Mitigation of Natural Hazards and Disasters

This book examines the aspects of prevention, mitigation, and management of environmental hazards and disasters from an international perspective. In light of the recent debate on climate change and the possible effects of such a change upon increasing frequency and magnitude of extreme environmental events, this publication overviews various policy and response discourse. Several case studies, from various countries and world regions, depicting recent experience in mitigation policy and program development and implementation and establishing interlinks between vulnerability and mitigation are presented to provide further insights.

This book is primarily intended for academics, policy makers, professionals, and practitioners in hazards reduction activities who look for a better understanding of the complex and dynamic aspects of nature and society. This topic is a well established issue among most sectors of our society since the costs, both human and socioeconomic, of extreme environmental events have been rising astronomically, and significant vulnerabilities exist throughout the world. Without effective prevention and mitigation, these costs are likely to continue to increase, enhancing the uncertainty of societal progress. The knowledge and information embodied in this volume will be of immense benefit to anyone working in this field.

Reprinted from: Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Vol. 10, No. 3, 2005

Auteur

Dr. Emdad Haque is the Director and Professor at the Natural Resources Institute at the University of manitobe, Canada. Prior to joining the University of Manitoba in 2001, Dr. Haque was a Professor of Geography at Brandon University where he had served as Chair of the Department of Geography during 1997-2000. Dr. Haque's primary academic interest is to explore into the various facets of, and processes in the nature and society interface. His background is in the area of resource and environmental management, with concentrations in environmental risk assessment, hazard and disaster management, and water resource management.

Dr. Haque's current research interest centers around human involvement in addressing problems concerning the environment and our natural and other resources.

At the present time, his research involvement encompasses the following multidisciplinary areas: formulation of a participatory decision-making framework for sustainable floodplain management; the nature and role of risk perception and communication in disaster management; an assessment of knowledge of, and research on environmental hazards and risks as well as social and environmental impact assessment of water resource development projects.

Dr. Haque serves on the Editorial Board of the journal Natural Hazards.

Résumé
For these and other reasons the ?ndings reported in this volume will be of large signi?cance as future policy decisions are made in a wide variety of natural and social environments. GILBERT F. WHITE Professor Emeritus Geography and Institute of Behavioral Science University of Colorado, Colorado, USA [2] C Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change (2005) 10: 335353 Springer 2005 ADAPTATION OPTIONS STRATEGIES FOR HAZARDS AND VULNERABILITY MITIGATION: AN INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVE 1,? 2 C. EMDAD HAQUE and IAN BURTON 1 Natural Resources Institute, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada 2 Institute for Environmental Studies, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada ? ( Author for correspondense: Tel: 204-474-8375; Fax: 204-261-0038; E-mail: haquece@ms. umanitoba. ca) (Received 15 May 2004; accepted in ?nal form 17 July 2004) Abstract. The broad objective of this special issue of Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change is to address some of the gaps in our knowledge and understanding of the policies, programs, and measures that might be applied to natural hazards and their impacts in an era of climate change. Given the global impacts of climate change and world-wide pattern of increasing losses from natural hazards we necessarily adopt an international perspective. The speci?c goals of the special issue are to: (a) encompass experiential aspects, emphasizing current practice of mitigation and its associated measures, and their results; and (b) explore primary or root causes of alarming shifts in human and economic costs of environmental extremes.

Contenu

Adaptation Options Strategies for Hazards and Vulnerability Mitigation: An International Perspective.- Risk Mitigation Strategies for Tornadoes in the Context of Climate Change and Development.- Mitigation of the Impact of Tropical Cyclones in Northern Australia Through Community Capacity Enhancement.- Improving Access to Water Resources Through Rainwater Harvesting as a Mitigation Measure: The Case of the Brazilian Semi-Arid Region.- The Value of Public Participation During a Hazard, Impact, Risk and Vulnerability (HIRV) Analysis.- 'Benefit-Cost Analysis' of Disaster Mitigation: Application as a Policy and Decision-Making Tool.- Mitigating Natural Disasters: The Role of Eco-Ethics.- Sustainable Development and Hazards Mitigation in the United States: Disasters by Design Revisited.- Canada's Experience in Developing a National Disaster Mitigation Strategy: a Deliberative Dialogue Approach.- An Analysis of Risk Mitigation Considerations in Regional Reconstruction in Turkey: The Missing Link.- Climate Change and Natural Hazards in Northern Canada: Integrating Indigenous Perspectives with Government Policy.