The Restless Earth
- Created by: Freya Woolley
- Created on: 14-05-15 13:02
Case Study- The Andes
7000km long
300km wide
4000km av. height
Destructive Margin
S. American Plate and Nazca Plate
Venezuela, Columbia, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Chile and Argentina
Aconcagua in Argetina- Hightest peak
Case Study- The Andes- Farming
Subsistence farming in rural Peru and Bolivia
Plots are small in Peru called Chacras
Steps are cut in hillside (terracing)- flat level to farm on
Unfertile soil made fertile by trapping rain with bunds giving rain time to infiltrate soil and add moisture and nutrients- increased productivity
Lower valley- cash crops rice, sugar, bananas and cotton
Middle zones- 750-1850m- hardy varieties of wheat corn and potatoes
Highest zones- plus 1850m llamas and Alpacas reared- meat, milk, clothes and transport
Llamas carry materials for irrigation in inhospitable and inaccessible areas
Can carry 25% of their body weight
Case Study- The Andes- Tourism
The Inca Trail- The Ancient Highway- 45km treck- 3 routes
Historical, educational, recreation
250 species of orchids
Sacred city of the Incas- Machu Picchu
Rafting on Umbamba River
Thermal Springs in Aguas Calientas
Varied landscape, volcanoes, valleys, glaciers, mountains.
Birds, llamas, alpacas and orchids
Case Study- The Andes- HEP
Hydro Electric Power- renewale energy contained in flowing water
Yuncan HEP project
2 dams across Paucartambo and Huanchon rivers in NE Lima
Volume of reservoir 63,000m2
Output per year 901GWh
Narrow valleys- easier and cheaper to dam
Steep slopes- The steeper relief encourages the rapid fall of water which is needed to ensure the generation of electicity
Snow capped mountains and high precipitation- snow melts in spring which will increse supply of water to the dam. High precipitation means there is enough water in the river all year
Case Study- The Andes- Mining
Yanacocha gold mine- Northern Peru, 30km north of Cajamarca
251km2 open pit
Cajamarca has grown from 30,000 to 240,000 people
Latin America's largest and most profitable gold mine
Created 1,600 jobs
Geological conditions make it economical to exploit
Water has been polluted with cyanide and mercury making it brown
The locals traditional way of life destroyes
Fish are dying (trout)
Visual intrusion
Murcury spill in 2000
Cae Study- Mount St Helens
Where: Cascade Mountains USA
When: 10th May 1980- 8:32am
Boundary: Destructive, Juan de Fuca plate sinks benath N american plate
Friction- heat from core melts edge of oceanic plate into magma
expands, less dense, rises through convection forcing its way to earths surface
Case Study- Mount St Helens- Effects
Primary Effects
- NW flank blew outwards in explosion
- ash cloud 15 miles into atmosphere in 15 mins
- spirit lake filled with ash depth of 60m
- Every tree in 250km2 destroyed
- Mud cascaded down the mountain 50-80 miles/hr (due to melted snow by ash gases)
- 57 people killed
Secondary effects
- Economic loss in short term
- Enviromental loss in short term
- Ecosystem returned ash increases fertility and tourism increased (positive)
- Media intrest after eruption brought tourists
- Unemployment, fishing industries ceased trading as fish hatcheries destroyed
- Cost off regenerating, replanting and repbuilding
- Roads blocked
- Houses destroyed
Case Study- Mount St Helens- Responses
Immediate Responses
- Volunteers- assisted S+R, look for friends and family
- President- sent 2 million masks- when shortage
- Emergency services/hospitals- medical treatment in nearby towns
- Forestry service- Rescue operation- 170 peope, remove fallen timber
- Military- mobalise helicopters, rescue survivors, clear ash 3 days later, use pumps to drain water and ash from spirit lake
- County Sheriff- co-ordinates and manages
Long term responses
- Forestry service- replant after removing timber
- Construction companies, military and goverment- rebuild bridges buildings- to bring tourists back,
- drainage systems, road to N reopened in 1990
- Local authority- designed a national momumnet in 1982- Johnston Observatory 1997
- Transform area $1.4million - 3mill visitors/yr
- Tourist industry recovered
- Scientists- research and monitor to prodect and prepare
What is an earthquake?
An event of intense ground shaking due to the moevement of plates. Can happen at all plate boundaries- weak points or cracks are created called the focus
The focus emits shock waves in all directions. The point on the surface directly above the focus is worst effected- the epicenter
What makes earthquakes have greater impacts?
Depth of focus- less energy lost
Type of plate boundary
Magnitude
Location of epicenter- denesly pop. area- near mountains, amplifies shock waves
Building design and construction- steel frames, deeep foundations
Time of day/week year
Public awareness and preperation
Wealth of country
Well organised goverment department- co-ordinate disaster management
Relief/ geology- loosley packed soil- liquefaction
Emergency serives
Seismic waves
Surface waves- arrive later and cause the most damage- tansverse and longitudinal
Primary- travel very quickly through solids or liquids
Secondary- through rock and are slower than primary
Case Study- Kobe Earthquake MEDC
When: 5:46am, 17th January 1995
Where: Kobe, Japan, SW, Awaji Island
Magnitude: 7.2
Tectonic setting: philippines plate (oceanic) shifted uneasily beneath the Eurasian plate (continental) along the Nojima fault line
Japan lies on the edge of the edge of the pacific plate (PRF) very tectonically active
Case Study- Kobe Earthquake- Effects- MEDC
Primary Effects
- Liquefaction where sediment is transformed into a liquid due to intense shaking- building collapse
- 5,500 dead
- 35,000 injuries
- 80,000 building badly damaged
- 67,000 buildings destroyed
- 90% of port berths destroyed
- 20km Hanshin Expressway destroyed
Secondary Effects
- 300,000 homeless
- 100 fires started in mins
- No electricity for 900,000 people
- Panasonic and Mitsubishi closed losing 20,000 jobs and $11mill from lost trade
- New jobs in construction
- Economic recovery cost $220bill
- Economic loss $147billion
Case Study- Kobe Earthquake- Responses- MEDC
Immediate
- Friends searched through rubble for survivors
- Hospitals provided medical treatment- treating and operating in corridors
- Emergency services co-ordinated S and R
- *** Goverment $10bil contingency fund- relief effort- rebuilding, relief grants victims
Medium
- Retailers 7-elen provided essential food and water
- Motorola maintain telephone connections free of charge
- The railways were repaired and 80% operational by July
Long Term
- Hanshin Expressway was operational by Sept 1996, a year later the port was 80% operational
- The *** Goverement set new building codes, all new buildings had to be retrofitted with flexible steel frames and rubber blocks to absorb shock.
- Buildings also built further apart to avoid domino effect and spread of fires
Case Study- Latur Earthquake- LEDC
Where: Latur District, Mahastra, Central W India
When: 03:56am, September 30th 1993
Magnitude: 6.4
Tectonic setting: Collision Margin, Indian and Eurasian Plates (continental) Himalayan mountains formed-pressure is released alonf fault line
Not at the edge of plate- unexpected 2% of EQs are intraplate
Case Study- Latur Earthquake- Effects- LEDC
Primary
- Main area effected- mahastra state. Epicentre at Kallari District. Latur. Primarilly affected the districts Latur and Osmanabas
- Extensive damge to life and property
- 20,000 killed
- 30,000 people injured
- 15,854 livestock killed
- 52 villages destroyed, 27,000 houses, schools and infrastructure destroyed
- 30,000 houses collasped
Secondary
- Homelessness
- Stress/grief- 60% pop. suffered from post- traumaticstress, 8-20% needed psychological help
- People turned to drink and gambling
- Family break down- 138 widows, 340 orphans
- Farming production ceased
- Construction boom- av wage rates doubled
- Cost of rebuilding $140mill
Case Study- Latur Earthquake- Responses- LEDC
Immediate
- Indian Army, State Reserve, police and central reserve carried out S+R
- Dead bodies trapped under debris were removed
- International Gov. and NGO's provided 120 trucks with tents, blankets, food, water, clothing and medical supplies
- World Bank, Asain Development Bank, NOGs and Indian Gov. provided first aid and mediacal aid
Long Term
- Goverment formulated a rehabilitation policy within 6 months and order the construction of new houses in new village sited away from known fault lines
- New homes were dome shaped and designed to be quake proof
- Red cross constructed 3 rural hospitals as well as medical centres
- Funds from Gov. and World Bank paid for new wells and cattle farmers
- A new disaster management organisation established to improve prediction and preparation
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