Winter conditions in Wisconsin and Minnesota for the weekend snow storm:
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Friday, December 10, 2010
Pakistan Monsoon Victims Receiving Little Aid
After a magnitude 7 earthquake hit Pakistan last January, the country's 20 million effected have suffered due to little assistance. Reasoning behind this includes the corrupt government situation in the country. Also, in this economic era, countries are having issues helping each other out with aid after environmental hazard events. These are two of the important factors for recovery after a hazard event. If a governing body isn't stable, it can't provide the assistance and leadership needed to help affected citizens. The other factor is financial. If there isn't enough money fast enough after the disaster, then recovery slows down even further.
Largest Snowfall in Decades hits the Twin Cities
Snow may not be the standard type of environmental hazard, but I think it could be considered as one. The combination of snow and cold temperature can be quite damaging to our environment, especially as humans. If we aren't prepared for the weather, death is a scary possibility. It's a natural occurring event that forces us to adapt or leave ourselves at risk for damaging effects.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Throat of Fire Erupts
A volcano named Tungurahua, or Throat of Fire, erupted in the country of Ecuador. The volcano has erupted periodically since 1999. Ecuador's National Agency of Risk Control alerted citizens in time of Tungurahua's activity and no one was injured. This event is a good example of how people can endure environmental hazards if there is a hazard plan in place. The agency had the proper technology to know what was happening with this fiery hazard.
Update on Israeli Forest fire...
The Jewish National Fund has proposed replanting trees in the forest areas damaged by the recent four day fire. Donations from around the world continue to pour in for this cause. The small amount of forest Israel has in their country is extremely important to national pride. On the other hand, forestry experts state that the land should be allowed to regenerate itself. They back this claim up by saying that the fires help enhance the soil and lead to greater biodiversity development later. For now, it has been decided to wait a year for nature to take its own course. I think the smarter decision to make is to let the forest redevelop on its own. If we has humans continue to interrupt the natural recovery systems of the environment, there will be more damage in the future.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40590433/ns/world_news-world_environment/
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40590433/ns/world_news-world_environment/
Monday, December 6, 2010
Island State's Existence Threatened?
This article discusses a scenario that happens in the movies. The Marshall Islands in the Pacific Ocean are threatened by the rising water level. This threat is very possible and could be happening this very moment. Water levels are starting the split the main island in two. Residents of the island are raising questions about the entire Islands' existence. Will an entire nation of people lose their, well, nation? If a country is swallowed by the ocean, will it still be recognized as well the its' people? These questions lead to many political and ethical considerations in the environmental hazard world. First of all, there aren't any solid laws regarding a nation/state's disappearance due to climate change. Second of all, these people's rights don't seem to have as much protection because with the island, their established governing body will also disappear. One of the main ingredients for surviving a hazard event is having an established government body to maintain order. With this island sinking below the ocean, everything literally disappears.
145 Feared Dead in Colombian Landslide
As a result of El Nino weather effects, Colombia has been dealing with torrential downpour throughout the area. This downpour caused 
massive landslides to occur. Twenty three bodies have been recovered, but 100 are feared trapped or dead. A few residents of the area claimed that this was a previously known risk. As a country that regularly deals with landslides, the residents of this incident were underneath a large pile of dirt and rubble. The governing body didn't do anything to reduce the risk, and now 
the people are suffering large amounts of loss.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Worst Forest Fire in Israel History
Israel was under siege by forest fire and found a major weakness in the infrastructure of the country. As a country of 7.6 million people, there are only 16 firefighters for every 100,000 residents. Upon closer inspection, it was discovered that the Israel's current fire emergency system is understaffed and underfunded. Luckily for the residents at risk, surrounding countries came to Israel's aid with their own firefighters. Even countries in conflict with the nation helped out including Palestine and Turkey. Israel's inadequate fire response is due to their focus on military and police functions. This fire reveals how surrounding political relationships can leave an entire country unprepared to deal with an environmental hazard. If your system is unbalanced, much like Israel's, it could lead to a lot of fatalities and further expenses. This fire took the lives of 41 people - lives that could have been saved if balance in the infrastructure and planning existed.
Europe dealing with extreme weather
Europe has been dealing with record cold temperatures and amounts of snow this season. Southeastern Europe dealt with some of the worst flooding in a century. Both of these extreme weather events are speculated to be the result of global warming effects on our environment. The entire global warming argument is a good example of how continuously improving technology forces the natural environment to change and adjust too. This adjustment on the environment's part is leading to a lot of hazard events.
Landslide kills 3 people in Bosnia
This article further discusses the large amounts of flooding in the Balkan areas of Europe. Related to above article.
Floods forcing evacuations in Venezuela
Floods in Venezuela force more evacuations throughout the country. Because they are also in the midst of an election, candidates worry that there won't be a sufficient voter turn out. The evacuations have successfully prevented deaths so far. In Colombia however, the effects of the flooding have been devastating. Thousands of people have been displaced and 174 people are dead. The flooding is a result of a La Nina cooling effect of the Pacific waters. The La Nina effect causes floods, droughts, and other water disturbances around the world. Those most effected are usually residents of developing countries that rely on water for food and income. The fact that these countries continue to suffer devastating effects of a yearly climate event is interesting. Many blame Chavez for poor environmental hazard protection. In the end, the governing body of these countries doesn't seem to make hazards a priority. Developing countries deal with these issues the most because they have less established governments, less money, and are usually established on hazard prone land. These are some of the most important factors surviving hazard events.La Nina info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Ni%C3%B1o-Southern_Oscillation
Article link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40518024/ns/weather/
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