Hazard, Kentucky is in the process of installing an
earthquake monitoring station in Perry County. Kentucky is home to a fair
amount of tectonic activity, but the earthquakes generated are usually less
than a 5 on the Richter scale and therefore unnoticed by the media. By
installing this monitoring station as well as others around the state, the KGS
(Kentucky Geological Survey) can generate a map showing where and how strong
the earthquakes are. This will help to define the fault zone and areas that may
be too hazardous (or at least risky!) for human development. By using this engineering
paradigm approach, we are trying to predict as well as we can when and where earthquakes
will strike. Earthquakes are very difficult hazards to predict, but over
time we can see patterns develop and make more informed decisions. This is one
way of mitigating a hazard, this informed planning. Another way this monitoring
station helps to mitigate is by giving advanced warning, albeit not by much, of
impending earthquakes. While we are using the engineering paradigm approach of
environmental hazards to vaguely predict earthquakes, we also use the behavioral
paradigm approach because we are looking at the behavior of the
hazard itself. Where is it occurring and where will it occur are two related
questions involving the behavior of a hazard.
http://www.hazard-herald.com/view/full_story/21084866/article-Earthquake-monitoring-station-planned-for-Perry?instance=popular
This is a very interesting article and sheds light on a problem that I was completely unaware of. This for of hazard mitigation would have been unable to take place because the technology and funding for such program didn't exist. Being that today we still don't know how to completely determine when an earthquake will strike, perhaps after a couple years of close studying we will have a better idea how to predict them.
ReplyDeleteI agree Kal. The more time and resources we invest in these programs and research, the better we can observe and understand our physical environment. Earthquakes are very difficult to predict, but with our modern instruments we can make more accurate predictions about when one might occur. With the latest technology, scientists have been able to decrease the time frame in which a quake will occur. Instead of saying that an earthquake is likely to happen in the next 100 years, we have been able to narrow that down to a quarter of that in some cases (25 years). I recognize that this is still a wide span of years, but compared to what we used to have, this is huge. And as you said, in a few years I'm sure we will be able to narrow down the range even more.
DeleteThanks for the comment!