Final Blog

Nepal and its beautiful landscape has an abundance of woes. Nepal's geology is governed by a complex sequence of historical events which resulted in the extensive rise of the Himalayas. Because of these occurrences, the mountains and hills are young, unconsolidated and fragile as a result of tectonic activity. Adding two gigantic converging tectonic plates underneath all these mountains with unstable rocks does not go well at all. Approximately 86 percent of the country is characterized by steep hills and mountains. Every few decades there has always been that "big one" that greatly affects Nepal and its inhabitants.These shaking events, from weak to strong, characterize Himalayan earthquakes, and major events in the past that caused enormous losses in terms of casualties, injuries, biodiversity, and the country’s economy. Due to a country extremely prone to earthquakes, comes its hazardous consequences. One year after the 2015 7.8 magnitude earthquake in Nepal the destruction didn’t stop with the shaking, The earthquake unleashed more than 10,000 landslides that blocked rivers and damaged houses, roads and other key pieces of infrastructure across the country. Landslides are the most widespread hazard and the primary agent of hillslope erosion in the Nepalese Himalayas. Landslides and debris flows induced by strong coseismic ground shaking are potentially the most destructive earthquake effects, as evidenced by the serious damage and casualties resulting from the 2015 earthquake. Unfortunately earthquakes are not the only contributor to these dangerous landslides. Another geological hazard witness heavy rainfalls every pre monsoon season.  Large amounts of rain has the scale to damage land throughout and also overflow many areas stirring up floods and even worse provoke landslides. Such a disaster causes life loss, damages to multiple bridges, highways, and irrigation channels. In a domino like affect, after the rainfall is over and buildings are destroyed and filled with water due to landslides and floods, the heat then begins to arise, on an already damp land. This then become a hazard for the potential start of wildfires.
In order to combat these hazards and prevent any disasters, their must be a start at the root of all evil. Earthquakes. In a effort to combat ongoing hazards, geoscientist are actively mongering the seismic activity of the Nepalese mountains and that of other regional countries. By monitoring how hillsides evolve, researchers are learning why strong shaking weakens a slope and makes it more prone to give way during aftershocks or rainstorms. Nepal has since set out a push for research on forecasting future earthquakes and seismic activity and give off warnings similar to hurricane warnings. With these warnings, actions could take place with civilizations around potentially hazardous areas could relocate with a given notice and relocate into a safer providence supported by the government. Another factor that could play in with monitoring seismic activity is knowing the pattern in which what area and locations are more affected by landslides. This found information can be vital into the technology that goes into building infrastructures around the area that can withstand earthquake movements, and potentially floods. By starting at the root can potentially help mitigate the chances of stability and less casualties from the geological hazards that many live in.
Cites:
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/killer-landslides-the-lasting-legacy-of-nepal-s-quake/

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/asia-pacific/nepal-death-toll-from-floods-landslides-rises-to-111/1541314

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/nepal-earthquake-what-can-be-done-to-prevent-similar-disasters-in-the-future-10207748.html

https://www.worldwildlife.org/stories/after-devastating-earthquake-nepal-aims-to-reduce-the-risk-of-disaster-through-green-rebuilding

https://weather-and-climate.com/average-monthly-precipitation-Rainfall,kathmandu,Nepal

Week 13

 Nepal is a country with considerable social and geographical diversity and faces a number of serious land loss issues The country's main challenges are the increasing population and declining agricultural productivity. Nepal's geology is governed by a complex sequence of historical events which resulted in the extensive rise of the Himalayas. Because of these occurrences, the mountains and hills are young, unconsolidated and fragile as a result of tectonic activity. In Nepal, Soil erosion is a major problem which causes the loss of topsoil and fertility in mountainous terrain in agricultural land. Soil erosion poses a huge threat given the face that Nepal is an agricultural dependent economy contributing over 25 per cent to their national GDP. Agricultural soils have degraded over time and growing pressure has been put on the use of forest resources to meet the basic food needs of the people. A mitigating factor that stirs soil erosion problems is the constant rainfall Nepal has to endure. Large amounts of rainfall harms in more ways than one. Large amounts of rain has the scale to damage land throughout and also overflow many areas stirring up floods and even worse provoke landslides. Such a disaster causes life loss, damages to multiple bridges, highways, and irrigation channels. Around the same time, flooding overflows several villages and kills farm crops on the plain.
Citations:
https://www.statista.com/statistics/425750/nepal-gdp-distribution-across-economic-sectors/

https://www.cimmyt.org/news/new-digital-maps-to-support-soil-fertility-management-in-nepal/

Week 10

Every country has their own unique extreme weather they have to deal with. Nepal is a country that has an abundance of woes. Some areas of Nepal deal with extreme heat conditions. Particular during the spring/summer season of may through July is when it is at its most. Areas such as the Bheri zone of Nepal are most affected. Such hazards greatly pose a threat to construction workers working for a prolonged period of time in such heat conditions rising the risk of heat stress. According to research by ThinkHazard.org continued emissions of greenhouse gases will further warming, and it is virtually certain that there will be more frequent hot temperature extremes over most land areas during the next Fifty years. Other threats witness an exact opposite weather condition. Extreme rainfalls also plague Nepal. In fact heavy rainfalls are the principle cause of Natural disasters in Nepal according to the Mountain Natural Resource Division of Nepal. Nearly 80% of the total precipitation occurs during the monsoon season between June and September, followed by 8% during the post-monsoon and 12% during the pre-monsoon season. Such rainfalls trigger the amount of landslides occur in mountain areas, greatly affecting inhabitants nearby. Roads, infrastructure and houses can get destroyed in a matter of seconds. Even more so with an excessive amount of rain
increases the chances of floods in civilizations.
Cites:
Suresh, Raj & Chalise, & Narendra, Raj & Khanal, Narendra. (2000). Recent extreme weather events       in the Nepal Himalayas.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/270896359_Extreme_Weather_Events_in_Nepal_Trends_and_Projections

Week 8

Nepal is a mountainous country, approximately 86 percent of the country is characterized by steep hills and mountains. Due to a country extremely prone to earthquakes, comes its hazardous consequences. As a result of the constant earthquakes, dangerous landslides then begin to plague even further the inhabitants of Nepal. One year after the 7.8 magnitude earthquake in Nepal the destruction didn’t stop with the shaking, The earthquake unleashed more than 10,000 landslides that blocked rivers and damaged houses, roads and other key pieces of infrastructure across the country. Landslides are the most widespread hazard and the primary agent of hillslope erosion in the Nepalese Himalayas. Landslides and debris flows induced by strong coseismic ground shaking are potentially the most destructive earthquake effects, as evidenced by the serious damage and casualties resulting from the 2015 earthquake. In a effort to combat ongoing hazards, geoscientist are actively monitering the seismic activity of the Nepalese mountains and that of other regional countries. By monitoring how hillsides evolve, researchers are learning why strong shaking weakens a slope and makes it more prone to give way during aftershocks or rainstorms. The lessons from such studies could help to pinpoint when and where the side of a mountain will collapse.

References:

 https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/killer-landslides-the-lasting-legacy-of-nepal-s-quake/

Wu, Guo & Cunningham, Dickson & Yuan, Ren-Mao & Zhou, Qing & Zeng, Xinfu & Yang, Xiao-ping. (2017). Mass-wasting effects induced by the 2015 Gorkha (Nepal) 

Week 5:

Volcanoes when it comes to Nepal is the least of its worries as geographically, there is little to no hazards surrounding the country. Despite residing on tectonic plate collision zones, ( The Himalayas) in the form of the Indian subcontinent and the Asian Super continent which are always colliding, there are virtually no Volcanoes in Nepal! As a result of the absence of Volcanoes, an abundance of earthquakes takes its place. This is due to the converging tectonic plates colliding with just pure dry rocks and no water in place in order to melt. Water decreases the melting point of rocks. When water is conveyed into deep Earth, solid rock may melt. The making of a volcano requires magma, molten rock, with the absence of water entirely there is no molten rock which means there is no magma and no-volcanoes. Because the rock making up continental plates is generally lighter and less dense than oceanic rock, it is too light to get pulled under the earth and turned into magma. Instead, a collision between two continental plates crunches and folds the rock at the boundary, lifting it up and leading to the formation of mountains and mountain ranges.
nepals-missing-volcanoes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOODdvKrkes

Week 4

Nepal is no stranger to Tsunamis and has since been haunted by it after the infamous earthquake of Nepal in 2015 that devastated the country from a 7.8 magnitude earthquake. As a result from the earthquake, tsunamis then began to terrorize even further the people of Nepal. More than 600,000 homes were destroyed and more than 288,000 were damaged in the 14 worst-hit districts. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, damages ranged from 5 Billion to 10 Million. This greatly affected capital of Nepal, Kathmandu devastating its rural villages and some of the most populated parts of the city. Fortunately for Nepal, Tsunamis are not a constant hazard by Tsunamis, sitting on top of India and Bangladesh far away from hazardous and Tsunami prone areas. The tsunamis in 2015 appeared as a result of the massive magnitude above 7.0. Tsunamis are usually formed at above 7.5 magnitudes. In a response to reduce further devastation many areas were zoned assess damage, and the possible reduction in poverty so that many could build structures and homes that are stable enough to withstand earthquakes, landslides, and tsunamis,
Earthquakes and Tsunamis Encyclopedia Britannica World Relief

Week 3

Nepal throughout the years have had its fair shares of earthquakes, as explained in blog week 2 Nepal sits on two massive tectonic plats that constantly move towards each other. As a result, Nepal is extremely prone to earthquakes due to seismic disturbances in the Eurasian and Indian plate. Seismic activity in Nepal has increased significantly as time goes on as according from research on Nepal's Seismic activity by the Bulletin of Department of Geology of Tribhuvan University as research states that from 1801-1963 there were a reported of 74 earthquakes, while as from 1964 to 2015, (Nepal's recent earthquake catastrophe) estimated around over 902 earthquakes. A shorter time period yet a significant amount more earthquakes! Ever since the Nepal Earthquake of 2015, amidst the devastation tragically resulting in loss of life and property, Nepal has since set out a push for research on forecasting future earthquakes and seismic activity and give off warnings similar to hurricane warnings, but it is widely known so far earthquakes are highly unpredictable. Instead another push for stability witnesses Nepal reducing the risk of disaster through green rebuilding. In an effort to not exploit their natural resources Nepal sets on to reuse debris, promote water source management that takes increasing climate variability into account, improving solid waste management and by utilizing environmentally responsible practices such as ensuring building materials are responsibly sourced. through these means Nepal wants to be actively ready in the event of another massive earthquake.
Sources: /www.worldwildlife, how to prevent,
Thapa Ram, Dilli. " Seismicity of Nepal and the Surrounding region." Bulletin Department of 
                  Geology, Tribhuvan University. Vol 20-21. 2018 pp 83-86.