CHAPTER 4

DANGER
ZONE
 Lesson 4.1
NATURAL PROCESSES AND
HAZARDS
A natural hazard is a naturally-occurring event or phenomenon
which has negative anthropogenic and environmental effects.
Natural phenomena involving geologic, hydrometeorological and
marine, and coastal processes could lead to natural disasters.

Natural disaster refers to any natural hazard or threat that causes

fatality or damage to property.
Hazard mitigation describes actions taken to help
reduce or eliminate long-term risks caused by
hazards or disasters, such as flooding, earthquakes,
wildfires, landslides, or dam failure.
 The process that have shaped
Earth continually act on or beneath
the surface.
Geologic Geologic hazards brought by
earthquakes, earthquake-induced
Hazards landslides, volcanic eruption, and
and tsunamis are due to the movement
of plates and local concentrations
Mitigation of geologic heating.
The geologic hazards cause great
risk to both humans and
humanmade structures.
EARTHQUAKE
Earthquakes
Since 1968, the Philippines Institute of Volcanology and Seismology
(PHIVOLCS), the government agency overlooking all seismic and volcanic
activities in the Philippines, recorded 12 destructive earthquakes.

The infamous Luzon earthquake of 1990 alone caused innumerable

injuries and a death in all parts of the Philippines.

This is largely due to the Philippine’s location within the Pacific Ring of
Fire.
The top ten provinces that are at risk
to Earthquakes includes:
1. Surigao Del Sur 6. Tarlac

2. La Union 7. Ifugao

3. Benguet 8. Davao Oriental

4. Pangasinan 9. Nueva Vizcaya

5. Pampanga 10. Nueva Ecija

La Union and Pangasinan are prone
to Earthquakes, due to the Manila
Trench while Surigao del Sur and
Davao Oriental are at risk for
earthquakes due to Philippine
Trench and nearby active faults.
Frequency of shallow and left-
lateral strike-slip earthquakes in
Nueva Vizcaya, Nueva Ecija, Eastern
Pangasinan, Benguet, and La Union
can be attributed to its location
along the Philippine Fault Zone.
LANDSLIDE
Landslides

When earthquakes occur, the shrinking and rupture are

usually accompanied by other environmental risks such
as landslides.

When earthquakes happen in humanmade

embankments and natural slopes in mountainous areas,
the hazard and potential devastation greatly increases.
The top ten provinces that are at risk to
earthquake-induced landslides include:
1. Ifugao 6. Bukidnon

2. Lanao del Sur 7. Aurora

3. Sarangani 8. Davao del Sur

4. Benguet 9. Davao Oriental

5. Mountain Province 10. Rizal

Ifugao, Lanao del Sur, and Sarangani are
highly vulnerable to landslide compared
to Rizal. Despite the low vulnerability to
Benguet, its high exposure factor or
population density have made living in
the region more risky. Aurora ranked
higher than Davao del Sur and Davao
Oriental despite its low vulnerability due
to Aurora being more susceptible to
landslide than the other two provinces.
 VOLANIC
ERUPTIONS
Volcanic Eruptions

The Philippines lies within the Pacific Ring of Fire. This

explains the distribution of most volcanoes in the
Philippines. The Mount Pinatubo eruption of 1991 was well
known to be the most violent eruption in the 20th century.
There are 22 historically active volcanoes distributed all over
the Philippine archipelago.
The top ten provinces at risk for
volcanic eruptions include:
1. Camiguin 6. Sorsogon

2. Sulu 7. South Cotabato

3. Biliran 8. Laguna

4. Albay 9. Camarines Sur

5. Bataan 10. Batanes

Camiguin is at high risk because the
land area is so small that when a
volcanic eruption occur, it can effect
the whole province. Sulu ranked
second because it has the most
number of active and potentially-
active volcanoes.
TSUNAMI
Tsunamis

Aside from landslides, tsunami is another risk caused by

earthquakes or seismic activities that affect bodies of water.

The Philippines, being an archipelago located in the region

of the Pacific Ring of Fire, is constantly at risk for tsunami.

In November 14, 1994, a 7.1 magnitude earthquake in

Mindoro triggered a tsunami that left 41 dead.
The top ten provinces that are at risk
to tsunamis include:
1. Sulu 6. Romblon

2. Tawi-tawi 7. Siquijor

3. Basilan 8. Surigao del Norte

4. Batanes 9. Camiguin

5. Guimaras 10. Masbate

Sulu and Tawi-tawi are highly
vulnerable to tsunami due to their
being in between two nearby
trenches (Sulu Trench and
Cotabato Trench) and their dense
population. Similarly, most areas
in Basilan and Romblon are at high
risk especially because they have
been previously affected by
tsunami.
 HYDROMETEOROLOGICAL
Lesson 4.2 PHENOMENA AND
HAZARDS
The Philippines, being a country located within the tropics, has prevalent winds called monsoons.

A monsoon is a consistent reversal of wind pattern or a wind system generated by large weather
system affecting a large area over a period of several months.

There are two prevailing wind pattern which affects the Philippines, the southwest monsoon
(locally known as Habagat) which occur within the months of May and October, and the northeast
monsoon (locally known as Amihan) which occur within the months of November and February.

The southwest monsoon brings heavy rain to the Philippines, with the highest percentage of
rainfall attributed to the occurrence of tropical cyclones.
NORTHEAST MONSOON SOUTHWEST MONSOON
Tropical cyclones or “bagyo” are common in the Philippines
due to its being in the typhoon belt.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical
Services (PAGASA) is the government weather bureau which
monitor atmospheric occurrences within the Philippine area
of responsibility, its internationally-recognized jurisdiction.
PAGASA records an average of 20 tropical cyclones entering
the PAR annually, with about five being destructive.
 There are five
categories of
tropical cyclones
based on their
wind speed.
The northern and eastern Luzon, Bicol, and
Visayas regions are constantly at risk for
hydrometeorological phenomena.
With the occurrence of tropical cyclones,
floods could also occur as a result. Flood is
another natural hazard which is common to
the countries of the Asia-Pacific region. They
occur when water from heavy rainfall are not
properly channeled.
Flooding usually causes human casualties,
destruction of humanmade structures, and
environmental degradation which affects
fauna, flora, marine life, and natural resources.
 To mitigate the effects of tropical
cyclones and flooding, PAGASA have
Mitigation implemented some measures. Floods
and and 3D hazards maps are made and
disseminated to areas which are
Prevention usually hit by typhoons and areas
which are prone to flooding.
PAGASA issues public weather
forecasts and advisories called
Public Storm Warning in several
mass media to provide warnings
related to weather conditions.
In the past decade, they have
used a four-level warning system.
Since the occurrence of Typhoon
Yolanda, they deemed that the
four-level system has become
inadequate, leading to the
current five-level warning which
has been modified as follows:
Using PAGASA’s
PSWS, the
• PSWS 1 – All classes in kindergarten
Department of are suspended.
Education
• PSWS 2 – All classes in elementary
(DepEd) has
and high school are suspended.
adopted the
following • PSWS 3 – All classes in all levels,
guidelines with including college and graduate
schools are suspended.
regards to class
suspension:
Aside from the PSWS,
PAGASA also provides
color-coded rainfall
warning system in
their storm forecasts
to help communities
prepare for incoming
heavy rain and
potential flooding
and act accordingly.
The Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards (NOAH) of
the Department of Science and Technology is one of the many
programs the Philippine government has undertaken to address
disaster prevention and mitigation in the country.

The NOAH program currently has nine projects

under their wing, which includes advance disaster
science research and technologies.

In one of their projects, they have provided the public with

high-resolution flood hazard maps which are useful in
identifying areas prone to flooding, such as the areas near
the 18 major river systems in the country.
 Lesson 4.3
MARINE AND COASTAL PROCESSES AND HAZARDS
Throughout the world, there are more than three billion
people are living within 200 km near the coastlines. Living
in coastal areas provides many benefits such as food
production and revenue from tourism.
Coastal area refers to the land and sea areas bordering
the shoreline. It comprises the natural boundary between
the land and ocean which may include the beach, dunes,
mangroves, estuary, delta, or lagoon, among others.
Submersion and Coastal Erosion
Waves, which are caused by wind and storms, cause large impacts
around the coastline for the potential coastal erosion, flooding, and
damages they may bring.
Tides, which are the result of the gravitational attraction of the sun
and moon on the oceans, cause the frequent rise and fall of ocean
levels.
The processes of wave action, wave currents, and tidal currents wear
away the land and removes sediments near the coastline. This effect
is called coastal erosion.
To prevent flooding and erosion, structures can be
built to attempt to stop the transport of sand,
uncontrolled rise of sea level, and the forces of
waves and tides.
Building seawalls which run parallel to the sea
prevents the direct impact of coastal processes to
landforms near the coast. Seawalls are specifically
designed and constructed to protect areas of
human habitation and recreational spots.
Depending on the available material and degree of
wave and tidal action, seawalls could be vertical,
curved, or made of rubble and blocks.
Building groynes along with seawalls could also
helpful. Groynes are built perpendicular to the
beach to limit the movement of sediment and
interrupt the natural flow of water and waves. They
may be made of wood, concrete, or pile of rocks.
Hydrology
Hydrologists are involved in monitoring, managing,
and protecting Earth’s water and water resources.
They engineer pipes and channels that would
make the flow of water more effective, efficient,
and sustainable. Their work involves efficient
planning, development, and sustainable use of
water resources.
These could be done using detailed data sources,
computer modeling packages, and other resources
that can be used to collect, analyze, and interpret
data.
Saltwater Intrusion
• When saline water moves into freshwater
aquifers, which are the main source of
drinking water in coastal areas, it often
leads to contamination.
• Intrusion of saltwater happens naturally
because of the varying densities of
saltwater and freshwater.
• However, when the demand for freshwater
is greater than the natural recharge rate of
the aquifer (primarily though, the rate of
saltwater intrusion increases, leading the
depletion of useable groundwater.
To mitigate the effects
of saltwater intrusion,
injection wells are
built where freshwater
is injected. The
addition of freshwater
in injection wells
creates a hydraulic
pressure or barrier to
saltwater intrusion.
 The Changing
Climate
• The Earth’s climate has changed
throughout history. Within the last 650
000 years, there have been seven
glaciation – the last one occurred 7000
years ago. Most of these climatic changes
are attributed to very small variations in
Earth’s orbit that change the amount of
solar energy our planet receives. One
evidence of rapid climate change is the
rising of sea level. Global sea level rose
about 17cm in the last century, and
doubled in the last decade.