Disaster Mitigation and Management and Importance of Earth Observation

Abstract

Natural events such as earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, tsunamis haveoccurred throughout Earth's history. These are caused by naturallyoccurring processes and are considered natural hazards and disastersbecause they negatively affect humans and destroy livelihoods. On theother hand, technological disasters like oil and chemical spills,pollution, industrial accidents, and massive automobile, train, orairplane accidents, are direct results of human activity.In recent times, occurrence of geologic and hydrometerological eventshave increased in frequency and intensity exposing ecosystems and localcommunities to unprecedented hazards. In India, increasing number offloods, landslides, and droughts are causing much loss of life andproperty. Population growth and intensifying land-use practices areexacerbating the impacts of these hazards. Earth observation is emergingas an invaluable tool for disaster management, providing inputs for riskand vulnerability assessment, early warning systems, and damageassessment and is most informative and effective when partnered withlocal expertise.In this paper we elaborate the use of earth observation systems as toolsto aid in disaster mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery inIndia. By earth observation systems we mean the use of remote sensingand allied technology which enables us to observe the dynamics of theearth's surface. We use specific examples and best practices from acrossthe globe to illustrate its applicability in natural disasters withspecial reference to India.