurs during the summer season in the North-Western
parts of India. Heat Waves typically occur between March and
June, and in some rare cases even extend till July.
The extreme temperatures and resultant atmospheric
conditions adversely affect people living in these regions as
they cause physiological stress, sometimes resulting in death.
The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has given the following criteria
for Heat Waves :
Heat Wave need not be considered till maximum temperature of a station
reaches atleast 40*C for Plains and atleast 30*C for Hilly regions
When normal maximum temperature of a station is less than or equal to 40*C
Heat Wave Departure from normal is 5*C to 6*C Severe Heat Wave Departure
from normal is 7*C or more
When normal maximum temperature of a station is more than 40*C Heat Wave
Departure from normal is 4*C to 5*C Severe Heat Wave D eparture from
normal is 6*C or more
When actual maximtemperatureum remains 45*C or more irrespective of
normal maximum temperature, heat waves should be declared.
Likely Fall Outs of Man Made Disaster
1. Failure of services like Electricity, Water Supply, Telephone, Large scale
Causalities.
2. Damage to property
3. Disrupted Life.
4. Loss of Business.
5. Delay in Returning to normal life.
6. Mental Agony.
7. Severe Stresses.