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50-423: Mitigation is the reduction of something harmful that has occurred or the reduction of its harmful effects. It may refer to measures taken to reduce the harmful effects of hazards that remain in potentia , or to manage harmful incidents that have already occurred. It is a stage or component of emergency management and of risk management . The theory of mitigation is a frequently used element in criminal law and

100-601: A microorganism , virus or toxin (from a biological source) that can affect health . Many biological hazards are associated with food, including certain viruses , parasites , fungi , bacteria , and plant and seafood toxins . Pathogenic Campylobacter and Salmonella are common foodborne biological hazards. The hazards from these bacteria can be avoided through risk mitigation steps such as proper handling, storing , and cooking of food. Diseases can be enhanced by human factors such as poor sanitation or by processes such as urbanization . A chemical can be considered

150-672: A society are floods , droughts , earthquakes , tropical cyclones , lightning strikes , volcanic activity and wildfires . Technological and anthropogenic hazards include, for example, structural collapses , transport accidents , accidental or intentional explosions , and release of toxic materials. The term climate hazard is used in the context of climate change . These are hazards that stem from climate-related events and can be associated with global warming , such as wildfires, floods, droughts, sea level rise . Climate hazards can combine with other hazards and result in compound event losses (see also loss and damage ). For example,

200-501: A body can change in a process in which chemical potential energy is converted into non-chemical energy. In such a process, the thermodynamic system can change its internal energy by doing work on its surroundings, or by gaining or losing energy as heat. It is not quite lucid to merely say that "the converted chemical potential energy has simply become internal energy". It is, however, sometimes convenient to say that "the chemical potential energy has been converted into thermal energy". This

250-475: A central role in the existence of natural hazards because "it is only when people and their possessions get in the way of natural processes that hazard exists". A natural hazard can be considered as a geophysical event when it occurs in extremes and a human factor is involved that may present a risk. There may be an acceptable variation of magnitude which can vary from the estimated normal or average range with upper and lower limits or thresholds. In these extremes,

300-435: A community that exceed its capacity to cope using its own resources. Disasters can be caused by natural, man-made and technological hazards, as well as various factors that influence the exposure and vulnerability of a community." The US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) explains the relationship between natural disasters and natural hazards as follows: "Natural hazards and natural disasters are related but are not

350-552: A cumulative biological effect, while others are metabolically eliminated over time. Other chemical hazards may depend on concentration or total quantity for their effects. Some harmful chemicals occur naturally in certain geological formations, such as arsenic . Other chemicals include products with commercial uses, such as agricultural and industrial chemicals, as well as products developed for home use. A variety of chemical hazards have been identified. However, every year companies produce more new chemicals to fill new needs or to take

400-540: A hazard if by its intrinsic properties it can cause harm or danger to humans, property, or the environment. Health hazards associated with chemicals are dependent on the dose or amount of the chemical. For example, iodine in the form of potassium iodate is used to produce iodised salt . When applied at a rate of 20  mg of potassium iodate per 1000 mg of table salt, the chemical is beneficial in preventing goitre , while iodine intakes of 1200–9500  mg in one dose has been known to cause death. Some chemicals have

450-494: A mechanical hazard. Hazard identification of new machines and/or industrial processes occurs at various stages in the design of the new machine or process. These hazard identification studies focus mainly on deviations from the intended use or design and the harm that may occur as a result of these deviations. These studies are regulated by various agencies such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and

500-423: A natural phenomenon, earthquakes can sometimes be induced by human interventions, such as injection wells , large underground nuclear explosions , excavation of mines , or reservoirs . Anthropogenic hazards, or human-induced hazards, are "induced entirely or predominantly by human activities and choices". These can be societal, technological or environmental hazards . Technological hazards are created by

550-704: A variety of measures have been taken to limit human exposure to these microorganisms through food safety, good personal hygiene, and education. The potential for new biological hazards also exists through the discovery of new microorganisms and the development of new genetically modified (GM) organisms. The use of new GM organisms is regulated by various governmental agencies. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) controls GM plants that produce or resist pesticides (i.e. Bt corn and Roundup ready crops ). The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates GM plants that will be used as food or for medicinal purposes. Biological hazards can include medical waste or samples of

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600-567: A variety of negative effects on non-target organisms. DDT can build up, or bioaccumulate, in birds, resulting in thinner-than-normal eggshells, which can break in the nest. The organochlorine pesticide dieldrin has been linked to Parkinson's disease . Corrosive chemicals like sulfuric acid , which is found in car batteries and research laboratories, can cause severe skin burns. Many other chemicals used in industrial and laboratory settings can cause respiratory, digestive, or nervous system problems if they are inhaled, ingested, or absorbed through

650-471: Is energy in transfer to or from a thermodynamic system by mechanisms other than thermodynamic work or transfer of matter, such as conduction, radiation, and friction. Heat refers to a quantity in transfer between systems, not to a property of any one system, or "contained" within it; on the other hand, internal energy and enthalpy are properties of a single system. Heat and work depend on the way in which an energy transfer occurs. In contrast, internal energy

700-471: Is a property of the state of a system and can thus be understood without knowing how the energy got there. In addition to the microscopic kinetic energies of its molecules, the internal energy of a body includes chemical energy belonging to distinct molecules, and the global joint potential energy involved in the interactions between molecules and suchlike. Thermal energy may be viewed as contributing to internal energy or to enthalpy. The internal energy of

750-411: Is an extreme geophysical event that is capable of causing a disaster. 'Extreme' in this case means a substantial variation in either the positive or the negative direction from the normal trend; flood disasters can result from exceptionally high precipitation and river discharge, and drought is caused by exceptionally low values. The fundamental determinants of hazard and the risk of such hazards occurring

800-437: Is because modern technological living uses certain toxic or poisonous materials in the electronics and chemical industries. Which, when they are in use or transported, are usually safely contained or encapsulated and packaged to avoid any exposure. In the waste stream, the waste products exterior or encapsulation breaks or degrades and there is a release and exposure to hazardous materials into the environment, for people working in

850-401: Is expressed in ordinary traditional language by talking of 'heat of reaction' . In a body of material, especially in condensed matter, such as a liquid or a solid, in which the constituent particles, such as molecules or ions, interact strongly with one another, the energies of such interactions contribute strongly to the internal energy of the body. Still, they are not immediately apparent in

900-419: Is listed here as a climate hazard is because "warming temperatures may result in higher evapotranspiration , in turn leading to drier soils". Waterborne diseases are also connected to climate hazards. Climate hazards can combine with other hazards and result in compound event losses (see also loss and damage ). For example, the climate hazard of heat can combine with the hazard of poor air quality. Or

950-575: Is often used by a judge to try cases such as murder, where a perpetrator is subject to varying degrees of responsibility as a result of one's actions. An all-hazards approach to disaster management considers all known hazards and their natural and anthropogenic potential risks and impacts, with the intention of ensuring that measures taken to mitigate one type of risk do not increase vulnerability to other types of risks. Proactive disaster mitigation (also hazard mitigation ) measures are generally more effective than reactive measures in eliminating or reducing

1000-411: Is this kinetic motion that is the source and the effect of the transfer of heat across a system's boundary. For a gas that does not have particle interactions except for instantaneous collisions, the term "thermal energy" is effectively synonymous with " internal energy ". In many statistical physics texts, "thermal energy" refers to k T {\displaystyle kT} , the product of

1050-485: Is timing, location, magnitude and frequency. For example, magnitudes of earthquakes are measured on the Richter scale from 1 to 10, whereby each increment of 1 indicates a tenfold increase in severity. The magnitude-frequency rule states that over a significant period of time many small events and a few large ones will occur. Hurricanes and typhoons on the other hand occur between 5 degrees and 25 degrees north and south of

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1100-520: Is used in the context of climate change , for example in the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report . These are hazards that stem from climate-related events such as wildfires , floods, droughts, sea level rise . Climate hazards in the context of water include: Increased temperatures, changes in rainfall patterns between the wet and dry season (increased rainfall variability) and sea level rise. The reason why increasing temperatures

1150-509: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration . Engineering hazards occur when human structures fail (e.g. building or structural collapse , bridge failures , dam failures ) or the materials used in their construction prove to be hazardous. Societal hazards can arise from civil disorders , explosive remnants of war , violence , crowd accidents , financial crises , etc. However,

1200-482: The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) Hazard Definition & Classification Review (Sendai Framework 2015 - 2030) specifically excludes armed conflict from the anthropogenic hazard category, as these hazards are already recognised under international humanitarian law. In managing waste many hazardous materials are put in the domestic and commercial waste stream . In part this

1250-433: The likelihood or probability of a given hazard of a given level causing a particular level of loss of damage. The elements of risk are populations, communities, the built environment , the natural environment , economic activities and services which are under threat of disaster in a given area. Another definition of risk is "the probable frequency and probable magnitude of future losses". This definition also focuses on

1300-552: The FDA regulates new chemicals used in foods or as drugs. The potential hazards of these chemicals can be identified by performing a variety of tests before the authorization of usage. The number of tests required and the extent to which the chemicals are tested varies, depending on the desired usage of the chemical. Chemicals designed as new drugs must undergo more rigorous tests than those used as pesticides. Pesticides, which are normally used to control unwanted insects and plants, may cause

1350-452: The center of the Earth consists of molten material at very high temperatures which would be a severe hazard if contact was made with the core. However, there is no feasible way of making contact with the core, therefore the center of the Earth currently poses no hazard. The frequency and severity of hazards are important aspects for risk management . Hazards may also be assessed in relation to

1400-664: The classification methods is by specifying the origin of the hazard. One key concept in identifying a hazard is the presence of stored energy that, when released, can cause damage. The stored energy can occur in many forms: chemical, mechanical, thermal, radioactive, electrical, etc. The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) explains that "each hazard is characterized by its location, intensity or magnitude, frequency and probability". A distinction can also be made between rapid-onset natural hazards, technological hazards, and social hazards, which are described as being of sudden occurrence and relatively short duration, and

1450-420: The climate hazard flooding can combine with poor water quality. Climate scientists have pointed out that climate hazards affect different groups of people differently, depending on their climate change vulnerability : There are "factors that make people and groups vulnerable (e.g., poverty, uneven power structures, disadvantage and discrimination due to, for example, social location and the intersectionality or

1500-399: The climate hazard of heat can combine with the hazard of poor air quality. Or the climate hazard flooding can combine with poor water quality. In physics terms, common theme across many forms of hazards is the presence of energy that can cause damage, as it can happen with chemical energy , mechanical energy or thermal energy . This damage can affect different valuable interests, and

1550-463: The consequences of longer-term environmental degradation such as desertification and drought. Hazards may be grouped according to their characteristics. These factors are related to geophysical events, which are not process specific: Damage to valuable human interests can occur due to phenomena and processes of the natural environment . Natural disasters such as earthquakes , floods , volcanoes and tsunami have threatened people, society,

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1600-689: The effects of incidents and health hazards is one of the central precepts of occupational safety and health , as workers may be exposed to hazards, and that it is not always possible to eliminate the associated risk, making it necessary to deal with the consequences on those occasions when harmful incidents occur. Hazard Hazards can be classified in several ways which are not mutually exclusive. They can be classified by causing actor (for example, natural or anthropogenic ), by physical nature (e.g. biological or chemical ) or by type of damage (e.g., health hazard or environmental hazard ). Examples of natural disasters with highly harmful impacts on

1650-460: The environment. Risk is the probability that exposure to a hazard will lead to a negative consequence, or more simply, a hazard poses no risk if there is no exposure to that hazard. Risk is a combination of hazard, exposure and vulnerability . For example in terms of water security : examples of hazards are droughts, floods and decline in water quality . Bad infrastructure and bad governance lead to high exposure to risk. Risk can be defined as

1700-399: The equator, tending to be seasonal phenomena that are thus largely recurrent in time and predictable in location due to the specific climate variables necessary for their formation. The terms hazard and risk are often used interchangeably. However, in terms of risk assessment , these are two very distinct terms. A hazard is an agent that can cause harm or damage to humans, property, or

1750-458: The food chain. Thermal energy The term " thermal energy " is often used ambiguously in physics and engineering. It can denote several different physical concepts, including: Mark Zemansky (1970) has argued that the term “thermal energy” is best avoided due to its ambiguity. He suggests using more precise terms like “internal energy” and “heat” to avoid confusion. The term is, however, used in some textbooks. In thermodynamics , heat

1800-441: The impact that they have. In defining hazard Keith Smith argues that what may be defined as the hazard is only a hazard if there is the presence of humans to make it a hazard. In this regard, human sensitivity to environmental hazards is a combination of both physical exposure (natural and/or technological events at a location related to their statistical variability) and human vulnerability (about social and economic tolerance of

1850-444: The impacts, but not all disasters are reasonably foreseeable, and when an unforeseen disaster occurs, mitigation is necessarily after the fact. Proactive disaster mitigation measures may be structural or non-structural, and will generally be based on measurement and assessment of the risk and the cost of setting up the measures, and possibly the cost of maintenance. Mitigation planning identifies policies and actions that can be taken over

1900-436: The kinetic energies of molecules, as manifest in temperature. Such energies of interaction may be thought of as contributions to the global internal microscopic potential energies of the body. In a statistical mechanical account of an ideal gas , in which the molecules move independently between instantaneous collisions, the internal energy is just the sum total of the gas's independent particles' kinetic energies , and it

1950-512: The long term to reduce risk, and in the event of a disaster occurring, minimize loss. Such policies and actions are based on a risk assessment , using the identified hazards , vulnerabilities and probabilities of occurrence and estimates of impact to calculate risks, and are generally planned in cooperation with the stakeholder groups. The principles are applicable to mitigation of risk in general. Planning processes may include: Risk assessment and mitigation measures may include: Mitigation of

2000-693: The natural environment, and the built environment , particularly more vulnerable people, throughout history, and in some cases, on a day-to-day basis. According to the Red Cross , each year 130,000 people are killed, 90,000 are injured and 140 million are affected by unique events known as natural disasters. Potentially dangerous phenomena which are natural or predominantly natural (for example, exceptions are intentional floods ) can be classified in these categories: Natural hazards can be influenced by human actions in different ways and to varying degrees, e.g. land-use change, drainage and construction. Humans play

2050-504: The natural occurrence may become an event that presents a risk to the environment or people. For example, above-average wind speeds resulting in a tropical depression or hurricane according to intensity measures on the Saffir–Simpson scale will provide an extreme natural event that may be considered a hazard. Tsunamis can be caused by geophysical hazards, such as in the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami . Although generally

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2100-661: The overlapping and compounding risks from ethnicity or racial discrimination, gender, age, or disability, etc.)". Biological hazards, also known as biohazards, originate in biological processes of living organisms and pose threats to the health of humans, the security of property, or the environment. Biological hazards include pathogenic microorganisms , such as viruses and bacteria , epidemics , pandemics , parasites , pests , animal attacks , venomous animals , biological toxins and foodborne illnesses . For example, naturally occurring bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Salmonella are well known pathogens , and

2150-639: The place of older, less effective chemicals. Laws, such as the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and the Toxic Substances Control Act in the US, require protection of human health and the environment for any new chemical introduced. In the US, the EPA regulates new chemicals that may have environmental impacts (i.e., pesticides or chemicals released during a manufacturing process), while

2200-444: The possibility of failure associated with human technology (including emerging technologies ), which can also impact the economy , health and national security . For example, technological hazards can arise from the following events: A mechanical hazard is any hazard involving a machine or industrial process. Motor vehicles, aircraft, and air bags pose mechanical hazards. Compressed gases or liquids can also be considered

2250-456: The probability of future loss whereby the degree of vulnerability to hazard represents the level of risk on a particular population or environment. The threats posed by a hazard are: Hazards can be classified in several ways. These categories are not mutually exclusive which means that one hazard can fall into several categories. For example, water pollution with toxic chemicals is an anthropogenic hazard as well as an environmental hazard. One of

2300-412: The same location). An example of the distinction between a natural hazard and a disaster is that an earthquake is the hazard which caused the 1906 San Francisco earthquake disaster. A natural disaster is the highly harmful impact on a society or community following a natural hazard event. The term " disaster " itself is defined as follows: "Disasters are serious disruptions to the functioning of

2350-500: The same. A natural hazard is the threat of an event that will likely have a negative impact. A natural disaster is the negative impact following an actual occurrence of natural hazard in the event that it significantly harms a community. Disaster can take various forms, including hurricane, volcano , tsunami, earthquake, drought , famine , plague , disease, rail crash , car crash , tornado , deforestation , flooding, toxic release, and spills ( oil , chemicals ). A disaster hazard

2400-418: The severity of the associated risk varies. A hazard is defined as "the potential occurrence of a natural or human-induced physical event or trend that may cause loss of life, injury, or other health impacts, as well as damage and loss to property, infrastructure , livelihoods, service provision, ecosystems and environmental resources." A hazard only exists if there is a pathway to exposure. As an example,

2450-517: The skin. The negative effects of other chemicals, such as alcohol and nicotine , have been well documented. Organohalogens are a family of synthetic organic molecules which all contain atoms of one of the halogens . Such materials include PCBs , Dioxins , DDT , Freon and many others. Although considered harmless when first produced, many of these compounds are now known to have profound physiological effects on many organisms including man. Many are also fat soluble and become concentrated through

2500-524: The waste disposal industry, those living around sites used for waste disposal or landfill and the general environment surrounding such sites. There are different ways to group hazards by origin. The definition by UNDRR states: "Hazards may be natural, anthropogenic or socionatural in origin." The socionatural hazards are those that are "associated with a combination of natural and anthropogenic factors, including environmental degradation and climate change ". The term climate hazard or climatic hazard

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