Megacities as global risk areas

Abstract

In the last few decades a striking world-wide trend towards rising fatalities and economic losses due to natural and man-made hazards can be observed. One major influencing factor is growing urbanization, megacities being particularly prone to supply crises, social disorganisation, political conflicts and natural disasters. They can be both victims and producers of risks. This article concentrates on major risks and gives examples of a) environmental hazards (such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, storms, floods, droughts and heat waves, snowfall, frost and avalanches as well as global sea-level rise). Furthermore b) man-made hazards such as air, water and soil pollution, accidents, fires, industrial explosions, sinking land levels, diseases and epidemics, socio-economic crises, civil riots and terror attacks, nuclear accidents as well as war, germ and nuclear warfare are addressed. Finally, the most remarkable deficits in research are summarized, as well as future tasks. © 2008 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.