Page 36 - Grasp English C1 (Student Book)

3 Nature

Natural disasters are usually caused by factors beyond process called “cloud seeding”, in which aeroplanes
our control. Volcanoes and earthquakes are caused release silver iodide into the air to encourage clouds
by shifts in the earth’s crust. Hurricanes, tornadoes to form. Where technology cannot actually prevent
and droughts are caused by weather patterns. The the disaster, it may be able to minimise its impact.
shape and gradient of land leads to landslides and For example, in earthquake zones, buildings can
avalanches. So how can we protect ourselves from be specially engineered to withstand the shaking
the harsh economic and environmental impacts of earth. Urban planning and zoning are also possible
such disasters? to ensure that buildings are not constructed in the
areas most prone to disasters, such as floods and
In many cases, mitigation is the best strategy; that is, landslides.
attempting to prevent or at least reduce the risk to
life, property and activities in the area. Education can However, there is only so much that can be done
teach people what to do in the event of a disaster. to minimise the impact of natural disasters. Some
For example, in earthquake and tornado zones, disasters happen so unpredictably, or on so big a
schoolchildren are taught about the best places scale that they cannot be prevented or mitigated.
to take shelter. Some disasters can be predicted, The 2004 tsunami that devastated coastal cities in
and therefore warnings can be sent out. Hurricanes several countries is a typical example. Meanwhile,
can be tracked and monitored days in advance, some countries are so poor that although the impact
giving forewarning of the scale and location of the of a natural disaster could be mitigated, the country
disaster. As a result, people can be evacuated, and does not have the resources to do so. Meanwhile,
emergency services can be on stand-by, ensuring some areas at risk from natural disasters, such as
that there is minimal loss of life. Some natural disasters earthquake zones, are so heavily populated that
can even be prevented. Avalanches, for example, heavy economic and environmental repercussions
can be triggered by detonations, so that they fall in are inevitable. In short, it is possible to reduce the
a controlled manner before the snow builds up to effects of natural disasters, but this incurs considerable
dangerous levels. Floods can also be prevented by expense and is only possible in more economically
constructing levees and embankments, and planting developed parts of the world. Meanwhile, due to
trees in flood-prone areas. Dams and irrigation their very nature, it is impossible to prevent these
systems can be designed and constructed to supply destructive incidents from occurring altogether.
water through the dry season to regions susceptible
to drought, and it is even possible to make it rain by a

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