Why Do People Live In Hazardous Environments?

1. Why Do People Live In Hazardous Environments?

2. A Distinction • A hazard is a perceived natural event which threatens both life and property; a disaster is the realisation of this hazard. • A distinction can therefore be made between extreme events in nature, which are not environmental hazards (because people and/or property are not at risk) and environmental hazards in which people and/or property are at risk.

3. A Distinction • Environmental hazards are caused by people’s use of dangerous environments. • A large part of environmental hazards is caused by human behaviour, namely the failure to recognise the potential hazard and act accordingly. • Hence the term “natural hazard” is not a precise description, as natural hazards are not just the result of “natural” events.

4. The Poor • Environmental hazards occur only when people and property are at risk. • Although the cause of the hazard may be geophysical or biological, this is only part of the explanation. • It is because people live in hazardous areas that hazards occur. • So why do people live in such places. • The behavioural school of thought considers that environmental hazards are a result of natural events and people sometimes put themselves at risk, for example, living on floodplains.

5. The Poor • By contrast, the structuralist school of thought stresses the constraints placed on the (poor) people by the prevailing social and political system of the country. • Hence, poor people live in unsafe areas-such as steep slopes or floodplains-because they are prevented from living in better areas. • The school of thought provides a link between environmental hazards and the underdevelopment and economic dependency of many developing countries.

6. Resource Or Hazard? • People choose to live in certain environments because of the resources they bring. • Deltas provide water, silt, fertile soils and the potential for trade and communications. • They are also subject to floods, as shown by the 2008 floods in the Irrawaddy delta (Burma) and those caused by Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans (2005). • Such events are rare. • Most of the time water levels operate at a level where they can be considered a resource.

7. Resource Or Hazard? • The same is true for volcanic environments. • These may provide rich fertile soils and minerals to mine; they may attract tourists and create new land. • However, when the volcano is erupting it may be necessary to evacuate, as in the case of Plymouth in Montserrat (1997) and Chaiten, Chile (2008).

8. Changing Patterns? • In some locations, the sheer number of people triggers hazards. • For example, in megacities the volume of vehicles on roads almost inevitably causes air quality to decline. • The concentration of manufacturing industry in certain regions (e.g. S.E. China and S.E. India) is also linked with a decline in air quality, increasing water pollution acidification. • As more people move into urban areas-whether into slums or formal housing-the risk of hazards increases, since there are more people living in the area and there is more alteration of the natural habitat.

9. Changing Patterns? • In some areas, changing climate patterns and are putting people at risk. • For example, in Southern Spain and Portugal, increasingly dry years are turning large areas into desert. • This natural process is compounded by overuse of water for golf courses and recreational facilities. • Consequently, groundwater levels are declining, soils are dying, vegetation is dying and the land is becoming desertified. • This leads to increased risk of wind and water erosion, and further declines in productivity.

10. Activity Answer the following questions as a poster… • Why do people live in hazardous environments? • Are there any advantages? • How can people make hazards less hazardous? • Do the benefits outweigh the costs? • Can there be some type of sustainability between people and the environment?