Key Principles
Key Disaster Planning Principles
When thinking about sustainable development as it relates to natural disasters, it helps to break the topic down into manageable pieces:
The tools of sustainability can be applied effectively during each of these facets of disaster management.
Sustainability and Disaster Response
Sustainable technologies – primarily renewable energy systems – can play an important role during the critical days following a disaster. Photovoltaic (PV) systems that tap solar energy to generate electricity provided emergency power during the aftermaths of a number of disasters.
Solar power is ideal for some emergency applications because the systems are portable and self-sufficient. They eliminate worry about the availability of fuel supplies, and they operate silently and without fumes. Homes and businesses can also install PV systems to supply a portion of their electricity needs during normal times and provide back-up power during emergencies.
Applying Sustainable Technologies during Disaster Recovery
Whether recovery means putting damaged homes and communities back together or building new ones, the process creates numerous opportunities for incorporating sustainable technologies. Energy efficiency and passive solar technologies can be incorporated into new or renovated buildings; the site design for new communities and neighborhoods can take into account the natural topography, provide for solar access, and accommodate efficient modes of transportation; new infrastructure can possibly include local renewable resources and innovative wastewater treatment technologies.
Disaster Mitigation Using Sustainable Technologies
Communities are discovering the wisdom of taking steps before disasters occur to avoid, or at least lessen, the impact of future natural events. This component of disaster management holds great promise for achieving lasting results because it enables disaster-prone communities to become active drivers toward change, rather than passive victims of nature. Disaster or no disaster, progress made toward sustainability through mitigation efforts will provide far-reaching benefits.
Climate Change, Natural Disasters, and the Insurance Connection
Evidence continues to mount in favor of the claim that human activity is contributing to global warming, and that global warming, in turn, is responsible for the extreme weather the world has experienced in recent years.
