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9.8 Option - 1. Disasters may be natural or caused by human activity

Syllabus reference (October 2002 version)
1. Disasters may be natural or caused by human activity	Students learn to: identify disasters as events associated with large-scale environmental or structural damage and/or loss of life identify a range of natural disasters, with the aid of specific Australian examples identify a range of disasters associated with human activity using specific Australian examples identify specific Australian examples where nature and human activity have combined to produce disasters such as dust storms, shipwrecks, landslides and accidents	Students: gather and process information from first-hand and secondary sources to identify insurance compensation for natural disasters to discuss the definitions and terminology used in insurance contracts gather, process and analyse information from secondary sources to create a database of natural disasters that have occurred within Australia since 1970 to include: when it occurred where it occurred consequences of the disaster

Syllabus reference (October 2002 version)

1. Disasters may be natural or caused by human activity

Students learn to:

identify disasters as events associated with large-scale environmental or structural damage and/or loss of life
identify a range of natural disasters, with the aid of specific Australian examples
identify a range of disasters associated with human activity using specific Australian examples
identify specific Australian examples where nature and human activity have combined to produce disasters such as dust storms, shipwrecks, landslides and accidents

Students:

gather and process information from first-hand and secondary sources to identify insurance compensation for natural disasters to discuss the definitions and terminology used in insurance contracts
gather, process and analyse information from secondary sources to create a database of natural disasters that have occurred within Australia since 1970 to include:
- when it occurred
- where it occurred
- consequences of the disaster

Extract from Senior Science Stage 6 Syllabus (Amended October 2002). © Board of Studies, NSW.

[Edit: 22 Aug 08]

Prior learning: Science Stages 4-5 .4.1c), 4.9.3, 4.9.4 , 4.9.5, 4.9.6, 4.10 d), 5.9.2 a), 5.9.4 f).

Preliminary course: 8.5 The local environment

Background: Disasters have been occurring since humans have been on the Earth but we are learning to predict them better and have improved technologies to better deal with them. We have also developed technologies that can lead to disasters if not managed properly.

identify disasters as unfortunate, often sudden events associated with large - scale environmental or structural damage and/or loss of life

Definition of a disaster:
A disaster is "a great or sudden misfortune" (Australian Concise Oxford Dictionary)

For this course, a disaster is an unfortunate, often sudden event associated with large - scale environmental or structural damage and/or loss of life.
A disaster, therefore, may:
- be unexpected or unplanned
- cause a large amount of damage to natural environments or property
- involve loss of human life or wildlife
- involve damage leading to a large cost in repairs or replacements.

gather and process information from first-hand and secondary sources to identify insurance compensation for natural disasters to discuss the definitions and terminology used in insurance contracts

Gather information from first-hand sources by talking to people.

Gather information from secondary sources by collecting insurance policies from at least two major insurance companies to compare and contrast the policies they offer for homes and human life. You could collect a copy of a policy covering your own family or family property. You may be able to find other policy information on-line or you may need to contact insurance companies personally to obtain printed information.

Process information by:
extracting information from a range of policies to complete a table, like the following,

Insurance compensation	Policy 1	Policy 2	Policy 3
Definitions used
Legal terminology and the meanings
Exclusions

and
using the tabulated information to discuss the definitions and terminology used in the insurance contracts.

Possible discussion issues:

the special meaning of some words that are used
what each company 'covers'. Look for any exclusions (i.e. events or damage that the company does NOT protect you against).

If necessary ask your teacher to explain the meanings of difficult words or check a legal dictionary.

gather, process and analyse information from secondary sources to create a database of natural disasters that have occurred within Australia since 1970 to include:

when it occurred
where it occurred
consequences of the disaster
techniques employed to reduce the incidence of damage next time
techniques employed to monitor disasters in the future

In carrying out this activity, you could gather information using resources such as text books, CD ROMs, the Internet, or an encyclopaedia. If you use the Internet you could use a search engine such as Google or you could use words in your search such as 'disaster', 'natural', 'Australia' '1970' and this should give you enough information to start your search. If you know the name of a specific disaster, type its name, (eg. Newcastle Earthquake or Cyclone Tracey). This will give you details such as when and where it occurred but you may have to include other words such as 'consequence' and 'monitor' to get some of the more detailed information you will need.
To make meaningful analysis, you may need about 10 specific examples; in a class situation sharing of data will enhance the reliability of the analysis. Be careful that you only include natural disasters.
Consider the ways you should set up your database so that you can easily process the information. You will need a field for each of the dot points listed but it would also be useful to set up a field about TYPE of natural disaster.
You can then sort the database in a number of useful ways to analyse, i.e. to look for trends, patterns and relationships about consequences and the techniques employed to reduce the incidence of damage next time and to monitor the particular disasters in the future.

identify a range of natural disasters, with the aid of specific Australian examples

Types of natural disasters	Specific Australian examples	Comments
bushfires	Ash Wednesday fires in Victoria and South Australia, Feb 16 1983.	The highest recorded bushfire death toll in Australia. The terrible fires that blazed from 16 February (Ash Wednesday) to 18 February throughout Victoria and South Australia killed 72 people, including 15 fire fighters, and destroyed more than 2000 homes and huge areas of forest and farmland.
drought	Droughts in parts of south-eastern Australia 2003 to 2007 and still ongoing in many areas.	Our country relies on farming for a considerable part of its income. Much of the land used for farming receives unreliable rain. Lack of rain can quickly lead to destruction of crops, food and water running out and stock dying.
flood	Flooding in Nyngan in 1990	Although our continent is very arid, one major cause of natural disasters is flooding. Many river systems traverse a large portion of the continent from South Queensland to South Australia. Some areas may not have rain for years and then experience a prolonged period of heavy rain. The flat nature of the Western plains in New South Wales allows flood waters to spread far and wide across the countryside, isolating farms, stations and towns.
cyclones	Cyclone Tracy in Darwin in December, 1974 and cyclone damage to Karratha north of Port Hedland, WA, caused by Cyclone Steve in March 2000.	Cyclones are common in tropical northern Australia but deaths only occur rarely as they mostly pass over country that is sparsely inhabited and over the ocean.
hailstorms	During 1999, a freak hailstorm moved across Sydney. It was so intense and the hailstones so large, that hundreds of homes had holes knocked in their roofs. There was extensive damage done to hundreds of cars, costing millions of dollars to repair.	More than a year later, many homes still did not have their roofs fixed. The same storm occurring out to sea would not be a disaster.
earthquakes	The earthquake in New South Wales in December, 1989 damaged parts of Newcastle, destroying several buildings and killing thirteen people. The earthquake measured 5.6 on the Richter scale.	The earth tremors felt in Australia are usually quite minor and do not cause major damage.

identify a range of disasters associated with human activity using specific Australian examples

Types of disasters associated with human activity	Specific Australian examples	Comments
landslide	Thredbo, July 1997	The road, the Alpine Way, above the lodge that slid down, appears not to have been maintained properly.
transport accidents	the train crash near Glenbrook in December 1999	An enquiry into the disaster found there was inadequate training of personnel, not clear procedures for trains passing a 'stop' signal, inadequate signalling and communications equipment, and lack of a sufficiently strong 'safety culture', with greater priority being given to 'on-time running' than safety.
salinity	salinity in the Murray Valley	Salinity is natural in parts of Australia but the salinity problems in the Murray Valley and other parts of Australia have been exacerbated by over watering by irrigators, resulting the raising of the watertable that contains saline water.
bridge collapse	the collapse of one span of the Tasman bridge over the Derwent River in Tasmania in January 1975.	The ship, Lake Illawarra, hit a pylon of the bridge, causing one span to collapse. Twelve people died, seven of whom were crewmen on the ship.

identify specific Australian examples where nature and human activity have combined to produce disasters such as dust storms, shipwrecks, landslides and accidents

At times, disasters occur simply because there is a change in conditions as an event is taking place. An activity may have been well planned or carried out with all due care but a change in conditions caused a disaster.
Some examples are:
- A dust storm in Melbourne (1983) resulted from a change in conditions. The farmland around Melbourne had been farmed and managed well. After a dry period, a freak storm built up which carried millions of tonnes of topsoil off the farms into the centre of Melbourne. It caused damage in the city. At the same time, the farms lost their topsoil that is essential to provide nutrients for crops to grow.
- The Thredbo landslide occurred in 1997 and 18 people died. Although it could be called a natural disaster human error certainly contributed to it.
- Every year, the well known 'Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race' is held, starting on Boxing Day. In the race of 1998, everything went well until the second night, when strong winds swept up from Bass Strait, producing huge seas. A number of sailors drowned and many boats had to pull out of the race with damage. A race that is well organised, with participants who are well prepared for typical storms, turned into a disaster due to rapidly changing weather conditions that were not passed on to participants in time.
- Structures may fail through poor design. For example it is now accepted that a contributing factor to the damage caused during Cyclone Tracey was the design of the houses in Darwin. As a result of this disaster, building codes were improved.
- In cities, flooding can occur if the drainage systems built by people cannot cope with the stormwater. For example flash flooding that occurred in the Illawarra in August 1998.
Disasters associated with human activity can be caused by:
- equipment breaking down
- poor maintenance leading to equipment failure
- people not following instructions or regulations properly
- communication systems failing.