Hazard

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. For example, the center of the Earth consists of molten material at very high temperatures, which would be a severe hazard if contact could be made with the core. However, since that is not feasible, the Earth's core currently poses no hazard. The frequency and severity of hazards are important aspects for risk management. Hazards may also be assessed in relation to 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 the same location). == Relationship with other terms ==

Disaster 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 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 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 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. 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 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 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 to people – death, injury, disease and stress • Hazards to goods – property damage and economic loss • Hazards to environment –loss of flora and fauna, pollution and loss of amenity ==Classifications==

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 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 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: • Areal extent of damage zone • Intensity of impact at a point • Duration of impact at a point • Rate of onset of the event • Predictability of the event == By causing actor ==

Natural hazard Damage to valuable human interests can occur due to phenomena and processes of the natural environment. • Surface or near-surface events, especially erosion and mass wasting (e.g. landslide) • Extraterrestrial hazards, e.g. solar storm, impact event 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 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". Volcanic hazard Anthropogenic hazard Anthropogenic hazards, or human-induced hazards, are "induced entirely or predominantly by human activities and choices". 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 is listed here as a climate hazard is because "warming temperatures may result in higher evapotranspiration, in turn leading to drier soils". 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 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 the overlapping and compounding risks from ethnicity or racial discrimination, gender, age, or disability, etc.)". == By physical nature ==

Biological hazard 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. in hazards associated with noise, falling, or vibration. == By type of damage ==

Health hazard for health hazards. Hazards that would affect the health of exposed persons, usually having an acute or chronic illness as the consequence. Fatality would not normally be an immediate consequence. Health hazards may cause measurable changes in the body which are generally indicated by the development of signs and symptoms in the exposed persons, or non-measurable, subjective symptoms. Ergonomic hazard Ergonomic hazards are physical conditions that may pose a risk of injury to the musculoskeletal system, such as the muscles or ligaments of the lower back, tendons or nerves of the hands/wrists, or bones surrounding the knees. Ergonomic hazards include things such as awkward or extreme postures, whole-body or hand/arm vibration, poorly designed tools, equipment, or workstations, repetitive motion, and poor lighting. Ergonomic hazards occur in both occupational and non-occupational settings such as in workshops, building sites, offices, home, school, or public spaces and facilities. Occupational hazard Psychosocial hazard Psychological or psychosocial hazards are hazards that affect the psychological well-being of people, including their ability to participate in a work environment among other people. Psychosocial hazards are related to the way work is designed, organized, and managed, as well as the economic and social contexts of work, and are associated with psychiatric, psychological, and/or physical injury or illness. Linked to psychosocial risks are issues such as occupational stress and workplace violence, which are recognized internationally as major challenges to occupational health and safety. Environmental hazard Property Cultural property Cultural property can be damaged, lost or destroyed by different events or processes, including war, vandalism, theft, looting, transport accident, water leak, human error, natural disaster, fire, pests, pollution and progressive deterioration. ==By status==

Hazards are sometimes classified into three modes or statuses: • Dormant—The situation environment is currently affected. For instance, a hillside may be unstable, with the potential for a landslide, but there is nothing below or on the hillside that could be affected. • Armed—People, property, or environment are in potential harm's way. • Active—A harmful incident involving the hazard has actually occurred. Often this is referred to not as an "active hazard" but as an accident, emergency, incident, or disaster. == Analysis and management ==

: Those hazard control methods at the top of the graphic are potentially more effective and protective than those at the bottom. Following this hierarchy of controls normally leads to the implementation of inherently safer systems, where the risk of illness or injury has been substantially reduced. A range of methodologies are used to assess hazards and to manage them: • • (HACCP) • (HAZOP) • Hazard symbol == See also ==