Environmental Hazards

A summary of the environmental hazards we are concerned with in this domain to try and narrow our focus. Environmental denotes hazards related to the physical world rather than political/social factors such as mismanagement, embezzlement etc... although these can unavoidably be related.

Geophysical

Seismicity

• Earthquake Ground Movement
  • Visible Progress: + Building quality improvement, - More building near large fault-lines
  • Ground Data: Exposure - https://www.globalquakemodel.org/gem, Quakes - https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map/?extent=-73.01883,161.01563&extent=79.87656,588.51563
• Tsunamis
  • Progress: + Flood barriers on coast, + Easy evacuation routes, - More buildings in hazardous area
  • Ground Data: Limited examples of major tsunamis

Volcanic eruptions

• Direct

  • Visible Progress: + Evacuation routes, + Infer more efficient evacuation from better telecommunications? (cell towers?, richer areas?), - More Buildings in hazardous area
  • Ground Data:

• Volcanic Plumes

  • Visible progress: ?

Meteorological

• Extreme Temperature (Heatwaves & Cold snaps)

  • Visible progress: + More AC/heating (see units on houses or visible heat emissions NIR on sentinel 2?, low-res thermal on sentinel-3?), + More trees/greenery (countering urban heat island effect & avoiding whiteouts on plains?), + Access to water for cooling (see pools, unpolluted lakes?), - Densely populated urban areas for heat, - Worldwide effect of emissions from fossil power plants?
  • Ground Data:

• Storms (Cyclones, Extra-tropical storms, Convective storms)

  • Visible progress: + Better constructed buildings, + Infrastructure for evacuation, + Power plants/lines and houses clear of large trees?
  • Ground Data: meteorological + coastal flooding,

• Fog?

Climatological

• Wildfire (Forest, land, urban)
  • Visible Progress: + Fire Breaks, - Houses in hazardous areas (dry forests), + Infrastructure for evacuation, + Clear forests with less tinder/kindling
  • Ground Data:
• Drought
  • Visible Progress: + Access to drinking water (water towers, unpolluted lakes, mains water distribution), + Irrigation for croplands, - Desertification, - Population growth in arid areas
  • Ground Data:

Hydrological

• Flooding (Coastal, Flash flooding, Ice Jam, Riverine)
  • Visible Progress:
• Landslides (Avalanches, Subsidence, Mudslides, Rockfalls)
  • Visible Progress:
• Wave Action (Rogue waves, seiches)
  • Visible Progress:

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Probably out-of-scope

Biological

• Epidemics, Insect infestations

Extra-Terrestrial

• Meteor impacts, extreme space weather

Technological

• Accidents - transport, industrial...