The assignment is to be completed in three steps as follows:

1. Summary of hazard environment (~200 words): Step one requires you to compile an

assessment of the natural hazard environment of British Columbia, focusing on the part

of the region where you currently live. Identify the key natural hazards (~3-4 hazard will

suffice) that have the potential to impact the area where you live. You should include

only the types of natural hazards that are covered in the course (e.g. earthquakes,

tsunamis, floods, landslides, wildfires, etc.) and avoid focusing on the current Covid-19

health pandemic, as this is not a core course topic. Once you have identified these

potential hazards, prepare a table that includes the following information:

a. A short description of each hazard that you have identified and why it is

associated with this region specifically.

b. The type of hazard category that each type falls into (tectonic, hydrologic,

geomorphic, atmospheric)

c. An assessment of relative hazard impact (major, intermediate, minor) in relation

to the likely degree of disruption to your daily life

GEOG 210 Natural Hazards

2

2. Specific hazard and risk evaluation (~500 words): Choose one of the natural hazards that

you have identified as having the most potential to disrupt your daily life and undertake a

more in-depth hazard risk assessment.** Once you have selected an appropriate natural

hazard you will develop a risk assessment for this hazard that covers the following:

a. A description of the physical geography processes that cause the hazard to occur

in the region where you live.

b. A summary of the frequency and magnitude of this hazard in the past that helps to

assess the probability of a future event.

c. A description of the local geographic areas that have been affected in the past by

this type of hazard, or which have been assessed to be at risk of a future event.

You can include a hazard map here if one is available.

d. An analysis of how this type of hazard has affected people, infrastructures,

buildings, the environment or the economy in your local area in the past.

** Important note: In the next course assignment, you will develop a plan to help you

prepare for a hazard event of this type so choose carefully and make sure it is a type of

hazard that is relevant to where you live and that you are interested in exploring further.

3. Reflection on personal/ local geographic risk (~150 words): Based on your evaluation of

this hazard in step 2, write a summary paragraph that reflects on the potential impact that

you envisage such a hazard might have at a personal and community level. Here it is

important to relate this to a neighbourhood spatial scale and to your specific everyday

situation. The following scenarios are examples to help clarify the kinds of details that

are needed here and to help you think about how you can relate your own personal risk

assessment to your local setting:

If your house is located near a steep slope you might conclude that a landslide is a

possible risk and consider the disruption to your home and its surrounds.

If you live near a river in a floodplain area, then your local streets might be prone to

inundation that would impede your ability to evacuate.

If your home is built on soft sediments the risk of intense shaking or liquefaction

during an earthquake would be greater than for areas of stable bedrock.

If you live near the ocean, or like to regularly walk on the beach, a tsunami or large

storm surge might be a potential threat.

If you live in a community near a forest, then you might consider issues such as the

status of local landscape management to manage the wildfire risk or whether there are

fire-resistant structures in place that would protect your property.

In completing this part of the assignment, you will need to do some research about the

geography of the local area where you live in to see if there are any specific features that

make a hazardous outcome more likely than in other parts of the region. Please note that

you do not need to explain how you would prepare for these hazards; the objective is to

develop your understanding of your local hazard exposure setting and risk vulnerability.

GEOG 210 Natural Hazards

3

Referencing and resources

You should follow APA citation format for your assignment, including in-text citation (e.g.

author, date or short website title, etc.) and a reference list with full details of sources used at the

end of your document. See Capilano library for more details:

https://libguides.capilanou.ca/citeit/apa

The “Canadians At Risk” Report and B.C. Government “Know Your Hazards” resources (links

below), will help you to identify the diverse natural hazards that might be encountered in the

region, but you will need to do further research on the likely impacts of hazards most likely to

affect you and your local community. You might try searching for disaster planning information

for your specific hazard in your local community.

Canadians at Risk Report, 2010, Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction (Toronto ON)

https://www.preventionweb.net/publications/view/13…

Know Your Hazards, B.C. Government

https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/emergency-preparedness-responserecovery/

preparedbc/know-your-hazards

Grading Rubric

The project will be marked out of 10 points in line with how well you meet the criteria outlined

below. Marks will be deducted for late submission and for work that is not carefully edited in

relation to formatting, grammar or spelling. Work that is copied from another source without

proper attribution and citations will receive a mark of zero.

Marking criteria Points

Hazard summary follows the required table format and is accurate in relation

to correct identification of regional hazards, hazard categorization and

assessment of relative impact.

3

Accurate risk assessment of your selected hazard in terms of physical

processes at work, likely occurrence, relative magnitude and impacts based on

in-depth research and analysis of past events and current hazard knowledge.

Effective use of available hazard maps, diagrams or other images to show

local hazard probability or impacts.

5

Risk reflection summary is well-adapted to reflect personal situations and

local community settings rather than a generalised account. Shows thoughtful

consideration of the hazard in the context of personal risk exposure.

2

TOTAL 10 pts