Disaster impacts in a port-city; learning from Beirut's  Port explosion

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steluta topalov
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Focal Point ◽  
Transportation System ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Social Dimension ◽  
Global Network ◽  
Port Cities ◽  
Residential Units ◽  
The Impact

<p>On 4 august 2020, one of the biggest non-nuclear explosions the world has seen in recent times took place in the Port of Beirut. Caused by the detonation of 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate, inadequate stored in a warehouse in the port, the blast destroyed much of the city’s port and the surrounding infrastructure and severly  damaged the dense residential and commercial areas within 5 km of the explosion site. The impact of the explosion, which registered as a 3.3 magnitude earthquake according to the U.S. Geological Survey, was felt as far away as the island of Cyprus.</p><p>Athough the event was an technological hazard, the impact of the explosion is similar to a standardised natural disaster.</p><p>According to UNDP, a total of 200 000 residential units were affected with an estimated of 40 000 buildings damaged; 200 people lost their lives, around 6 000 individuals were injuried and around 300 000 people were displaced.</p><p>Such figure are comparable to other large-scale disasters such as Cyclone Vayu in India, which occured in June 2019 or the displacement caused by the Typhoon Vongfong, in the Philippines.</p><p>The frequent increase of the natural disasters  puts pressure on the critical infrastructure of the cities. The disruption of the transportation system,  which is vital for the sustainable daily operations, are having a big impact on the economical, enviromental and social dimension of a city system. Among the various types of transportation system, ports are a focal point because of its strategic role for the economic growth of cities,regions and  global network. In addition, they are nodal points for the social and economical activity of the inhabitants.</p><p>Although the ports have played a key role in the development of their host cities, they are also vulnerable to a broad range of risks and threats because of a particular spatial character: the location at the intersection of land and sea.  </p><p>The study of the Beirut’s Port explosion examines the impact of port failures on the host urban enviroment and the relationship between hazards, vulnerability and the impact. The vulnerability of the port to disasters results  to the vulnerability of its host city. A context –based understanding  of the impact of the disaster and the elements at risk is essential to identify appropriate risk management strategies. The location of the port within the urban environment, in densely populated area, as in case of Beirut are some of the characteristics of the port cities that can magnify the impact of disasters to which they are prone.  The study will focus on a collection of data that records the impact and allows visualisation of the complex patterns of the disaster risk reduction.</p><p>The impact caused by the Beirut’s port explosion reminds us about the important role of the ports in their host cities and how fundamental is to identify the port’s infrastructure  exposure to hazards and risks.  Lessons learned from such event may be useful to reduce disaster risks in the port cities.</p>

scholarly journals Simulation-Based Evaluation of the Performance of Broadband over Power Lines with Multiple Repeaters in Linear Topology of Distribution Substations

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (19) ◽  
pp. 6879
Author(s):  
Petr Musil ◽  
Petr Mlynek ◽  
Jan Slacik ◽  
Jiri Pokorny
Keyword(s):  
Smart Grids ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Power Lines ◽  
Multiple Streams ◽  
Linear Topology ◽  
Performance Improvements ◽  
Multiple Data ◽  
The Impact

Broadband over Power Lines (BPL) is considered a promising communication technology in the concept of Smart Grids. This paper evaluates networks based on BPL, with a focus on the impact of repeaters in the linear topology of distribution substations. In large-scale Smart Grids network planning, positions of repeaters have to be carefully chosen. This article should help to determine such positions and limitations of BPL linear topology networks. Laboratory and on-field measurements and their results are presented in this article. Results show the impact of repeater’s deployment for different testing methodologies also with regard to other already presented studies. Measured values and the determined impacts of repeaters are later used as input data for simulation of the linear BPL topology in terms of network throughput with multiple streams and bottlenecks. These occur especially on lines shared by multiple communicating nodes. Furthermore, the simulation investigates the balancing time of multiple data streams throughput. The simulation shows that the throughput balancing can occupy a significant time slot, up to tens of seconds before the throughput of different streams balances. Also, the more data is generated, the more time the balancing time takes. Additionally, the throughput drop caused by a repeater is determined into the range of 35–60%. Based on the measurement and simulation results, lessons learned are presented, and possible performance improvements are discussed.

Lessons Learned From the Operation of Large-Scale Reprocessing-Recycling Facilities in France: What Is in It for China?

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Pierre Gros
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Fuel Cycle ◽  
Public Information ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Mitigation Measures ◽  
Spent Fuel ◽  
The Impact

AREVA has been running since decades nuclear reprocessing and recycling installations in France. Several industrial facilities have been built and used to this aim across the time. Following those decades and with the more and more precise monitoring of the impact of those installations, precise data and lessons-learned have been collected that can be used for the stakeholders of potential new facilities. China has expressed strong interest in building such facilities. As a matter of fact, the issue of accumulation of spent fuel is becoming serious in China and jeopardizes the operation of several nuclear power plants, through the running out of space of storage pools. Tomorrow, with the extremely high pace of nuclear development of China, accumulation of spent fuel will be unbearable. Building reprocessing and recycling installations takes time. A decision has to be taken so as to enable the responsible development of nuclear in China. Without a solution for the back end of its nuclear fuel cycle, the development of nuclear energy will face a wall. This is what the Chinese central government, through the action of its industrial CNNC, has well understood. Several years of negotiations have been held with AREVA. Everybody in the sector seems now convinced. However, now that the negotiation is coming to an end, an effort should be done towards all the stakeholders, sharing actual information from France’s reference facilities on: safety, security, mitigation measures for health protection (of the workers, of the public), mitigation measures for the protection of the environment. Most of this information is public, as France has since years promulgated a law on Nuclear transparency. China is also in need for more transparency, yet lacks means to access this public information, often in French language, so let’s open our books!

scholarly journals Protective role of resilience on COVID-19 impact on the quality of life of nursing students in the Philippines

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-49
Author(s):  
Jean Nunez Guillasper ◽  
Ryan Michael Flores Oducado ◽  
Gil Platon Soriano
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Nursing Students ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Focal Point ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Bivariate Analysis ◽  
Psychological Resilience ◽  
The Impact

Background: Studies have shown that resilience has a buffering effect on mental health problems. However, the influence of resilience on the impact on the Quality of Life (QoL) in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic has not been well documented.Objective: This study examined the influence of resilience on the COVID-19 impact on QoL among nursing students.Methods: A cross-sectional research design was utilized. Three hundred and forty-five students of a government-funded nursing school in the Philippines responded in the web-based survey. Data were gathered using two adopted instruments from 18 to 31 August 2020. Test for differences and correlational analyses were performed.Results: The COVID-19 pandemic had a moderate impact on the QoL of nursing students. The COVID-19 impact on QoL significantly varied with sex and the nearby presence of COVID-19 cases. Bivariate analysis revealed a significant moderate inverse relationship between psychological resilience and the impact of COVID-19 on QoL.Conclusion: Resilience has a protective influence on the impact on QoL concerning main areas of mental health in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding the factors and developing interventions that build the resilience of students is a focal point of action for nursing schools.

scholarly journals Students and education for sustainable development – what matters? A case study on students’ sustainability consciousness derived from participating in an ESD project

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 6
Author(s):  
Majken Korsager ◽  
Eldri Scheie
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
Education For Sustainable Development ◽  
Social Dimension ◽  
Economic Dimension ◽  
Explicit Teaching ◽  
The Impact

AbstractThis article presents a qualitative case study exploring how students’ partici-pation in a project about sustainable development (SD) influences their sustainability consciousness. Sustainability consciousness is a concept that integrates the environmental, economic and social dimensions of SD with knowledge, skills and attitudes. This study follows up the results from a recent quantitative large-scale study conducted in Sweden, investigating the impact of education for sustainable education (ESD) on students’ sustainability consciousness. Results from our study show that the students’ sustainability consciousness is dominated by a mono-dimensional approach from the environmental perspective. However, their motivation to act (Attitudes) was highest within the economic dimension. The skills they expressed they had attained, were mainly practical and mostly within the environmental dimension and to some extent the social dimension. Analysis of the project showed both a lack of collaboration between the teachers and a lack of explicit teaching, which could explain why the holistic approach to SD was under-communicated to the students. The students’ sustainability consciousness seemed improved after a re-design of the ESD project, where the main changes were more explicit teaching and learning goals, and adding Norwegian as a subject. The results are discussed in relation to what should be emphasized in ESD projects in order to empower pupils and students for action competence for SD.Keywords: education for sustainable development, students’ sustainability consciousnessElever og utdanning for bærekraftig utvikling – hva er viktig? En case-studie om elevers bærekraftbevissthet etter deltakelse i et prosjekt om bærekraftig utviklingSammendragDenne artikkelen presenterer en kvalitativ case-studie som utforsker hvordan elevers deltakelse i et prosjekt om bærekraftig utvikling påvirker deres bærekraftbevissthet. Bærekraftbevissthet er et konsept som integrerer den miljømessige, økonomiske og sosiale dimensjonen av bærekraftig utvikling med kunnskap, ferdigheter og holdninger. Denne studien følger opp resultatene fra en nylig kvantitativ storskalaundersøkelse gjennomført i Sverige, der effekten av utdanning for bærekraftig utvikling (UBU) på elevers bærekraftbevissthet er undersøkt. Resultatene fra denne studien viser at elevenes bærekraftbevissthet domineres av en mono-dimensjonal tilnærming fra miljøperspektivet. Men deres motivasjon til å handle (Holdninger) var høyest innenfor den økonomiske dimensjonen. De ferdighetene de uttrykte de hadde oppnådd, var hovedsakelig praktiske og for det meste innenfor miljødimensjonen og noen innen den sosiale dimensjonen. Analyse av prosjektet viste at det var både mangel på samarbeid mellom lærerne og mangel på eksplisitt undervisning, noe som kunne forklare hvorfor den holistiske tilnærmingen til bærekraftig utvikling ble underkommunisert til elevene. Elevenes bærekraftbevissthet ble forbedret noe etter re-design av prosjektet, hvor hovedendringene var mer eksplisitt undervisning og læringsmål samt å inkludere norsk som emne. Resultatene diskuteres med sikte på hva som bør vektlegges i prosjekter i bærekraftig utvikling for å gi elever og studenter handlingskompetanse i bærekraftig utvikling.Nøkkelord: utdanning for bærekraftig utvikling, elevers bærekraftbevissthet

scholarly journals Approaches to Health Research Priority Setting in the Philippines across the Years

2019 ◽  
Vol 53 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alain Jason A. Generale ◽  
Reneepearl Kim P. Sales ◽  
Teddy S. Dizon ◽  
Alan B. Feranil
Keyword(s):  
Priority Setting ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Research Agenda ◽  
Policy Formulation ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Gradual Change ◽  
Research Priority ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Health Research Priority Setting

Background. As one of the research councils under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), health research priority setting has been the mandate of the Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (PCHRD) since its establishment in 1982. The development of the National Unified Health Research Agenda (NUHRA) convenes the major stakeholders for health in the country to establish the priorities for health research. The NUHRA aims to address the most urgent health issues in the country for the generation of solutions to the health concerns of the country. Objectives and Method. Through document review, this paper describes the approaches and lessons learned in research priority setting since the establishment of the Philippine National Health Research System. Results. The Philippines has employed a bottoms-up, top-down, and a combination of both approaches to develop its health research agenda. Conclusion. The health research agenda-setting must consider evolving funding sources, its link to production of researches with high probability of knowledge translation to health technology innovation, and policy formulation. Measuring the impact of the NUHRA to the health systems and health situation of the country is a difficult assessment, but the gradual change in healthcare technology utilization and evidence-informed policies towards health equity can be a subjective measurement of the NUHRA’s success.

Quasi-Biweekly Extensions of the Monsoon Winds and the Philippines Diurnal Cycle

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael B. Natoli ◽  
Eric D. Maloney
Keyword(s):  
Diurnal Cycle ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Transition Period ◽  
Intraseasonal Oscillation ◽  
Maximum Amplitude ◽  
Longwave Radiation ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Boreal Summer ◽  
Monsoon Winds ◽  
The Impact

AbstractThe impact of quasi-biweekly variability in the monsoon southwesterly winds on the precipitation diurnal cycle in the Philippines is examined using CMORPH precipitation, ERA5 reanalysis, and outgoing longwave radiation (OLR) fields. Both a case study during the 2018 Propagation of Intraseasonal Tropical Oscillations (PISTON) field campaign and a 23-year composite analysis are used to understand the effect of the QBWO on the diurnal cycle. QBWO events in the west Pacific, identified with an extended EOF index, bring increases in moisture, cloudiness, and westerly winds to the Philippines. Such events are associated with significant variability in daily mean precipitation and the diurnal cycle. It is shown that the modulation of the diurnal cycle by the QBWO is remarkably similar to that by the boreal summer intraseasonal oscillation (BSISO). The diurnal cycle reaches a maximum amplitude on the western side of the Philippines on days with average to above average moisture, sufficient insolation, and weakly offshore prevailing wind. This occurs during the transition period from suppressed to active large-scale convection for both the QBWO and BSISO.Westerly monsoon surges associated with QBWO variability generally exhibit active precipitation over the South China Sea (SCS), but a depressed diurnal cycle. These results highlight that modes of large-scale convective variability in the tropics can have a similar impact on the diurnal cycle if they influence the local scale environmental background state similarly.

scholarly journals Post-disaster social capital: trust, equity, bayanihan and Typhoon Yolanda

2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 334-345 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pauline Eadie ◽  
Yvonne Su
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Urban Communities ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Social Impact ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Bonding Social Capital ◽  
Goods And Services ◽  
Self Help ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of disaster rehabilitation interventions on bonding social capital in the aftermath of Typhoon Yolanda. Design/methodology/approach The data from the project are drawn from eight barangays in Tacloban City, the Philippines. Local residents and politicians were surveyed and interviewed to examine perceptions of resilience and community self-help. Findings The evidence shows that haphazard or inequitable distribution of relief goods and services generated discontent within communities. However, whilst perceptions of community cooperation and self-help are relatively low, perceptions of resilience are relatively high. Research limitations/implications This research was conducted in urban communities after a sudden large-scale disaster. The findings are not necessarily applicable in the rural context or in relation to slow onset disasters. Practical implications Relief agencies should think more carefully about the social impact of the distribution of relief goods and services. Inequality can undermine community level cooperation. Social implications A better consideration of social as well as material capital in the aftermath of disaster could help community self-help, resilience and positive adaptation. Originality/value This study draws on evidence from local communities to contradict the overarching rhetoric of resilience in the aftermath of Typhoon Yolanda.

scholarly journals Transportation System and Trade Flows in Port Cities of China: A Random Coefficient Model

2015 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 289-300
Author(s):  
Lizhi Xu ◽  
Shu-Cherng Fang ◽  
Kin Keung Lai ◽  
Han Qiao ◽  
Shouyang Wang
Keyword(s):  
Transportation System ◽  
Random Coefficients ◽  
Trade Flows ◽  
Parameters Estimation ◽  
Parameter Estimates ◽  
Trade Volume ◽  
Port Cities ◽  
Explanatory Variables ◽  
Trade Competitiveness ◽  
The Impact

AbstractThis paper quantitatively investigates the effect of transportation system on trade flows of four major port cities in China. Due to the significant country-pair heterogeneities in both intercept and slope terms, this paper introduced a random-coefficients model for parameters estimation. The empirical findings imply that the impact of the explanatory variables included in the gravity equation could be inaccurately estimated if the pair-wise heterogeneity biases in both intercept and slope terms are not accounted for during the econometric estimation of the model. In particular, in the presence of this heterogeneity, parameter estimates tend to be underestimated for country-pairs with higher trade volume and overestimated for those country-pairs with lower trade volume. In addition, the empirical results suggest that the improvement transportation system in port cities of China offers greater scope for its trade competitiveness.

Changing Forms of U.S. Hegemony in Puerto Rico: The Impact on the Family and Sexuality

Itinerario ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 25 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 90-111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen I. Safa
Keyword(s):  
Puerto Rico ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
The Family ◽  
Three Stages ◽  
Operation Bootstrap ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Constant Source ◽  
The U.S

It has been over a hundred years since the U.S. took control of Puerto Rico. In that time, the way in which the U.S. perceived Puerto Rico has changed from a colony requiring Americanisation to, in the 1950s, its showcase of democracy in the Caribbean, to today, an island that still retains geopolitical importance for the U.S., but represents an increasing economic burden. The failure of Operation Bootstrap, as the Puerto Rican industrialization program was known, resulted in permanent large-scale unemployment, with a population dependent on federal transfers for a living, and a constant source of migration to the mainland, where over half of Puerto Ricans now live. I shall trace the outline of these three stages in U.S. hegemony over Puerto Rico, and argue that throughout the U.S. Congress was reluctant to fully incorporate Puerto Rico, because its population was deemed racially and socially inferior to that of the mainland. Though the removal of Spain from Puerto Rico, Cuba and the Philippines was considered part of the its ‘manifest destiny’, the United States never intended to incorporate these people so different from the U.S. as part of the American nation, as was done with its earlier acquisitions in Texas, Alaska or even Hawaii.

scholarly journals SCHISTOSOMIASIS: GEOSPATIAL SURVEILLANCE AND RESPONSE SYSTEMS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA

2016 ◽  
Vol XLI-B8 ◽  
pp. 1409-1411
Author(s):  
John Malone ◽  
Robert Bergquist ◽  
Laura Rinaldi ◽  
Zhou Xiao-nong
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Rapid Assessment ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Observation System ◽  
Host Snail ◽  
Gis And Remote Sensing ◽  
Surveillance And Response ◽  
Populations At Risk ◽  
Response Systems ◽  
The Impact

Geographic information system (GIS) and remote sensing (RS) from Earth-observing satellites offer opportunities for rapid assessment of areas endemic for vector-borne diseases including estimates of populations at risk and guidance to intervention strategies. This presentation deals with GIS and RS applications for the control of schistosomiasis in China and the Philippines. It includes large-scale risk mapping including identification of suitable habitats for <i>Oncomelania hupensis</i>, the intermediate host snail of <i>Schistosoma japonicum</i>. Predictions of infection risk are discussed with reference to ecological transformations and the potential impact of climate change and the potential for long-term temperature increases in the North as well as the impact on rivers, lakes and water resource developments. Potential integration of geospatial mapping and modeling in schistosomiasis surveillance and response systems in Asia within Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) guidelines in the health societal benefit area is discussed.

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