Living with Earthquake/ volcanoes - Japan.

• Located in one of most tectionally active areas on plate boundaries in world.

• Four tectonic plates meet, widespread seduction leads to intense volcanic activity.

• nearly 12000 volcanic eruptions recorded in past 2 millenia.

• Different scales of average frequency for volcanic eruptions suggest less variable frequencys equate to more explosive ones.

• One in five top recordings in Japanese history.

• 11 March 2011.

• 9Mw in magitude.

• Epicentre 70km East of Oshika Peninsula.

• Focus was 30km.

• 400km of coastline dropped by 0.4km.  

• Lasted six minutes.

• Undersea megathrust earthquake.

• Seismic energy are caused by the same force generating volcanoes but instead bring the risks of tsunamis.

• Pacific coast is especially vulnerable as it has a dense population and comes with three huge conurbations; Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya.

•  16,000 deaths, 6000 injuries. 

• (2/5) 60+, (1/4) 70+.

• 90% deaths were due to drowning, the rest being from burns and collapsed buildings.

• 100,000 seperated from their families with their whereabouts being an inssue. 2000 had lost at least one parent. 

• Traditional mourning regimes had to be abandoned for mass burial of dead bodies as the government agreed this would minimise the spread of disease.

• When one elementary school collasped, 10/13 teachers and 74/108 students were lost.

• 230,000 vehicles were either destroyed or damaged; 15 ports were directly affected, with four destroyed in the northeast of Japan, including Sendai.

• 4.4 million households and thousands of businesses lost electricity. The major cause of this disruption was the immediate shutdown of 11 nuclear reactors.

• At the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (Figure 14.26), all six of its reactors were so severely damaged by the tsunami that the plant was decommissioned.

• Some 25 million tonnes of debris was created by the earthquake, requiring a costly clean-up operation. Over large areas, farmland flooded by sea water has been contaminated by salt and made uncultivable.

• Transport infrastructure was badly hit. Many road bridges were damaged or destroyed and in the northeast train services were badly disrupted.

• Some 25 million tonnes of debris was created by the earthquake, requiring a costly clean-up operation. Over large areas, farmland flooded by sea water has been contaminated by salt and made uncultivable.

• Japanese government injected billions of yen into the economy, especially the financial sector, to bring some stability. This increased government debt at a time when its reduction was a prime political aim.

• After the Tohoku earthquake. Concerns over safety standards and regulation of the nuclear industry became a political issue.

• The government has yet to make a clear decision about the role of nuclear power in Japan’s long-term energy mix. Several executives of companies involved in the Fukushima power plant have resigned.

• emerged that warnings about the inadequacy of the defences against tsunami hazards had been made several years before the disaster.

Vulnerability modifications:

• Tsunami warning systems off the coast.
• Fire proofing older buidings more suspectible to burning, common in older city districtsof Japan.
• Land-use zoning providing open spaces for assembly after earthquakes.
• Controlling building in locations suspectible to liquefaction or excessive ground shaking.
• Research and monitoring; JMA provides mitigation strageties for tectonic hazards such as extreme weather, tsunamis and earthquakes by providing information and warning about impending disasters.
• Using aseismic design in buildings.

• Japan has vast resources to manage losses caused by earthquakes.

• Well-rehearsed recovery and reconstruction plans, at national, regional and local levels, can be actioned immediately following an earthquake.

• To rebuild physically, economically and socially ASAP.