ALBERT

Description: Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine how experiencing moderate earthquakes influences risk perception and preparedness. Design/methodology/approach An online survey was conducted on a nationally representative sample of Korean adults after the moderate earthquake in Pohang in 2017. Statistical analyses were conducted to identify the determinants of willingness to pay (WTP) for seismic retrofitting and earthquake insurance. Findings The results show that risk perception, housing ownership, earthquake experience and income level significantly influenced WTP for seismic retrofitting and earthquake insurance. The results also indicate that a greater number of damage-free earthquake experiences reduced the WTP that could be explained by normalcy bias. Finally, people who believed that the Pohang earthquake might be an example of induced seismicity (i.e. triggered by the geothermal power plant) tended to have a lower WTP for seismic retrofitting. Originality/value This study offers valuable findings on public attitudes about enhancing earthquake preparedness policies in moderate earthquake zones, regions that few studies have examined despite their high vulnerability due to a lack of preparedness.

Description: Purpose Emergency evacuation plans are often developed under the assumption that evacuees will use wayfinding strategies such as taking the shortest distance route to their nearest exit. The purpose of this paper is to analyze empirical data from a wildfire evacuation analyzed to determine whether evacuees took a shortest distance route to their nearest exit and to identify any alternate wayfinding strategies that they may have used. Design/methodology/approach The wildfire evacuation analysis presented in this paper is the outcome of a natural experiment. A post-fire online survey was conducted, which included an interactive map interface that allowed evacuees to identify the route that they took. The survey results were integrated with several additional data sets using a GIS. Network analysis was used to compare the routes selected by evacuees to their shortest distance routes, and statistical hypothesis testing was employed to identify the wayfinding strategies that may have been used. Findings The network analysis revealed that 31 percent of evacuees took a shortest distance route to their nearest exit. Hypothesis testing showed that evacuees selected routes that had significantly longer distances and travel times than the shortest distance routes, and indicated that factors such as the downhill slope percentage of routes and the elevation of exits may have impacted the wayfinding process. Research limitations/implications This research is best regarded as a spatiotemporal snapshot of wayfinding behavior during a single wildfire evacuation, but could inspire additional research to establish more generalizable results. Practical implications This research may help emergency managers develop more effective wildfire evacuation plans. Originality/value This research presents an analysis of an original data set that contributes to the broader body of scientific knowledge on wayfinding and spatial behavior during emergency evacuations.

Description: Purpose The purpose of this study is to discuss how enhancing the role of local institutions (LI) and incorporating indigenous knowledge (IK) in climate change adaptation planning can improve adoption and scaling success of climate-smart agriculture innovations. Design/methodology/approach A review of relevant literature from sub-Saharan Africa was used to answer the study research questions. Findings Embracing IK and LI in climate change adaptation projects can enhance adoption and scaling success of climate-smart agriculture innovations in smallholder farming. Such efforts will improve: information gathering and dissemination, mobilization of resources, establishment of useful networks with relevant stakeholders, capacity building farmers on various fronts and provision of leadership in climate adaptation programs. Practical implications Fully embracing IK and LI can improve the scaling of climate-smart innovations only if development partners recognize IK systems that are to be transformed and build on them instead of trying to replace them. Also, participatory approaches in scaling innovations will enhance input from rural people in climate change adaptation programs. Originality/value Development interventions aimed at taking proven effective climate-smart innovations to scale must, therefore, engage local communities and their indigenous institutions as active stakeholders in designing, planning and implementation of their climate adaptation programs.

Description: Purpose Schools are vulnerable to strong-magnitude earthquakes. The purpose of this study is to develop a seismic evacuation safety index (ESI) to assess school’s safety as a function of the following parameters: means of egress, disaster preparedness and disaster response. Moreover, the study aims to simulate and study an evacuation model to estimate evacuation time for a realistic understanding of the evacuation processes. Design/methodology/approach The paper used a semi-quantitative risk assessment method in developing the ESI. This was used to evaluate schools and classify them according to their level of evacuation safety. To estimate the evacuation time of each school, cellular automata theory and static floor field were used. Findings The paper provides primary school stakeholders important parameters that they should consider in preparing pre-disaster plans to ensure safe evacuation of school children. Research limitations/implications ESI focuses only on the means of egress, disaster preparedness and disaster response as the contributing factors. The structural conditions of each school building and assessment of non-structural elements are not considered. Practical implications The ESI and the evacuation model can be used as a basis for evacuation planning and decision-making. This can help building owners and administrators in strengthening their disaster risk management plan by enforcing mitigating measures. Originality/value ESI is an original idea and fills the gap regarding the safe evacuation of school children especially during a major seismic event.

Description: Purpose In recent years, climate-smart agriculture (CSA) was introduced to Vietnam to enhance farmers’ resilience and adaptation to climate change. Among the climate-smart agricultural technologies (CSATs) introduced were water-saving techniques and improved stress tolerant varieties. This study aims to examine the determinants of farmers’ adoption of these technologies and the effects of their adoption on net rice income (NRI) in three provinces as follows: Thai Binh (North), Ha Tinh (Central) and Bac Lieu (South). Design/methodology/approach Determinants of adoption of CSATs and the adoption effects on NRI are analyzed by using a multinomial endogenous switching regression framework. Findings The results showed that gender, age, number of family workers, climate-related factors, farm characteristics, distance to markets, access to climate information, confidence on the know-how of extension workers, membership in social/agricultural groups and attitude toward risk were the major factors affecting the decision to adopt CSATs. However, the effects of these factors on the adoption of CSATs varied across three provinces. These technologies when adopted tend to increase NRI but the increase is much greater when these are combined. Practical implications It is important to consider first the appropriateness of the CSA packages to the specific conditions of the target areas before they are promoted. It is also necessary to enhance the technical capacity of local extension workers and provide farmers more training on CSATs. Originality/value This study is the first attempt to identify key determinants of adoption of CSATs either singly or in combination and the adoption effects on NRI in Vietnam.

Description: Purpose This paper has carried out a case study of two flood-prone towns in Johor state, Malaysia, to understand how resilient the residents and local authorities were in dealing with the flood disasters in terms of their ability to anticipate, mobilize institutional resources, adapt and respond. Design/methodology/approach This research conducted semi-structured interviews with flood-affected residents, flood disaster managers and planners, and assessed land use regulations and institutional strengths to answer the research question. Findings The results showed that the residents’ anticipatory capacity to flood risks was weak and both the human and institutional resources were insufficient in coping with and responding to urban flooding. Research limitations/implications This research has not carried out questionnaire survey of large number of residents. It is based on semi-structured interview of ten residents in two Malaysian cities. Practical implications The insights drawn from this research would help develop flood-resilient policies for Malaysian cities. The global communities exposed to flood disasters too benefit from the Malaysia’s minute but crucial human and institutional experiences in urban flooding. Social implications Being resilient to all these small but important flood concerns has huge potential to reduce vulnerability and disaster risks and protect the lives and properties of flood affected urban residents. Originality/value The research focus in Malaysia is less on flood resilience and more on flood modeling and hydrology analysis. In this sense, this research is new because it talks more on flood vulnerability and resilience issues at the community level and gives a perspective on current Malaysian town's state of flood resilience culture and practices.

Description: Purpose Based on the existing provisions/operations of tsunami warning in the Indian Ocean, authors observed that detection as well as arrival time estimations of regional tsunami service providers (RTSPs) could be improved. In particular, the detection mechanisms have been eccentrically focussed on Sunda and Makran tsunamis, although tsunamis from Carlsberg ridge and Chagos archipelago could generate devastating tsunamis for which inadequate provisions exist for detection and arrival time/wave height estimation. RTSPs resort to assess estimated arrival time/wave heights from a scenario-based, pre-simulated database. These estimations in terms of Sri Lanka have been found inconsistent. In addition, current warning mechanism poorly manages non-seismic tsunamis. Thus, the purpose of this study is to investigate these drawbacks and attempt to carve out a series of suggestions to improve them. Design/methodology/approach The work initiated with data retrieved from global earthquake and tsunami databases, followed by an estimation of probabilities of tsunamis in the Indian Ocean with particular emphasis on Carlsberg and Chagos tsunamis. Second, probabilities of tsunami detection in each sub-region have been estimated with the use of available tide gauge and tsunami buoy data. Third, the difficulties in tsunami detection in the Indian Ocean are critically assessed with case studies, followed by recommendations to improve the detection and warning. Findings Probabilistic estimates show that given the occurrence of a significant earthquake, both Makran and Carlsberg/Chagos regions possess higher probabilities to harbour a tsunami than the Sunda subduction zone. Meanwhile, reliability figures of tsunami buoys have been declined from 79-92 to 68-91 per cent over the past eight years. In addition, a Chagos tsunami is left to be detected by only one tide gauge prior to it reaching Sri Lankan coasts. Research limitations/implications The study uses an averaged tsunami speed of 882 km/h based on 2004 Asian tsunami. However, using exact bathymetric data, Tsunamis could be simulated to derive speeds and arrival times more accurately. Yet, such refinements do not change the main derivations and conclusions of this study. Practical implications Tsunami detection and warning in the Indian Ocean region have shown room for improvement, based on the inadequate detection levels for Carlesberg and Chagos tsunamis, and inconsistent warnings of regional tsunami service providers. The authors attempted to remedy these drawbacks by proposing a series of suggestions, including a deployment of a new tsunami buoy south of Maldives, revival of offline buoys, real-time tsunami simulations and a strategy to deal with landslide tsunamis, etc. Social implications Indian Ocean is prone to mega tsunamis as witnessed in 2004. However, more than 50 per cent of people in the Indian Ocean rim countries dwell near the coast. This is verified with deaths of 227,898 people in 14 countries during the 2004 tsunami event. Thus, it is of paramount importance that sufficient detection levels are maintained throughout the Indian Ocean without being overly biased towards Sunda tsunamis. With respect to Sri Lanka, Makran, Carlesberg or Chagos tsunamis could directly hit the most populated west coast and bring about far worse repercussions than a Sunda tsunami. Originality/value This is the first instance where the threats from Carlesberg and Chagos tsunamis to Sri Lanka are discussed, probabilities of tsunamis are quantified and their detection levels assessed. In addition, reliability levels of tsunami buoys and tide gauges in the Indian Ocean are recomputed after eight years to discover that there is a drop in reliability of the buoy data. The work also proposes a unique approach to handle inconsistencies in the bulletins of regional tsunami service providers, and to uphold and improve dwindling interest on tsunami buoys.

Description: Purpose This paper aims to evaluate the vulnerability of typical low-rise reinforced concrete (RC) buildings located in Indonesia subjected to tsunami loading. Design/methodology/approach The vulnerability of typical three-story RC buildings located in Indonesia subjected to tsunami loading is discussed using fragility curves. Buildings without openings in all stories and buildings with openings in the first story are considered. The fragility curves are obtained by performing tsunami pushover analysis for several load cases, using different tsunami load estimation standards and references. The generalized linear method is used as a curve fitting method to construct the fragility curves. Findings The fragility curves show that the three-story RC buildings without openings in all stories subjected to tsunami loading have a high probability of collapse. Openings in the first story will reduce the vulnerability of the buildings. Originality/value Fragility curves are obtained by carrying out tsunami pushover analysis to evaluate the vulnerability of typical three-story RC buildings located in Indonesia. The results of this study show the need to include tsunami loads in the design code for Indonesian buildings and the benefits of having openings in the first story of the building.

Description: Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand local perceptions on climate change and its impacts on biodiversity, rangeland, agriculture and human health. Design/methodology/approach A household survey with 300 interviewees and focus group discussions with key stakeholders were conducted and validated at two steps, using the climate data from the nearest weather stations and reviewing literatures, to correlate the local perceptions on climate change and its impacts. Findings Majority of the respondents reported an increase in temperature and change in the precipitation pattern with increased hazardous incidences such as floods, avalanches and landslides. Climate change directly impacted plant distribution, species composition, disease and pest infestation, forage availability, agricultural productivity and human health risks related to infectious vector-borne diseases. Research limitations/implications Because of the remoteness and difficult terrain, there are insufficient local weather stations in the mountains providing inadequate scientific data, thus requiring extrapolation from nearest stations for long-term climate data monitoring. Practical implications The research findings recommend taking immediate actions to develop local climate change adaptation strategies through a participatory approach that would enable local communities to strengthen their adaptive capacity and resilience. Social implications Local knowledge-based perceptions on climate change and its impacts on social, ecological and economic sectors could help scientists, practitioners and policymakers to understand the ground reality and respond accordingly through effective planning and implementing adaptive measures including policy formulation. Originality/value This research focuses on combining local knowledge-based perceptions and climate science to elaborate the impacts of climate change in a localised context in Rakaposhi Valley in Karakoram Mountains of Pakistan.