A qualitative study of mobile home resident perspectives on tornadoes and tornado protective actions in South Carolina,USA

Occupants of mobile or manufactured homes in the United States of America (USA) are highly exposed and susceptible to injury or death from tornado hazards. This problem is most pronounced in the southern and eastern USA, where tornadoes are frequent and mobile homes comprise upwards of 15 % of the housing stock. Recognizing this vulnerability, emergency management entities and the USA National Weather Service often recommend that mobile home residents evacuate to a nearby sturdy building or a specially-built tornado shelter when tornadoes threaten their communities. Previous research suggests, however, that only 30 % of residents follow this recommendation. In this research I aim to provide insight as to why many mobile home residents seldom undertake the suggested course of action for tornadoes. Using excerpts from twenty semi-structured interviews conducted during 2013 in South Carolina, I show that some individuals understand physical characteristics of tornadoes very differently than experts do. In addition, mobile home residents may also hold views that differ from experts about the ability of their homes to withstand tornadic winds and debris. Even if mobile home occupants pay close attention to thunderstorm hazards and might be willing to evacuate, they may prioritize protective actions for lightning or flash flooding over those recommended for tornadoes. Finally, the interviews reveal that there is much confusion over where to go, when to leave, and which route to take to arrive safely at a sheltering place for tornado hazards. I discuss some of the potential ramifications of the findings for theory and practice and suggest how future research might build on this work.     

The role of facilitated volunteered geographic information in the landscape planning and site design process

Over the last 40 years there has been a movement to increase opportunities for public participation in the decision and policy-making processes for design and planning projects. The emergence of online digital mapping systems and enhancements in Web technology to support sharing and collaboration have allowed the general public to generate their own spatial content via Web applications and other geospatially enabled devices. The resulting data from this recent phenomenon has been called Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI). When facilitated through digital mapping interfaces, VGI can provide landscape architects and allied design professionals with local, detailed and spatial information that can be used to create a more informed design solution. This paper describes several digital interfaces the author has developed to elicit facilitated-VGI (f-VGI) over the past decade, and examines their use in community design projects and their lessons for implementing future f-VGI initiatives.     

Tornado shelter-seeking behavior and tornado shelter options among mobile home residents in the United States

Residents of 401 mobile homes in Georgia, Mississippi, Illinois, and Oklahoma were surveyed after they heard a tornado warning. Most residents (69%) did not seek shelter during the warning. Half of those who sought shelter went to the frame house of a friend, neighbor, or relative, and 25% of those sought shelter in a basement or underground shelter. Some of the places where residents sought shelter were of dubious quality, such as their own mobile home, another mobile home, or in an out-building. Twenty-one percent of mobile home residents believed that they had a basement or underground shelter available as shelter during a tornado warning, and about half of those said they would drive to the shelter. Residents said they would drive if the shelter was more than 200 m away. Fifteen percent actually had a basement or underground shelter suitable as shelter within 200 m of their mobile home, but only 43% of the residents would use those shelters. The most common reason cited for not using the shelters was that they did not know the people who lived there. Likewise, a frame house or other sturdy building was within 200 m of 58% of the mobile homes, but only 35% of the residents stated they would use those houses for shelter. Thirty-one percent of mobile home residents had a ditch that was at least 0.5 m deep within 200 m of the mobile home. However, 44% of these ditches had utility lines overhead, 23% had water in them, and 20% had trees overhead. The limited tornado shelter options among mobile home residents in the United States needs to be incorporated into safety instructions so that residents without nearby shelter are allowed to drive to safer shelter.     

Making ‘dirty’ nations look clean? The nation state and the problem of selecting and weighting indices as tools for measuring progress towards sustainability

Pressing global environmental problems highlight the need to develop tools to measure progress towards “sustainability.” However, some argue that any such attempt inevitably reflects the views of those creating such tools and only produce highly contested notions of “reality.” To explore this tension, we critically assesses the Environmental Sustainability Index (ESI), a well-publicized product of the World Economic Forum that is designed to measure ‘sustainability’ by ranking nations on league tables based on extensive databases of environmental indicators. By recreating this index, and then using statistical tools (principal components analysis) to test relations between various components of the index, we challenge ways in which countries are ranked in the ESI. Based on this analysis, we suggest (1) that the approach taken to aggregate, interpret and present the ESI creates a misleading impression that Western countries are more sustainable than the developing world; (2) that unaccounted methodological biases allowed the authors of the ESI to over-generalize the relative ‘sustainability’ of different countries; and, (3) that this has resulted in simplistic conclusions on the relation between economic growth and environmental sustainability. This criticism should not be interpreted as a call for the abandonment of efforts to create standardized comparable data. Instead, this paper proposes that indicator selection and data collection should draw on a range of voices, including local stakeholders as well as international experts. We also propose that aggregating data into final league ranking tables is too prone to error and creates the illusion of absolute and categorical interpretations.     

Implications of the 2011 Tuscaloosa EF4 tornado for shelter and refuge decisions

This research provides an overview and discussion of language used in tornado safety recommendations along with development of a rubric for scaled tornado safety recommendations. Residents living in affected areas and those temporarily housed at relief stations were surveyed to collect information on their experiences during a 2-week period following the April 27, 2011 Tuscaloosa, Alabama EF4 tornado. Respondents were asked about their refuge plans during the storm and about any future changes to those plans. A specific focus of this research evaluated the adequacy of each respondent’s plan. Each refuge plan was compared using a tornado refuge rubric developed through the use of enhanced Fujita (EF) scale degree of damage ratings for available damage indicators. There was a significant difference in the counts of refuge adequacy for Tuscaloosa residents when holding the locations during the April 27 tornado constant and comparing adequacy ratings for weak (EF0–EF1), strong (EF2–EF3), and violent (EF4–EF5) tornadoes. There was also a significant difference when comparing the future tornado refuge plans of those same participants to the adequacy ratings for weak, strong, and violent tornadoes. This research introduces renewed discussion on proper refuge and shelter alternatives for days when violent tornadoes are forecasted.     

基于Android的外业核查系统设计与应用

地理国情普查的目的是全面获取地理国情信息,掌握地表自然、生态以及人类活动基本情况。本文利用Android操作系统的java开源技术,通过移动设备的二次开发,实现了地理国情普查外业核查系统,该系统实现了样本采集、路径数据的存储、地理信息数据的采集等功能,使得外业核查工作的自动化程度大幅度提高,从而有效的减轻了劳动强度,提高了工作效率。     

Amenity migration to the global south: Implications for community development

Despite a growing trend of migration to countries in the global South fueled by their natural amenities (i.e., natural amenity migration), research on this topic has predominantly been conducted in the global North. This is problematic given the notable socioeconomic, attitudinal, and behavioral differences between amenity migrants (often urbanites from developed countries) and local people (often rural residents of developing countries). Grounded in community field theory, this study begins to fill this gap in the literature by increasing our understanding of the ways in which local residents and amenity migrants interact in the amenity-rich community of Nuevo Arenal, Costa Rica. We found that linguistic, cultural, and spatial barriers (real and perceived) created a social climate in which the interaction between local residents and amenity migrants was primarily based on mundane interactions and did not lead to social integration. This proved to be a hindrance to the creation of the community field, which led to a lack of joint planning and participation in activities and projects that sought to improve the overall living conditions in the community. Explanations of these findings and the implications of such a divide are offered.     

The missing link between flood risk awareness and preparedness: findings from case studies in an Alpine Region

The low risk awareness of the residents living in flood-prone areas is usually considered among the main causes of their low preparedness, which in turns generates inadequate response to natural disasters. In this paper, we challenge this assumption by reporting on the results of a sociological research in four communities exposed to flood risk in the Eastern Italian Alps. The research design included semi-structured interviews and focus groups with key local stakeholders and a standardized questionnaire submitted to 400 residents. Results revealed that residents felt both slightly worried about flood risk and slightly prepared to face an event. Considerable differences were found between the evaluations of individual subjects as opposed to overall communities. There was also a clear discrepancy between the actual adoption of household preparatory measures and the willingness to take self-protection actions. Overall, the risk awareness was significantly higher among those residents who had been personally affected by a flood in the past, were living in isolated (vs. urban) communities, in the most risky areas or had a lower level of trust in local authorities. The improvement of residents?? knowledge about their environment and the residual risk seemed to be crucial to increase risk awareness, and the same was true for the strengthening of local support networks to foster preparedness. The link between risk awareness and preparedness was not at all straightforward. Results revealed instead the complexity of residents?? perspectives, attitudes, behaviours and decisions about risk-related issues.     

Using expert knowledge to map the level of risk of shallow landslides in Brazil

Shallow landslides are common in Brazil's urban areas. Geomorphology and land use are contributing factors, and rainfall is the triggering one. In these urban areas, anthropogenic activities that increase the level of landslide risk are common, such as cutting and filling or discharging wastewater onto the slopes. The Brazilian Government has developed a methodology to map the risk level in landslide-prone areas. The methodology is based on field observation and divides the risk into four main categories: low, moderate, high, and very high. Technicians in the field decide the sector's landslide risk level based on their professional and personal experiences, but without mathematical calculations or without using specific weights for the contributing factors. This study proposes a method for automatically computing the risk level by involving many experts for deriving each classifier weight, thereby reducing the subjectivity in selecting the final risk level. The weights were calculated using the Analytical Hierarchical Process based on 23 experts on landslides, and the standard deviation was used to define the risk level threshold. We validated the study using a prior risk mapping of São Paulo city. Finally, an application (app) that can be used on a tablet, computer, or smartphone was created to facilitate data collection during fieldwork and to automatically compute the risk level. Risk areas in Brazil are frequently changing as new residents move to the area or changes in the buildings or terrain are made. In addition, mapping the risk areas is expensive and time-demanding for municipalities. Therefore, an application that gathers the data easily and automatically computes the risk level can help municipalities rapidly update their risk sectors, allowing them to use updated risk mapping during the rainy season and be less dependent on rarely available financial resources to hire a risk mapping service.

     

Coastal Dynamics and Pre‐Columbian Human Occupation in Horseshoe Cove on the Northern Gulf Coast of Florida,USA

Site‐specific paleoenvironmental reconstructions are necessary to isolate environmental factors from social forces that influence shifting human practices in the coastal environment. This interdisciplinary study included the collection and analysis of marine and freshwater pond sediment cores and terrestrial sediment samples along with archaeological excavations at three directly associated pre‐Columbian sites in Horseshoe Cove on the northern Gulf Coast of Florida. This research shows a strong correlation between environmental change, the timing of initial occupation, and the morphological characteristics chosen for settlement by the pre‐Columbian residents of this area. Specific attributes sought for new settlements included elevated landforms in protected areas away from the immediate shoreline, access to fresh water from nearby spring‐fed ponds or tidal creeks, and easy access to marine resources via tidal creeks. The result of this study can be useful as a model for locating and identifying archaeological sites in similar environmental settings.     

An android intelligent mobile terminal application: field data survey system for forest fires

In order to meet the requirements of data collection in field survey of forest fires, this paper designed and realized a data collection system for forest fire field survey based on mobile smart phones with Android system. This android intelligent mobile terminal application contains three main data collection functions which are forest fuel data collection, forest fire events survey data collection and wildfire experiment data collection. Moreover, this intelligent mobile terminal application could overlay the spatial location of the collected data and Google map, which can facilitate users to understand the surrounding environment of the collected location. The intelligent mobile terminal application can easily record the text and numeric data when collecting forest fire data in field. Spatial locations, pictures, videos and other multimedia information can also be obtained by GPS and camera with the intelligent terminal. The system has been initially applied in the field works and obtained very good practical effect.     

Tornado fatalities and mobile homes in the United States

Fatalities from tornadoes have declined dramatically over the last century in the United States. Despite the overall reduction in tornado lethality, fatalities from mobile homes remain high. In fact, research suggests that the likelihood of a fatality in a mobile home is ten times or more than that in a permanent home. This study examines possible explanations of the mobile home tornado problem, including the potential for concentration of these homes in tornado prone states, the relation to Fujita Scale rating, and incidence during the day. We find that mobile home fatalities are concentrated in the Southeastern US, significantly more likely in weaker tornadoes, and occur disproportionately at night.     

以中新天津生态城为例浅谈生态城市设计理念

生态城市是人们对人和自然关系的认识不断升华的结晶,生态城市已超越传统意义上的“城市”的概念和单纯环境保护与建设的范畴,从生态城市理念和建设情况的分析中,说明生态城市建设是实现社会——经济——自然复合共生系统的全面持续发展的产物,真正目标是创造人与自然系统的整体和谐。     

Mobile phone use and livelihoods: qualitative evidence from some rural and urban areas in Ghana

In sub-Saharan Africa, the past two decades have witnessed a phenomenal increase in the use of mobile phones which has attracted diverse research. This paper explores mobile phone use and livelihood activities in some urban and rural areas of Ghana. Qualitative data were extracted from a larger study that covered 24 sites ranging from urban to remote rural locations in Ghana, Malawi and South Africa. The Sustainable Livelihood Framework provided guidance for the study. The main findings of the study indicate that mobile phones provide direct phone-related employment and indirectly enable some others to secure jobs through contact with friends/relations and also facilitate marketing of farm produce in terms of reduction in transaction cost, access to ready market and contacts for better prices for produce. Additionally, phone use enhances job organization through communication between apprentices and their bosses and also facilitates the migration process of some irregular migrants. As a livelihood capital, mobile phone has the potential to reduce vulnerability and improve upon people’s livelihood outcomes. There is therefore the need to make mobile phones more affordable, expand mobile phone network coverage and improve upon service quality to facilitate livelihood activities, particularly in rural areas of the country.     

Preliminary Rock-Slope-Susceptibility Assessment Using GIS and the SMR Classification

This paper aims to examine the impact of large-scale structuraladjustments (like the Greater Dhaka Flood Protection Project, GDFPP) on local living environment.It focuses the importance of environmental factors in flood hazard mitigation, and examines theenvironmental attitudes of the floodplain residents arising from the large-scale structural adjustments.Based on `perceived natural hazard research perspectives', this paper examines: (i) the reasons for persistentfloodplain occupation, and (ii) the importance of environmental factors in the choice, motivations and decision-makingof floodplain residents.This research used data collected from 300 households situated inthe eastern part of Dhaka. The face-to-face household survey data provided individuals' responses to a structuredquestionnaire on hazards and environment. Survey concerned urban floodplains, and looked fordata on housing, household characteristics, and residents' attitudes. Results of interview surveys wereused to: (i) explore the reasons of floodplain occupation, and (ii) residents' attitudes to tolerable levelof flood risk and willingness to accept environmental change resulting from the proposed structural embankments inthe eastern perimeter of Dhaka City, Bangladesh.Findings revealed that floodplain occupation (by theindividuals' decision-making) was a result of overall reaction to the Government's structuraladjustment policies that resulted from institutional, locational and socio-economic factors. The attitude survey results provided residents' perception to hazards and environment to be dependenton the socio-economic factors – but in a complex manner, many factors are interrelated.In addition to support for structural embankments, the study sample displayed a common concernand widespread environmental awareness. In terms of any `trade-off' between thebenefits (resources) from the embankments and costs (hazards) due to the detrimental impact on environment, the residents of Dhaka, despite some concern forsacrificing embankments for environment, tended to show a generalconsensus for embankments.     

Validation and development of composite indices for measuring vulnerability to earthquakes using a socio-economic perspective

While many approaches for assessing earthquake risk exist within the literature and practice, it is the dynamic interrelationships between earthquake hazard, physical risk, and the social conditions of populations that are the focal point for disaster risk reduction. Here, the measurement of vulnerability to earthquakes (i.e., characteristics that create the potential for harm or loss) has become a major focus area. However, metrics aimed at measuring vulnerability to earthquakes suffer from several key limitations. For instance, hazard and community context are often ignored, and attempts to validate metrics are largely non-existent. The purpose of this paper is to produce composite indices of the vulnerability of countries to earthquakes within three topical areas: social vulnerability, economic vulnerability, and recovery potential. To improve upon the status quo in indicators development for measuring vulnerability to seismic events, our starting point was to: (1) define a set of indicators that are context specific to earthquakes as defined by the literature; (2) delineate indicators within categorical areas of vulnerability that are easy to understand and could be put into practical use by DRR practitioners; and (3) propose indicators that are validated using historical earthquake impacts. When mapped, the geographic variations in the differential susceptibility of populations and economies to the adverse effects of damaging earthquake impacts become evident, as does differential ability of countries to recover from them. Drivers of this geographic variation include average country debt, the type and density of infrastructure, poverty, governance, and educational attainment, to name just a few.

     

Assessment of ground subsidence hazard near an abandoned underground coal mine using GIS

This study constructs a hazard map for ground subsidence around abandoned underground coal mines (AUCMs) at Samcheok City in Korea using a probability (frequency ratio) model, a statistical (logistic regression) model, and a Geographic Information System (GIS). To evaluate the factors related to ground subsidence, an image database was constructed from a topographical map, geological map, mining tunnel map, Global Positioning System (GPS) data, land use map, lineaments, digital elevation model (DEM) data, and borehole data. An attribute database was also constructed from field investigations and reports on the existing ground subsidence areas at the study site. Nine major factors causing ground subsidence were extracted from the probability analysis of the existing ground subsidence area: (1) depth of drift; (2) DEM and slope gradient; (3) groundwater level, permeability, and rock mass rating (RMR); (4) lineaments and geology; and (5) land use. The frequency ratio and logistic regression models were applied to determine each factor’s rating, and the ratings were overlain for ground subsidence hazard mapping. The ground subsidence hazard map was then verified and compared with existing subsidence areas. The verification results showed that the logistic regression model (accuracy of 95.01%) is better in prediction than the frequency ratio model (accuracy of 93.29%). The verification results showed sufficient agreement between the hazard map and the existing data on ground subsidence area. Analysis of ground subsidence with the frequency ratio and logistic regression models suggests that quantitative analysis of ground subsidence near AUCMs is possible.     

Mapping the vulnerability for evacuation of the Campi Flegrei territorial system in case of a volcanic unrest

Over the past few decades, intense urban expansion has occurred over the Campi Flegrei territorial system without considering the volcanic risk. In this active volcanic area, where a short period evacuation could be necessary, the emergency management cannot be based solely on hazard-related information. The territorial and social features must also be considered. In this framework, the main purpose of this research is to point out the seriousness of the present setting of the Campi Flegrei territorial system in case an evacuation is necessary. Following the concept of regional evacuation, the zone to be involved in emergency planning was identified as the whole of the area threatened by the volcanic events of the past 10?ka. Inside this area the spatial relation between the resident distribution and the outflows of roads, railway stations and harbours, to facilitate evacuation, was investigated. A spatial relational GIS-based procedure was used to draw the territorial system vulnerability map, depicting the zones with different capabilities to support the evacuation of residents in case of volcanic activity. Based on the concept that people could leave the dangerous area by the means of transport supplied by Civil Protection, and using the threshold value of over-crowding of 0.70 people/m², we identified the collection areas for residents to be immediately evacuated in case of volcanic unrest, and five macrozones displaying different capabilities to cope with an emergency phase.