Unit 2: Disasters and Development
Syllabus & Past Papers
UNIT -2
Inter-relationship between Disasters and Development
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Disaster Challenges Development
Disasters and development are closely linked. Disasters can both destroy development initiatives and create development opportunities. Development schemes can both increase and decrease vulnerability. In the traditional approach to disasters, the attitude was that the disasters, especially natural ones, were an act of god and as such were beyond human control; accepting death and damage to property was part of the costs. With such an attitude, most development plans were designed without consideration for the effect disasters would have on community plans and vice versa.
When a disaster did occur, the response was directed at meeting emergency needs and cleaning up.
In the current approach, it has been realised that much more can and need to be done to reduce the severity of hazards and disasters. A growing body of knowledge on the relationships between disasters and development indicates four basic themes as follows:
Disasters set back development programming, destroying years of development initiatives. Rebuilding after a disaster provides opportunities to initiate development programmes.
Development Results into Disaster
Development programmes can increase an area’s susceptibility to disasters. Development programmes can be designed to decrease the susceptibility to disasters and their negative consequences.
Thus, the policy makers cannot ignore the relationship between the disaster and development. Projects are thus being designed to include disaster recovery programmes and with long term development needs in mind. Disasters can significantly impede the effectiveness of development resource allocation.
The unplanned and excessive development to build facilities for human-beings leads to the
Disaster Management Plan aimed at identifying the different potential disasters that could impact the development.
Here we understand the disaster/development interface. Disasters and development are linked closely in that disasters can both destroy development initiatives and create development opportunities, and that development schemes can both increase and decrease vulnerability.
How disasters can vary from one type of hazard to another, as well as from one type of economic condition to another.
Analyze the mitigational benefits of development alternatives in both the pre- and post-disaster context.
The role of UN agencies, NGOs, and the affected communities in promoting development based on the concepts discussed in the module. Disasters and Development, initially was designed to introduce this aspect of disaster management to an audience of UN organization professionals who form disaster management teams, as well as to government counterpart agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and donors.
The educational process has been designed to increase the audience's awareness of the nature and management of disasters, in order to lead to better performance in disaster preparedness and response.
UNDP/UNDRO Disaster Management Manual and its principles, procedures, and terminology.
To ensure that NDMP achieves effective risk reduction, response and recovery, this COBIT principle could be applied to balance the needs of various stakeholders with respect to benefits, risk and resources. It is interesting to note that, Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), an important aspect of NDMP is defined in the broad context of sustainable development
Factors affecting vulnerabilities
A powerful earthquake measuring 6.6 at the Richter scale struck SOUTHEASTERN IRAN on 26th December, 2003 at 5:26:52 AM (local time) and caused enormous loss of life, and near total destruction of physical assets, killing 30,000 people and injured another 30,000. The health and education infrastructure was severely damaged and over 85% houses collapsed.
A super cyclone slammed the state of Orissa on October 29, 1999 with a wind speed of 270-300 kmph, accompanied by torrential rains ranging from 400 mm to 867 mm continuously for three days. Over 7 lakh buildings were completely damaged and 13 lakh buildings were partially damaged.
Differential Impacts:
Impacts of development projects such as dams
Embankments,
Changes in land use etc.
Biodiversity and Land Use
Biodiversity – the diversity of life on Earth – is the provider of all services the human well-being depends on: For example, plants and animals provide food, ecosystems ensure water provision, carbon sequestration and climate regulation. With the increasing pressure by humans to access these services by intensive land use, conflicts arise between the more direct and potentially profitable services like food and fiber provision and the more long-term and less visible services which are mainly maintained by less intensive forms of use.
Within this context, research on biodiversity and land use has to look at the political and societal context of these conflicts as well as the underlying consequences for ecosystems – and last not least, single species and the pressures we put on them, either by direct use (for example in fisheries) or by the destruction of their natural habitats. Especially in Europe, the latter one has lead to long lists of endangered species, but also to EU legislation like the Flora-Fauna-Habitat and the Birds-Directive. This European and even global perspective links more directly as in other fields to local decisions on land use management, thus leading to the need of a highly integrated approach for the according research.
Societal impact and strategic research objectives
With increasing population across the globe, more integrative approaches which sustain the services provided by ecosystems are urgently needed. To provide options for such a management is the major challenge for the research. For this, also the basic knowledge on biodiversity and its functional role within ecosystems, either unused or intensively use by man, has to be studied.
Political and administrative frame
With its integrative nature, the field links different policy fields: With environmental and especially nature conservation policy at its center, it tackles agricultural (CAP). Forestry and fisheries and urban development policies.
Main sub-fields and areas
- Impacts of climate change & land use change on biodiversity
- Maintaining the land’s capacity to provide ecosystem services for human well-being
- Effective monitoring of status and trends of biodiversity
- Functional role of biodiversity in providing ecosystem services
- Management of conflicts between land use and biodiversity conservations)
Approach
As a broad range of disciplines between natural and social sciences are involved in the field, he approaches and methods used within the field are diverse. On the basic science side this includes inventories of species’ abundances and their trends over time, including the analysis of underlying drivers and the measurement of processes in ecosystems (like nutrient fluxes, water use and productivity). On the social science side this includes the analysis of policies and management of land use; in order to make these results relevant for society, the integration of disciplinary work is of high relevance.
Climate Change Adaption
Global surface temperature increased 0.74 ± 0.18 °C during the last century. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concludes that most of the observed temperature increase since the middle of the 20th century is caused by increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases resulting from human activity such as fossil fuel burning and deforestation.
Global average temperature is predicted to increase over this century, with a probable increase in frequency of some extreme weather events, and changes in rainfall patterns. Some of the physical impacts of climate change are irreversible at continental and global scales. Sea level is expected to rise. Climate change will likely result in reduced diversity of ecosystems and the extinction of many species.
The impacts on human systems of climate change will probably be distributed unevenly. Some regions and sectors are expected to experience benefits while others will experience costs. With human systems, adaptation potential for climate change impacts is considerable, although the costs of adaptation are largely unknown and potentially large.
Societal impact and strategic research objectives
Climate change has a growing priority in society and politics. Time, energy and money is required not only for stabilizing or reducing the emissions of greenhouse gases, but also for adapting to the warmer and more extreme climate. To ensure that the emission of greenhouse gases is reduced, research is needed into alternatives for fossil fuels, such as wind energy or solar energy.
In addition, research is needed into new technologies to make existing energy sources more climate-friendly and methods to reduce emissions from the transport sector. Researchers are also studying how greenhouse gases can be sequestered by means of forestry or agriculture.
We need to determine whether our cities can still expand without risking flooding. Researchers are involved with estimating flooding risks in specific areas and designing scenarios for an evacuation in case of a disaster. Nature must also adapt, and the question here is how land development can take place so that plants and animals can survive the new climatological conditions. Agriculture is also faced with adaptational strategies.
Political and administrative frame
In 1992 the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change was signed asking for a stabilizing of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interferences with the climate system.
As a first step towards this goal the Kyoto Protocol was signed in 1997, which asks the developed world to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 5.2 % between 1990 and 2010.
The European Union has ratified the Kyoto Protocol, i.e. it has agreed to reduce its emissions by 8%, in order to contribute to the overall reduction of 5.2 %. The Protocol became international law on 16 February 2005.
European policies to implement the Kyoto Protocol are developed under the European Climate Change Programme of the European Commission's DG Environment. So far they have led to the adoption by the European Council of ambitions plans to cut EU greenhouse gas emissions by 20% by 2020 compared to 1990.
Climate Change Adaption:
Relevance of Indigenous Knowledge:
Appropriate Technology and Local Resources:
Sustainable development and its role in disaster mitigation:
Roles and responsibilities of community:
Panchayat raj institutions/urban local bodies:
State, center and other stake holders in disaster mitigation:
Exercise
1. Discuss the role of Health
Education and Training in disaster management.
What are the pre disaster
measures taken to manage earthquake disaster?
What are the three stages of
disaster management?
Analyze the challenges
associated with disaster recovery.
Discuss the importance of ICT
Network during Various Phases of Disaster Continuum
What is disaster preparedness?
It is based on the root causes of the event and a sustainable approach towards
relief and rehabilitation.
What are the necessary steps to
be avoid dangerous epidemics after a flood disaster?
Examine the role of media in
disaster management.
Explain various community based
disaster management.
Explain the different methods
of information collection concerning needs and damage assessment.
11. Examine the role of evacuation in disaster response.
12. Discuss the Disaster Risk Reduction measures.
13. Discuss the role of ICT in the planning phase of Disaster Management.
14. Briefly discuss the Disaster Management Cycle with suitable examples.
15. Explain in detail at least five possible risk reduction measures for floods.
16. Discuss the measures to prevent the man-made disasters.
References
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