Inequalities in exposure and awareness of flood risk in England and Wales

This paper explores the environmental inequalities of living in the floodplains of England and Wales and the differences in flood awareness of those 'at risk'. An area comparison is made between an etic, objective flood risk exposure, and an emic, subjective perception of that risk by social class. In all areas except the Midlands, the working classes were more likely to reside in the floodplains; the greatest exposure inequality is seen in the North East and Anglian regions. Flood awareness in the Anglian regions was much lower than average, but there were no significant class differences. In the Thames region, despite equal flood risk exposure between classes, the most deprived displayed the least awareness of flood risk. In the North East, inequalities in the distribution of flood risk exposure accompanied inequalities in perception, resulting in the least aware and most deprived experiencing the greatest flood risk.     

New insights into the benefits of flood warnings: Results from a household survey in England and Wales

The flood defence agency in England and Wales has been pursuing a programme of flood warning system enhancement, engaging householders at risk in improving their warning responses. The immediate aim of this paper is to test and revise a model of economic benefits of warnings, but the survey data also generate insights into the constraints acting upon flood warning responses. Damage saving is less than previously anticipated: warning reliability and householder availability problems limit savings. Warnings are less likely to be received by those in lower social grades, and flood warning lead time is a factor in avoiding damage. The survey data indicate the complexities involved in improving flood warning response, and provide policy pointers.     

New insights into the benefits of flood warnings: Results from a household survey in England and Wales

The flood defence agency in England and Wales has been pursuing a programme of flood warning system enhancement, engaging householders at risk in improving their warning responses. The immediate aim of this paper is to test and revise a model of economic benefits of warnings, but the survey data also generate insights into the constraints acting upon flood warning responses. Damage saving is less than previously anticipated: warning reliability and householder availability problems limit savings. Warnings are less likely to be received by those in lower social grades, and flood warning lead time is a factor in avoiding damage. The survey data indicate the complexities involved in improving flood warning response, and provide policy pointers.     

Water Resource Shortage: a Severe Challenge China Faces in the 21~(st) Century

1 Water Shortage is Approaching ChinaThe yearly average volume of waterresource in China amounts to2 .81 trillion m3,ranking the6 thplace in the world,but the per capita amount is only 2 30 0 m3,approximately one-fourth of theworld average,ranking1 2 1 st in the world.The uneven distribution of precipitation and waterresoruce by time and region,in combination with the very unbalanced configuration of water andsoil resources,has made the country one afflicted with frequent flood and drought di…     

The future of humanitarian action: mapping the implications of Iraq and other recent crises

In late 2003 the Feinstein International Famine Center, in partnership with institutions in London, Geneva and Washington, organised a series of consultations on the future of humanitarian action post-Iraq. This article is based on those discussions. A number of recurring concerns are elaborated, ranging from the perception of humanitarianism as a Northern-driven and Northern-controlled enterprise, through the politicisation of security and the devaluation of the protective power of emblems, to the very nature of how the crisis in Iraq is perceived. The article explores the implications of such issues for humanitarian workers and their institutions. It concludes by framing an agenda for action by the humanitarian sector.     

Community resilience and volcano hazard: the eruption of Tungurahua and evacuation of the faldas in Ecuador

Official response to explosive volcano hazards usually involves evacuation of local inhabitants to safe shelters. Enforcement is often difficult and problems can be exacerbated when major eruptions do not ensue. Families are deprived of livelihoods and pressure to return to hazardous areas builds. Concomitantly, prevailing socio-economic and political conditions limit activities and can influence vulnerability. This paper addresses these issues, examining an ongoing volcano hazard (Tungurahua) in Ecuador where contextual realities significantly constrain responses. Fieldwork involved interviewing government officials, selecting focus groups and conducting surveys of evacuees in four locations: a temporary shelter, a permanent resettlement, with returnees and with a control group. Differences in perceptions of risk and health conditions, and in the potential for economic recovery were found among groups with different evacuation experiences. The long-term goal is to develop a model of community resilience in long-term stress environments.     

Unauthorised development and seismic hazard vulnerability: a study of squatters and engineers in Istanbul, Turkey

Many cities in developing nations have experienced an influx of poor migrants in search of work. This population influx has often been accommodated through land squatting, irregular construction and unauthorised housing. For the urban poor, this has resulted in immediate affordable housing; however, this housing frequently has long-term vulnerability to natural hazards. This article examines the ways in which squatters in Istanbul, Turkey, understand the seismic vulnerability of their unauthorised housing. Distrust of professional engineers and contractors has led Istanbul squatters to believe that self-built housing will not only be less costly but also safer than commercially built housing. The impact of residents' risk perceptions on their vulnerability to natural hazards is examined through a comparison of social attitudes regarding safe housing and the quality of unauthorised construction. This comparison highlights how squatters' risk perceptions necessitate innovative means of reducing vulnerability in unauthorised neighbourhoods of developing cities.     

Earthquake hazard and vulnerability in the northeastern Mediterranean: the Corinth earthquake sequence of February-March 1981

Population density, building type and earthquake magnitude are the main factors on which the total building damage following an earthquake depend. For the Greece - Turkey region quantitative relations between these factors have been developed, which, in spite of the inaccuracies in the available data, allow crude estimates of the damage following a particular size earthquake to be made. This is demonstrated retrospectively for the Gulf of Corinth earthquakes in 1981.     

长江中游西部地区洪水灾害的历史演变——人文因素与当前趋势

探讨了近3000年来长江中游西部洪水灾害发展的人文因素。古代（3000—700aBP）人口较少,多择地势高的岗地居住,只有少数沿江城市需要堤防保护;长江干流洪水可多处分道散流,所携带泥沙导致云梦泽解体消亡。自宋代开始,低地筑垸围湖,与水争地,但九穴十三口畅通,洪水灾害不严重。明代（700—450a B P）几乎完全堵塞了荆江北流的穴口,荆北大堤联成一体,但堤防薄弱,出现过30次决口成灾。清代以来,随着人口激增,与水争地矛盾加剧,堤防加高培厚,使荆江河道洪水位大幅度上升,溃堤和溃坝洪水灾害较明代成倍出现。同时,历代的“舍南保北”政策迫使长江干流大洪水中过半水量与泥沙向南泄入洞庭湖,曾使洞庭湖面积扩至6000km^2,以后洞庭湖迅速淤积萎缩。1949至1985年间,人口又一次迅速增长,进一步加强围湖垦殖,大量通江湖泊面积萎缩。除1954和1998年那样人所共知的严重洪水灾害外,内涝渍水灾害也非常严重,人类与洪水的矛盾达到了顶点。改革开放后,尤其是三峡大坝的修建,极大地改变了长江中游的水文情势,工业化与城市化的迅猛发展,农村人口压力减轻,而21世纪初期降水相对较少,因此当前相当一段时间长江中游洪水灾害大为缓和。应抓住时机,总结经验,在人地和谐的现代水科学技术理念指导下,制定21世纪前半期,特别是2020年前的长江水利和水资源发展规划,促使人与洪水和谐共处。     

The Spitak (Armenia, USSR) Earthquake: Residential Building Typology and Seismic Behaviour

The 1988 earthquake in Armenia was the most serious seismic disaster since the 1976 earthquake in Tangshan, China. At least 25,000 people lost their lives in a tremor of moderate magnitude and the USSR suffered a loss of more than 2.5 per cent of 1988's GDP. Research at the Martin Centre on the effects of earthquakes on human lives has shown an increase in global earthquake mortality rate, despite the well known improvements in some countries. The Armenian disaster was a warning to all of us concerned with natural or man-made disasters. Areas of potential high hazard are pointed out for the sub-Caucasian region. Construction practices similar to those in Armenia are certainly found in many other parts of the world, with some regional variations, and the fast assimilation of the lessons is an important target. The structural characteristics of all the residential building types existing in the affected area are presented in terms of their seismic vulnerability. Vulnerable points are discussed with a view to low cost interventions that will drastically improve the seismic safety of new buildings.     

名山大川的形成(二)

地壳中的岩层受到力的作用发生变形，发生弯曲(褶皱)，无论是向上褶皱，还是向下褶皱，甚至是侧向褶皱，在这种格局下形成的山体，称之为“褶皱山”。显然，这个过程与其他断层作用情况是不一样的。     

GIS and local knowledge in disaster management: a case study of flood risk mapping in Viet Nam

Linking community knowledge with modern techniques to record and analyse risk related data is one way of engaging and mobilising community capacity. This paper discusses the use of the Geographic Information System (GIS) at the local level and the need for integrating modern technology and indigenous knowledge into disaster management. It suggests a way to mobilise available human and technical resources in order to strengthen a good partnership between local communities and local and national institutions. The paper also analyses the current vulnerability of two communes by correlating hazard risk and loss/damage caused by disasters and the contribution that domestic risk maps in the community can make to reduce this risk. The disadvantages, advantages and lessons learned from the GIS flood risk mapping project are presented through the case study of the Quang Tho Commune in Thua Thien Hue province, central Viet Nam.     

泡沼沉积物重金属污染及其潜在生态危害评价——大庆市贴不贴泡案例研究

对贴不贴泡沉积物中的重金属含量进行了分析测定，利用Hakanson潜在生态风险指数方法对其生态危害程度进行了评价。结果表明：贴不贴泡沉积物中Hg，As，Cd，Cu等重金属含量呈现从东南向西北递减的变化特点，而Zn，Cr，Ni，Pb等重金属元素的含量分布则无明显规律。生态风险评价显示，除Cd元素具极强危害外，其余重金属元素均仅具轻微危害。     

2008年江苏持续性降雪中的水汽和动力抬升机制分析

2008年1月下旬江苏省出现了历史罕见的持续性暴雪过程,研究发现,降雪量的大小与低空急流的日变化相对应,暴雪过程中700 hPa西南急流对水汽的输送起着重要的作用,作为大尺度天气系统,700 hPa急流的加速发生在降雪量增大之前,其值阈大小与6 h降雪量之间没有对应关系,急流减弱在暴雪结束以后;降雪的发生和发展与南北风的增大和冷暖平流有关,低层偏北风作为冷垫对暖湿气流的抬升和水汽的凝结起到了一定的作用;江苏降雪过程中水汽主要来源于700～500 hPa,低层东风气流对黄海南部的水汽输送非常有限;强降雪的发生与700 hPa水汽通量散度相对应,水汽通量散度辐合增大,降雪量增大;在降雪过程中垂直运动对降雪量的大小有很好的指示意义。     

Achievem ents in Water Environm ent Managem entin China during the Last Fifty Years and Prospectsinto the 21~(st)Century

１ＭａｊｏｒＭｅａｓｕｒｅｓｆｏｒＷａｔｅｒＥｎｖｉｒｏｎｍｅｎｔＭａｎａｇｅｍｅｎｔｉｎｔｈｅＰａｓｔＦｉｆｔｙＹｅａｒｓａｎｄＡｃｈｉｅｖｅｍｅｎｔｓＳｉｎｃｅ１９４９,ａｇｒｅａｔｄｅａｌｈａｓｂｅｅｎｄｏｎｅｉｎｔｈｅｉｍｐｌｅｍｅｎｔａｔｉｏｎｏｆｆｌｏｏｄｐｒｅｖｅｎｔｉｏｎ＆ｒｅｄｕｃｔｉｏｎｃｏｕｎｔｅｒｍｅａｓｕｒｅｓ,ｓｕｃｈａｓｃｏｎｓｔｒｕｃｔｉｏｎｗａｔｅｒｃｏｎｓｅｒｖａｎｃｙｆａｃｉｌｉｔｉｅｓ,ｐｒｅｖｅｎｔｉｏｎｗａｔｅｒｈａｚａｒｄｓ,ｍａｎａｇｉｎｇｔｈｅｗ…     

川藏公路然乌-东久段地质灾害定量评价--"地质灾害熵"概念的提出和应用

为了定量地分析断层、节理和岩体结构等各种"致灾因子"在地质灾害产生过程中的权重以及某个地区地质灾害的易发性,本文根据信息熵的理论和方法,提出了"地质灾害熵"概念,并在此基础上建立了一种基于"地质灾害熵"的地质灾害评价新方法.通过将这种地质灾害评价方法应用于评价川藏公路然乌-东久段的地质灾害,验证了该方法的合理性和可靠性.