Causes and Effects of Earthquakes

I think ive got just about everything, but I guess I'll edit later

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  • Created by: Kerrie
  • Created on: 12-01-13 01:14

Causes and Effects of Earthquakes

Causes

  • Two tectonic plates are moving side by side, due to the convection current in the Earth's mantle.
  • This is known as a conservative plate boundary.
  • The plates do not move smoothly however, they are rough and jagged.
  • The two plates snag and this begins a build-up of pressure.
  • Eventually, the two plates will release and the pressure that was built will be released in the form of seismic waves.
  • This then causes an earthquake.
  • An example of an earthquake which occurred recently was the 2010 Haitian earthquake which took place on January 12th. The earthquake was of magnitude 7.0 and the plates involved were the North American and Caribbean plate.

Effects

  • Social Effects:
  • People may be killed or injured in the disaster. Homes and other buildings are destroyed. Transport and other communication links are often disrupted or completely destroyed. Water pipes can burst, which may cause a contaminated water supply causing disease.
  • Economic Effects:
  • Shops and businesses may be destroyed, people may begin to loot in order to get supplies or just out of theft. Damaged transport links may make it difficult to gain income/trade products and these will need to be repaired, costing a lot of money. Also the cost of rebuilding settlements is very high so income will be lost.
  • Environmental Effects:
  • Built up areas and landscapes are destroyed. Fires from things such as gas pipe explosions damage areas of woodland. Tsunamis may come from the earthquake.
  • In relation to my case study of Haiti, use examples such as the capital Port-Au-Prince being destroyed, the hospital in the capital collapsing therefore there was a lack of medical aid. Many of the poorly built buildings collapsed due to poor foundations as the country is one of the poorest in the Western Hemisphere. (LIC, Low Income Country)

Overall summary

Overall, the causes of earthquakes are due to plates moving side by side and then snagging causing a buildup of pressure which is released in the form of seismic waves. Effects of the earthquake are mostly centered around the destruction of buildings and woodland areas, the injury/death/illnesses of people and the high amount of money which is needed to pay the damage costs.

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