scholarly journals Perception of flood and landslide risk in Italy: a preliminary analysis

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (9) ◽  
pp. 2589-2603 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Salvati ◽  
C. Bianchi ◽  
F. Fiorucci ◽  
P. Giostrella ◽  
I. Marchesini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Perception ◽  
Flood Risk ◽  
Public Perception ◽  
Volcanic Eruptions ◽  
Landslide Risk ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
General Knowledge ◽  
The Public ◽  
Italian Regions

Abstract. Inundations and landslides are widespread phenomena in Italy, where they cause severe damage and pose a threat to the population. Little is known about the public perception of landslide and flood risk. This is surprising, as an accurate perception is important for the successful implementation of many risk reduction or adaptation strategies. In an attempt to address this gap, we have conducted two national surveys to measure the perception of landslide and flood risk amongst the population of Italy. The surveys were conducted in 2012 and 2013, and consisted of approximately 3100 computer-assisted telephone interviews for each survey. The samples of the interviewees were statistically representative for a national-scale quantitative assessment. The interviewees were asked questions designed to obtain information on (i) their perception of natural, environmental, and technological risks, (ii) direct experience or general knowledge of the occurrence of landslides and floods in their municipality, (iii) perception of the possible threat posed by landslides and floods to their safety, (iv) general knowledge on the number of victims affected by landslides or floods, and on (v) the factors that the interviewees considered important for controlling landslide and flood risks in Italy. The surveys revealed that the population of Italy fears technological risks more than natural risks. Of the natural risks, earthquakes were considered more dangerous than floods, landslides, and volcanic eruptions. Examination of the temporal and geographical distributions of the responses revealed that the occurrence of recent damaging events influenced risk perception locally, and that the perception persisted longer for earthquakes and decreased more rapidly for landslides and floods. We explain the difference by the diverse consequences of the risks. The interviewees considered inappropriate land management the main cause of landslide and food risk, followed by illegal construction, abandonment of the territory, and climate change. Comparison of the risk perception with actual measures of landslide and flood risk, including the number of fatal events, the number of fatalities, and the mortality rates, revealed that in most of the Italian regions, the perception of the threat did not match the long-term risk posed to the population by landslides and floods. This outcome points to a need to foster an understanding of the public towards landslide and flood hazards and risks in Italy.

scholarly journals Perception of flood and landslide risk in Italy: a preliminary analysis

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (5) ◽  
pp. 3465-3497 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Salvati ◽  
C. Bianchi ◽  
F. Fiorucci ◽  
P. Giostrella ◽  
I. Marchesini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Perception ◽  
Flood Risk ◽  
Volcanic Eruptions ◽  
Landslide Risk ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
General Knowledge ◽  
Flood Hazards ◽  
Italian Regions ◽  
Accurate Perception

Abstract. Inundations and landslides are widespread phenomena in Italy, where they cause severe damage and pose a threat to the population. Little is known on the perception of the population of landslides and floods. This is surprising, as an accurate perception is important for the successful implementation of many risk reduction or adaptation strategies. In an attempt to fill this gap, we have conducted two national surveys to measure the perception of landslide and flood risk of the population of Italy. The surveys were executed in 2012 and 2013, performing for each survey approximately 3100 computer assisted telephone interviews. The samples of the interviewees were statistically representative for a national scale quantitative assessment. The interviewees were asked questions designed to obtain information on their: (i) perception of natural, environmental, and technological risks, (ii) direct experience or general knowledge on the occurrence of landslides and floods in their municipality, (iii) perception of the possible threat posed by landslides and floods to their safety, (iv) general knowledge on the number of victims caused by landslides or floods, and on (v) the factors that they considered important to control landslide and flood risks in Italy. The surveys revealed that the population of Italy fears technological risks more than natural risks. Of the natural risks, earthquakes were considered more dangerous than floods, landslides, and volcanic eruptions. Examination of the temporal and geographical distribution of the responses revealed that the occurrence of recent damaging events influenced risk perception locally, and that the perception persisted longer for earthquakes and decreased more rapidly for landslides and floods. We justify the differentiation with the diverse consequences of the risks. The interviewees considered inappropriate land management the main cause of landslide and flood risk, followed by illegal construction, abandonment of the territory, and climate change. Comparison of the risk perception with actual measures of landslide and flood risk, including the number of fatal events, the number of fatalities, and the mortality rates, revealed that in most of the Italian regions the perception of the threat did not match the long-term risk posed by landslides and floods to the population. This outcome points to the need to fostering the understanding of the population of landslide and flood hazards and risks in Italy.

scholarly journals Risk perception – issues for flood management in Europe

2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 2299-2309 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. A. Bradford ◽  
J. J. O'Sullivan ◽  
I. M. van der Craats ◽  
J. Krywkow ◽  
P. Rotko ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Management ◽  
Risk Perception ◽  
Flood Risk ◽  
Public Perception ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Flood Risk Management ◽  
Social Resilience ◽  
The Public ◽  
Management Plans ◽  
Flood Risk Management Plans

Abstract. Public perception of flood risk and flood risk information is often overlooked when developing flood risk management plans. As scientists and the public at large perceive risk in very different ways, flood risk management strategies are known to have failed in the past due to this disconnect between authorities and the public. This paper uses a novel approach in exploring the role of public perception in developing flood risk communication strategies in Europe. Results are presented of extensive quantitative research of 1375 questionnaire responses from thirteen communities at risk across six European countries. The research forms part of two research projects funded under the 2nd ERA-Net CRUE Funding Initiative: URFlood and FREEMAN. Risk perception is conceptualised as a pillar of social resilience, representing an innovative approach to the issue. From this process recommendations are identified for improving flood risk management plans through public participation.

scholarly journals Analysis of the perceived condition of forests in the Czech Republic

2013 ◽  
Vol 59 (No. 12) ◽  
pp. 514-519 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Riedl ◽  
L. Šišák
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Public Perception ◽  
Forest Policy ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
The Real ◽  
The Public ◽  
Forestry Sector ◽  
Realistic Perception ◽  
Opinion Polls

A realistic perception of the condition of forests, and the attributes of the forestry sector, by the public constitutes one of the basic prerequisites for successful implementation of forest policy in any country. Although data objectively demonstrate that the condition of Czech forests has improved, opinion polls show a gap between the public perception of the condition of Czech forests and the real status of these forests. The reasons for the discrepancy between reality and the perception of the public, and between the results of different surveys, are analysed. The most significant differences were found in perceptions of damage and threats to forests. The effectiveness of communication about forest policy is discussed, and some ways to create more effective communication are examined.

Forestry and landslides: What's acceptable in BC?

2009 ◽  
Vol 85 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
R H Guthrie
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Risk Perception ◽  
Key Words ◽  
Public Key ◽  
Expert Advice ◽  
Forest Industry ◽  
Landslide Risk ◽  
Acceptable Risk ◽  
The Public ◽  
Landslide Risk Assessment

Landslides are unavoidably linked to forestry operations in coastal BC. A neglected component of landslide risk assessment is the degree to which impacts from landslides may be acceptable. One hundred and thirteen professionals in the BC forest industry, including foresters, biologists, geoscientists and engineers, examined landslide tolerability criteria. Despite differences by sector, there was general agreement that landslides resultant of ignoring expert advice or where an expert was clearly at fault were unacceptable, and penalties were high. In more ambiguous cases, increased consequences resulted in increased scrutiny and it was clear that experts should expect to be held responsible for their decisions by government officiators and the public. Key words: landslide, risk, risk perception, acceptable risk, landslides and forestry

scholarly journals Societal landslide and flood risk in Italy

2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 465-483 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Salvati ◽  
C. Bianchi ◽  
M. Rossi ◽  
F. Guzzetti
Keyword(s):  
Flood Risk ◽  
Mass Function ◽  
Landslide Risk ◽  
Probability Mass Function ◽  
Scaling Exponent ◽  
Flood Events ◽  
Negative Power ◽  
Missing Persons ◽  
Italian Regions ◽  
Societal Risk

Abstract. We assessed societal landslide and flood risk to the population of Italy. The assessment was conducted at the national (synoptic) and at the regional scales. For the assessment, we used an improved version of the catalogue of historical landslide and flood events that have resulted in loss of life, missing persons, injuries and homelessness in Italy, from 1850 to 2008. This is the recent portion of a larger catalogue spanning the 1941-year period from 68 to 2008. We started by discussing uncertainty and completeness in the historical catalogue, and we performed an analysis of the temporal and geographical pattern of harmful landslide and flood events, in Italy. We found that sites affected by harmful landslides or floods are not distributed evenly in Italy, and we attributed the differences to different physiographical settings. To determine societal risk, we investigated the distribution of the number of landslide and flood casualties (deaths, missing persons, and injured people) in Italy, and in the 20 Italian Regions. Using order statistics, we found that the intensity of a landslide or flood event – measured by the total number of casualties in the event – follows a general negative power law trend. Next, we modelled the empirical distributions of the frequency of landslide and flood events with casualties in Italy and in each Region using a Zipf distribution. We used the scaling exponent s of the probability mass function (PMF) of the intensity of the events, which controls the proportion of small, medium, and large events, to compare societal risk levels in different geographical areas and for different periods. Lastly, to consider the frequency of the events with casualties, we scaled the PMF obtained for the individual Regions to the total number of events in each Region, in the period 1950–2008, and we used the results to rank societal landslide and flood risk in Italy. We found that in the considered period societal landslide risk is largest in Trentino-Alto Adige and Campania, and societal flood risk is highest in Piedmont and Sicily.

scholarly journals Comparison of the risk perception and warning response to air pollution on an individual level in China

2021 ◽  
Vol 252 ◽  
pp. 03063
Author(s):  
Fangping Wang ◽  
Fei Su
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Risk Perception ◽  
Early Warning ◽  
Public Perception ◽  
Warning System ◽  
Pollution Level ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Public ◽  
Gender Education ◽  
Warning Response

Individual responses to China’s heavy air pollution early warning are poorly understood. This knowledge gap has hampered the evaluation and improvement of the early warning system in providing the targeted populations with effective protection guidance. In order to explore the public’s response to air pollution warning, field survey were conducted in three major cities of China in 2016. The results indicated that different levels of air pollution warnings were correctly understood in these three cities, but the warning response rate was low. Significant differences in the public’s risk perception were demonstrated. Public perception of the health impacts of air pollution (HEP) and knowledge of the warning index (AQI) were significantly higher in Beijing than in Shenzhen. The public perception of the pollution level (DEVIATION) was equal in Beijing and Shenzhen, but higher than that in Shanghai. Gender, education, and risk perception were crucial factors influencing the public’s willingness to respond to warnings. Early warning policymakers can use this research to optimize the design and dissemination of early warning information to improve the public’s health and quality of life in cities with air pollution.

scholarly journals Examining CAATTs Implementation by Internal Auditors in the Public Sector

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 50-56
Author(s):  
Aidi Ahmi ◽  
Siti Zabedah Saidin ◽  
Akilah Abdullah
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Internal Audit ◽  
State Level ◽  
Maintenance Cost ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Internal Auditors ◽  
The Public ◽  
Efficiency And Effectiveness ◽  
The Government

Computer Assisted Audit Tools and Techniques (CAATTs) are not new for auditors, and it needs to be adopted to gain the audit efficiency and effectiveness especially in a current era of technology. This paper examined the implementation of CAATTs by internal auditors in the public sector. Accordingly, this research reports the results from 12 interviews made with internal audit departments in public sector in both federal and state level in Malaysia. This research found that the implementation of CAATTs by internal auditors in public sector is still low due to lack of expertise, high implementation and maintenance cost, limited access of auditee’s data, and most of them prefer to conduct the audit manually. Furthermore, it is not mandatory for them to use CAATTs. The evidence is a contrast with the encouragement made by the government to improve the IT usage in public sector. The results implied that training for future auditors in CAATTs to ensure the successful implementation is crucial. For CAATTs to be a success, the head of internal audit also must have the awareness about the importance of CAATTs as well as enforcement of its implementation.

scholarly journals Public risk perception and responsive behaviors in the United States, United Kingdom, and Brazil during the COVID-19 Pandemic: a cross-sectional study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anran Wang ◽  
Xiaolei Xiu ◽  
Sizhu Wu
Keyword(s):  
Risk Perception ◽  
Public Perception ◽  
Close Contact ◽  
The United States ◽  
Living Environment ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Protective Measures ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Us

Abstract Background: Understanding public perception and behaviors toward COVID-19 is valuable for mitigating the severe epidemic. Our study aimed to investigate differences of the public from the US, UK, and Brazil on the aspects of the living environment, behaviors, attitude and risk perception. Methods: Dataset were taken from the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Survival Calculator project. 89554 respondents from the US (n=71812), UK (n=10392), and Brazil (n=7350) completed online questionnaire survey from April 28 to July 8. Frequencies and percentages were calculated to describe respondents’ responses. Chi-square tests with Holm-Bonferroni correction and binary logistic regression were used to determine the differences in environmental status, behaviors and worried degree of participants among the three countries, and further explore the sociodemographic characteristics related to protective measures. Results: Brazil participants had the highest risk perception to COVID-19, followed by the US, and the UK was the lowest (39.02±24.57 vs. 32.72±22.38 vs. 29.47+22.39, P<0.001). More Brazil participants expressed that they were worried about COVID-19. The proportion of respondents from the US and UK who reported they were not worried about COVID-19 was 2.00 times (95%CI: 1.80-2.23) and 3.24 times (95%CI: 2.88-3.65) that of Brazil. A higher percentage of Brazil respondents reported they were in close contact with more than ten people, using public transport and engaging in work. Regarding behaviors, social distancing (ranges:84.9%-86.8%) and washing hands (ranges:84.8%-90.3%) were the most frequently used protective measures, but respondents from the US (69.8%) and UK (15.8%) were relatively reluctant to wear masks. Moreover, it was found that participants from ethnic minorities were more likely to take protective measures. But males, respondents under 20 years, and respondents with poor economic conditions had various degrees of neglect to take steps. Meanwhile, healthcare workers also had a relatively stronger awareness of protection. Conclusion: There are significant differences in the environment, behaviors, attitude and risk perception of the public from the US, UK and Brazil. The sociodemographic subgroups analysis indicated that it is necessary to enhance protection publicity and support for specific groups. Our findings are conducive to the public health authorities to carry out more targeted publicity work of COVID-19 protection measures.

scholarly journals An Analysis of the Public Perception of Flood Risk on the Belgian Coast

Risk Analysis ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 31 (7) ◽  
pp. 1055-1068 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wim Kellens ◽  
Ruud Zaalberg ◽  
Tijs Neutens ◽  
Wouter Vanneuville ◽  
Philippe De Maeyer
Keyword(s):  
Flood Risk ◽  
Public Perception ◽  
The Public ◽  
Belgian Coast
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