Concept Paper

English for Academic Purposes and Professionals (EAPP)
Julianne Mae H. Tan Grade-12 STEM B

NATURAL DISASTERS: IMPACTS AND ORIGINS IN THE GLOBE
Life on Earth is not normal and stable as it seems. The place we live is
constantly at risk from different natural phenomena. For several years, different
communities experience various kinds of calamities. In this modern era, disasters
regularly occur. Most of these disasters occur naturally and are caused by natural
factors, which consequently cause adverse occurrences and impacts on their
primary victim, the environment. However, it is not the environment itself only that is
the victim of such events. As it regularly happens, different problems are created
affecting different aspects of life. Several communities are destroyed and are having
a difficult time to adapt on these occurrences. Natural resources are destroyed
instantly, affecting the economy. It causes inconvenience, damage to properties, and
worse, potential loss of lives of people as well. These natural occurrences in the
environment are commonly known as Natural disasters.
A natural disaster is a common term for most people concerning natural

events in the environment. Natural disasters can be defined as "natural-occurring
catastrophic events that pose potential threat and disruption to the environment,
communities, and to people". However, according to the National Risk Index of IFRC
hazards and natural disasters are related but are not the same. Natural hazards are
defined as the disruptive outcome of the natural hazards' impact on the community
and environment as they are unable to cope and prepare for it. This type of disaster
comes from natural processes. They generally originate from three interrelated
sources, which are atmospheric, geological, and hydrological origins.
NATURAL DISASTER: Natural processes are constantly in disastrous action,

a grave threat to all living and non-living things.
The atmospheric origin or also called meteorological origins or hazards, from

the word itself, is concerned with the atmospheric processes, events, or conditions
such as extreme, severe weather conditions. It is the most common type of natural
hazard as it constantly happens in different places. It is composed of various types of
natural hazards, which are typhoons, heatwaves, tornadoes, and among others.
These types of natural hazards have a wide range of impacts. Typhoons can be
disruptive to one's place as they are capable of creating great damage through their
heavy rainfalls and extremely windy conditions affecting a wide range of areas.
Typhoons' impact is extreme; they may cause, damage to properties and natural
resources. Tornadoes can be disruptive as well, destroying properties and
agricultural lands with the heavy wind it carries as it spins in the air and travel on the
ground. A heatwave is a period of extremely hot and humid weather temperature,
which mostly affects people in forms of health risk, such as heat stroke. Natural
atmospheric events are relative to hydrological events in terms of weather-related
conditions.
As a storm is created, we humans always expect that it will always cause

heavy rainfalls. As result of heavy rainfalls in a certain place with no drainage
system, it may cause greater risk to a community by clogged water movement. This
water movement generally originates from hydrological hazards. Hydrological
hazards can be defined as a severe water-related phenomena, movement, and
distribution events. Hydrological events are somehow connected to atmospheric
events in terms of weather conditions through the heavy rainfalls that result in heavy
floods. In addition, tsunamis and storm surges as well are one of them, which are the
most common hydrological events. Tsunamis are a series of large-scale waves that
are generated from the sudden movements of the earth’s surface, such as
earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Water can flow up rivers and lakes and wipe
down inland over several kilometers in low areas, destroying everything in its path.
The same storm surges, however, are generated from the storms and their impacts
are the same as tsunamis.
Furthermore, the atmospheric and hydrological hazards are not only natural
events that the environment experience. Geological catastrophic hazards are
another origin of a natural disaster in which they are unpredictable occurrences that
come from unexpected movements and changes in the earth's surface, creating solid
mass movements, either above or beneath the surface. There are many different
types of geological hazards, including earthquakes, volcanoes, the gradual creep of
material down a mountain (landslides), and etc. On the earth, natural geologic
processes are constantly in action. When these processes go too far and disrupt
communal activities, they are classified as threatening and hazardous. The planet's
surface is continually shifting due to tectonic plates, however, we are unaware of
these processes until certain areas of the surface suddenly and unexpectedly move,
triggering earthquakes, landslides, and volcanic eruptions to happen.
Natural disasters have a wide range of impacts as mentioned above. They

affect not only the environment but also the communities, societies, and economy.
Natural resources may be destroyed and would largely affect the economy since
many industries rely on natural resources to provide for the needs of people.
Damage to properties and potential fatalities are the common and most severe
impacts of disasters as it destroys the life of a living person. Health risks and
infections arise such as leptospirosis acquired from flood, fevers, cough, and the like.
Prevention and preparedness are the only keys to avoid these impacts.
Small steps of disaster risk prevention and preparedness can be key to

decreasing the devastating impact of natural hazards. By adopting hazard mitigation
practices, the vulnerability of one's community may be protected from severe
damage. Practices such as building construction practices that promote protection
from falling debris, floods, etc. Another way to reduce its impact is by promoting
disaster risk emergency responses, which are pre-impact measures that offer the
people material resources at the moment of a hazard's effect, to facilitate active
reactions.
Natural disasters are truly disastrous actions of natural events, a grave threat
to all living and non-living things. It has indicated many true impacts, I can say,
disruptive to life. Coming from different origins, yet have the same impacts on
various areas. The environment, economy, communities, and people are affected.
Natural events may be not stopped since we, humans have no ability of doing it. If
we do not try to give attention to it, we will be unable to cope and protect ourselves
from it. However, we can only reduce its severe impacts by prevention,
preparedness, and emergency response to cope effectively and be able to recover
from it. Through this, we can be able to recover and protect effectively and efficiently
from its impacts on the environment. As individuals, if we help as one in unity, the
disastrous effects of several natural phenomena would be easier to manage.
References
Kusky, M. (2003). Geological Hazards: A Sourcebook. Greenwoood Press.

Retrieved from: https://books.google.com.ph/books?hl=en&lr=&id=ZnARN4s-
WRkC&oi=fnd&pg=PR7&dq=info%3AgfQ2YgyVtboJ%3Ascholar.google.com
%2F&ots=1dQUimhNA3&sig=JDP3YaSKJvx3MP5BIP2YpKvqpdY&redir_esc
=y&fbclid=IwAR1dvUDyZxUFwCdhmTXD5bv1X_c2jcBEcXLgDR69e7LP3vBc
TVkmyXTyu4g#v=onepage&q&f=false
Lindell, M. K., & Prater, C. S. (2003). Assessing community impacts of natural

disasters. Natural hazards review, 4(4), 176-185. Retrieved from:
https://onlineasdma.assam.gov.in/kmp/pdf/rpq1004.pdf
Natural Hazards| National Risk Index. (2020) International Federation of Red Cross
and Red Crescent Societies Retrieved from: https://www.ifrc.org/what-disaster
Prasad, A. S. & Franchescutti, L. H. (2017) Natural Disasters. Elsevier Inc. Retrieved

from:https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B978012803678500519
1
Xu, J., Wang, Z., Shen, F., Ouyang, C., & Tu, Y. (2016). Natural disasters and social
conflict: A systematic literature review. Elsevier Inc. Retrieved from:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2212420916300024#!

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English for Academic Purposes and Professionals (EAPP)

Julianne Mae H. Tan Grade-12 STEM B

A natural disaster is a common term for most people concerning natural

NATURAL DISASTER: Natural processes are constantly in disastrous action,

The atmospheric origin or also called meteorological origins or hazards, from

As a storm is created, we humans always expect that it will always cause

Natural disasters have a wide range of impacts as mentioned above. They

Small steps of disaster risk prevention and preparedness can be key to

Kusky, M. (2003). Geological Hazards: A Sourcebook. Greenwoood Press.

Lindell, M. K., & Prater, C. S. (2003). Assessing community impacts of natural

Prasad, A. S. & Franchescutti, L. H. (2017) Natural Disasters. Elsevier Inc. Retrieved

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