Strategies for Managing Impacts of Tectonic Events (Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE Environmental Management): Revision Note

Strategies for managing impacts of tectonic events

• Tectonic hazards cannot be prevented, but their impacts can be reduced through planning, engineering, monitoring, and effective emergency response

• Management strategies fall into three main phases:

  • Before the event: preparation and risk reduction

  • During the event: immediate survival and protection

  • After the event: recovery and rebuilding

Monitoring and warning

• Governments and scientists track tectonic activity to provide early warnings

• Earthquakes:

  • Seismometers record ground movement

  • Global Positioning Systems (GPS) detect strain buildup along faults

  • While earthquakes cannot be predicted precisely, warning systems can detect initial P-waves and send alerts seconds before shaking arrives

• Volcanoes:

  • Gas emissions (SO₂, CO₂) monitored using sensors

  • Seismographs detect magma movement

  • Ground deformation measured by GPS and tiltmeters

  • Thermal imaging detects rising temperatures

  • Combined monitoring can give days or weeks of warning

Land use zoning

• Planning authorities restrict development in high-risk zones

• Examples:

  • No building allowed near volcanic vents, lava flow paths, or lahar channels

  • Avoiding construction on steep slopes in earthquake-prone regions to reduce landslide risk

  • Keeping coastal lowlands free of settlements due to tsunami hazards

• Zoning reduces casualties by preventing high population density in the most dangerous areas

Structure of buildings

• Engineering creates structures that resist shaking, ash loading, or lava heat

• Earthquake-resistant design:

  • Flexible steel frames absorb shaking

  • Base isolation uses rubber bearings to reduce ground movement transfer

  • Lightweight roofs prevent collapse

  • Cross-bracing prevents buildings from twisting or buckling

• Volcanic areas:

  • Steep roofs prevent ash accumulation

  • Heat-resistant materials reduce fire risks

  • Buildings are elevated to avoid lahars

Disaster preparation

• Preparation aims to reduce panic and improve survival

• Plans & drills:

  • Schools and workplaces practise evacuation and 'drop, cover, hold on' procedures

  • Communities learn safe routes away from tsunami or lahar zones

• Emergency supplies:

  • Water, food, medical kits, masks (for ash), blankets and radios are stored at home

  • Hospitals and emergency centres stock essential equipment

• Rescue teams:

  • Specialised teams trained in search and rescue, medical care, and fire management

  • Rapid-response units save lives in the first crucial hours

Evacuation

• When monitoring indicates imminent danger, people are moved away from hazardous zones

• Examples:

  • Evacuating coastal areas after a tsunami warning

  • Moving communities out of pyroclastic flow valleys during volcanic unrest

  • Night evacuations after strong earthquake foreshocks

• Evacuation reduces loss of life, provided communication is fast and clear

Shelters

• Temporary safe structures provide refuge for displaced people

• Shelter features:

  • Food, water, sanitation, and medical care

  • Protection from ash, weather, tsunamis or aftershocks

  • Often located in schools, sports halls or specially built emergency centres

• Shelters reduce immediate suffering and prevent disease outbreaks

Rebuilding of damaged areas

• Long-term recovery

• Rebuilding steps:

  • Repairing infrastructure such as bridges, power grids, and water pipes

  • Reconstructing homes using hazard-resistant designs

  • Restoring farmland contaminated by ash or landslides

• Rebuilding can take years and is often the most expensive stage

International aid

• Countries often require assistance after major tectonic disasters

• Forms of aid:

  • Emergency supplies (food, water, medicine, tents)

  • Rescue specialists, engineers and medical teams

  • Long-term financial support for rebuilding

  • Technical expertise for monitoring and hazard mapping

• Aid is crucial for low-income countries that lack resources

Benefits & limitations of managing impacts of tectonic events

Monitoring and warning

• Benefits:

  • Provides early warnings for volcanoes and tsunamis

  • Reduces casualties by giving people time to evacuate

• Limitations:

  • Earthquakes cannot be predicted accurately

  • Monitoring equipment is expensive

  • Warnings may arrive too late in densely populated areas

Land use zoning

• Benefits:

  • Prevents building in the most dangerous areas

  • Reduces loss of life and property damage

• Limitations:

  • Difficult to enforce where land is scarce

  • People may ignore rules or build illegally

  • Existing settlements in hazard zones cannot be easily moved

Structure of buildings

• Benefits:

  • Significantly reduces deaths from collapse

  • Keeps essential buildings (hospitals, emergency centres) operational

• Limitations:

  • Very costly—high-income countries adopt these designs far more easily

  • Older buildings remain vulnerable and cannot always be retrofitted

  • Volcanic hazards like pyroclastic flows overwhelm all structures

Disaster preparation

• Benefits:

  • Increases public awareness and quick response

  • Reduces panic and confusion

  • Improves survival rates

• Limitations:

  • Requires ongoing funding and training

  • Some communities lack access to education or resources

  • Drills may be ineffective if too infrequent

Evacuation

• Benefits:

  • Early evacuation can save lives

• Limitations:

  • This requires excellent communication and transport networks

  • People may refuse to leave livelihoods behind

  • Traffic congestion delays evacuation

Shelters

• Benefits:

  • Protects displaced populations

  • Reduces disease outbreaks after disasters

• Limitations:

  • Can become overcrowded

  • May be under-supplied, especially in low-income countries

  • Long-term sheltering affects mental and physical health

Rebuilding

• Benefits:

  • Restores communities and infrastructure

  • It offers a chance to improve building standards

• Limitations:

  • Extremely expensive and slow

  • Aftershocks or further eruptions can disrupt the process

  • In low-income settings, the process can take years to complete

International aid

• Benefits:

  • It provides essential support for countries lacking resources

  • Enables rapid rescue and effective recovery

  • It offers both expertise and relief supplies

• Limitations:

  • Aid may arrive too late

  • Reliance on aid can slow local recovery

  • Political tensions or corruption can hinder distribution