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Attitudes of concern for the environment and motivation to improve or maintain environmental
quality
Environmental education may best be defined as a process directed at creating awareness and
understanding about environmental issues that leads to responsible individual and group actions.
Successful environmental education focuses on processes that promote critical thinking, problem solving,
and effective decision-making skills. Environmental education utilizes processes that involve students in
observing, measuring, classifying, experimenting, and other data gathering techniques. These processes
assist students in discussing, inferring, predicting, and interpreting data about environmental issues.
Natural Disasters
Natural disasters are extreme, sudden events caused by environmental factors that injure people and
damage property. Earthquakes, windstorms, floods, and disease all strike anywhere on earth, often without
warning. Natural disasters are often extreme, sudden events that are usually caused by abrupt climatic
changes and certain environmental factors. A natural disaster can cause property damage, econimic
damage or loss of life. Man has spent years trying to find ways to predict weather patterns, but it seems
that there's still a long way to go because windstorms, earthquakes, floods, diseases, and other types of
natural disasters are still striking the earth with death tolls in the millions. Here's a list of the top 10 natural
disasters that changed the face of the world.
1. Floods
When an expanse of water overflows, it submerges land and
destroys everything that gets in its way. This is a flood. Floods are usually
caused when the volume of water within a lake, river, or other body of
water exceeds the total capacity of the body. Sometimes, the water level
rises and causes it to overflow its channel.
Worst Case: The world has seen
numerous floods throughout history, but the Yangtze River floods were the
most disastrous ever recorded. They were caused by torrential rains and killed more than 3.7 million people
in southern China.
2. Tornadoes
Tornadoes are violent, rotating, funnel-shaped clouds that usually extend
from thunderstorms to the ground and have wind speeds of between 50
and 300 mph. A tornados path of damage can exceed 50 miles in some
cases. Some tornadoes are clearly visible, while others are not. Similarly,
there can be only one tornado at a time or there can be a large number of
tornado outbreaks along, what are called squall lines.
Worst Case:
Tornadoes are responsible for causing an average of 70 deaths
and over 1,500 injuries in the U.S. each year. The Tri-State tornado that
hit Illinois, Missouri, and Indiana in 1925 is still the deadliest tornado of all
time with a death toll exceeding 695.
3. Extreme Temperatures
Extreme temperatures caused by a heat wave or cold wave
are one of many climatological hazards. A heat wave increases the
temperature in a certain region and pushes the human body beyond
its limit. The same is the case with a cold wave that is accompanied
with heavy snowfall and extreme cold, which may lead to hypothermia.
Worst Case:
The deadliest heat wave of
all time struck Europe in 2003 and
led to 70,000 casualties.
4. Avalanches
An avalanche is a geophysical hazard caused by a large
amount of snow sliding down a mountainside. It is a common
sight in some mountains in winter. When an avalanche moves
towards ground level, it gains mass by amassing snow from the
snowpack and is usually at its highest speed when it gets nearer
to the bottom of the slope. An avalanche occurs when the snow
packed down on the surface fails to carry its weight. Rapid wind
speed, major temperature changes, and manmade influences are
other common factors causing avalanches.
Worst Case:
The Huascarn avalanche in Peru is considered the deadliest in
history it was triggered by the 1970 Ancash earthquake and killed more than 20,000 people.
5. Droughts
A drought occurs when a region doesn't receive enough rainfall which
leads to a severe deficiency in the water supply. When the situation
persists over an extended period, it changes the ecosystem and
destroys the agriculture of the region.
Worst Case:
The Horn of Africa witnessed
the worst drought in 60 years in
2011, leaving more than 12.4 million
people with limited to no food supply.
Due to its impact, a draught has to be included in the list of natural
disasters.
6. Wildfire
In the United States, over 90% of wildfires are caused when
people leave campfires unattended, discard cigarettes
carelessly, etc., but long-lasting lightning bolts can also start a
fire in wild lands.
Worst Case:
The Peshtigo
Fire in Wisconsin is
the deadliest wildfire
in U.S. history with estimated deaths of over 2,500 people.
7. Tsunami
Usually caused by a powerful earthquake, underwater
explosions, landslides, or volcanic eruptions under the ocean
floor, a tsunami is one of the deadliest types of natural disasters
and can affect millions of people. Tsunami waves get bigger as
they approach the coast and cause tremendous damage.
Worst Case:
The 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami is the deadliest of all time
causing about 280,000 deaths.
8. Volcanic Eruption
A volcano is formed when magma from the earth's upper
mantle moves to the surface. It takes the form of a pool filled with
molten rock. A volcano erupts when pressure builds. This can
cause hot ash flows, lava flows, lateral blasts, falling ash, and
avalanches. An erupting volcano can often trigger flash floods,
tsunamis, mudflows, earthquakes, and rock falls.
Worst Case:
Indonesia witnessed the deadliest volcanic eruption in 1815 when Mount Tambora erupted and killed over
92,000 people.
9. Hurricanes
10.
Earthquakes
http://www.enkivillage.com/types-of-natural-disasters.html
excluding the loss of life resulting from war, terrorism or transportation disaster, this list includes the
incidents that have had the most affect on people and the environment.
1. Londons
Killer Fog
2.
3. The
4. The
5. The
6. The
7. Dioxin
Pollution
Love Canal
9.
Leak
Union Carbide
leak
methyl
toxins into the
exposed
and
time. In addition,
since
the
related to poor industrial oversight within developing countries. However, even with regulation a
catastrophe can strike.
Plant drought tolerant landscaping, and consider xeriscaping. Maintain your outdoor irrigation and water no
more than is necessary.