Geology Report: Analysis of Earthquake Causes, Impacts, and Mitigation

This geology report provides a comprehensive overview of earthquakes, beginning with their causes, which are primarily attributed to the sudden slip on faults due to the movement of tectonic plates. It details how the release of energy in seismic waves leads to ground shaking and the damage that results. The report examines the impacts of earthquakes, including structural damage, fires, tsunamis, and liquefaction, with a specific focus on the effects on coastal cities and the devastating consequences of tsunamis. It highlights the impact of the 2011 Japan earthquake and tsunami. The report concludes by discussing tools and methods for reducing the impact of earthquakes, such as anti-seismic technology, hazard maps, and vibrating barriers, while acknowledging the challenges of protecting buildings, particularly in developing countries. The report references several sources to support its findings and recommendations.

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Introduction
The earthquakes are caused by slip on a fault suddenly. The tectonic plates are usually
slowly moving but when earthquake happen, they get stuck at the edge because of friction. The
time when the stress on the age comes over the friction, there is the cause of earthquake which
helps in releasing energy in waves travelling in the crust of the earth causing the shake humans
feel. It happens to the shaking of the ground that is caused by the seismic wave’s passage
through the rocks of the earth1. The seismic waves are actually produced by the time when a
form of energy that is stored in the crust of the Earth is released suddenly when the rock masses
strain against one another in a certain way. The earthquakes mainly occur when there are
geological faults and there are narrow zones where the movement of the mass of the rock
become possible related to one another2. The primary fault lines are situated at the fringes of the
tectonic plates which prepare the crust of the earth. Notably, among the earthquakes of the world
hundred earthquakes are of sufficient size for producing substantial damage in case the centers
are near the areas of habitation. The huge earthquakes usually occur on average every year for
once. These have been responsible for millions of deaths and damage to property over the
centuries.
Causes of Earthquake
1 Tait, James, Ryan Orlowski, Jessica Brewer, and Matthew D. Miller. "12 Coastal sediment
management as a response to intensifying storms and sea level rise." Towards Coastal Resilience
and Sustainability (2018): 79
2 Lomonaco, Pedro, Mohammad Shafiqual Alam, Pedro Arduino, Andre Barbosa, Daniel T. Cox,
Trung Do, Marc Eberhard et al. "Experimental modeling of wave forces and hydrodynamics on
elevated coastal structures subject to waves, surge or tsunamis: the effect of breaking, shielding
and debris." Coastal Engineering Proceedings 36 (2018): 53-53.

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As far as the causes of the earthquakes are concerned, the major earthquakes happen in
the belts which coincide with the margin of the tectonic plates. That quick shake is also caused
by natural sources by sudden release of the energy in some of the limited region of the rocks of
the earth. This energy can be released through gravity elastic straining the chemical reactions
along with the motion of massive bodies. The release of the elastic strain all these are significant
cause due to the fact that this form of energy can be stored in the quantity of earth for producing
major disturbances.
Impact of Earthquake
Regarding the impact of the earthquake, it can be said that there are some common
impacts of the earthquakes consisting of the structural damage to the monuments, damage to the
bridge and the highways, fires development of failures, tsunami and liquefaction. These types of
impacts usually depend on the area of the earthquake up to greater extent. It depends on whether
the place is predominantly rural or urban, sparsely populated or densely populated,
underdeveloped or highly developed. The example of 1985 Mexico earthquake shows that the
geological base of the buildings are highly damaged by the earthquake shaking. The time when
an earthquake happens, the seismic waves tend to produce a wide range of frequencies and this
energy of top frequency waves is likely to be observed by the solid rocks where is the lower
frequency waves smoothly pass without being observed and causing any shake.
Impact of Earthquake in coastal cities
In the coastal cities, the giant waves which are caused by the earthquakes or the volcanic
eruption are called Tsunami. Tsunami waves usually do not increase dramatically in height but
build up to higher height with the decrease of ocean depth. It is found that in March 11, 2011 the
Japan earthquake and tsunami that is known as a Tohoku earthquake and Tsunami was a huge

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surprise to many people consisting of the Japanese earthquake science communities. It is further
found that the impact of giant earthquake usually fall on the coastline the most which run parallel
with the offshore subjection area also3. The coastal earthquake or Tsunami can cause essential
damage to the coastal communities. The larger the earthquake, the greater the proportion of total
damage becomes which can originate from the Tsunami. Regarding the impacts of earthquakes,
there are different types of damages to be focused on.
Damage occurred due to coastal earthquakes or Tsunami
In terms of the damage the tsunami can cause to all coastal towns along with Pacific
Ocean starting from Hokkaido to China, there are many implications. Particularly more than 10m
high Tsunami can cause different types of damage to the coastal cities of Miagi, Fukushima and
others. The most common type of damage which can happen is the complete destruction of the
wooden houses and flattening of buildings to dust. There can be concrete building collapses even
after having concrete structures which are considered to be safe against Tsunami. Impulsive
force that is caused by the collision of waves breaking might be a reason for the collapse of the
strong buildings4. The cars can be swiped along by the tsunami and found under the debris of the
houses. Further, there can be fire breaking out in the debris sand spreading as the outcome of
debris shifting. The large-scale fires can be caused through spilling oil which is spread by the
3 Earle, S., 2020. 11.4 The Impacts Of Earthquakes. [online] Opentextbc.ca. Available at:
<https://opentextbc.ca/geology/chapter/11-4-the-impacts-of-earthquakes/> [Accessed 31 March
2020].
4 Fema.gov. 2020. Fema.Gov. https://www.fema.gov/media-library-data/20130726-1508-20490-
4336/nehrp_strategic_plan.pdf.

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Tsunami. There can be damage to the Railways and the roads including the damages to the
bridges. If there are ports situated within 1.5 km of the coastal area can be inundated. There can
be damage to the ports and the coasts. Many ships can be broken away from the moorings and
can be collided with the port facilities. The collision of the ships can result in the oil spilling
within the ports and there can also be damage to the passenger ships. In the coastal area there can
be severe damage to the factories and warehouses in the industry areas creating a huge impact on
the industry across the world. Also, the container terminals can be inundated with water and can
be washed out to the sea.
Tools for reducing the impact of coastal Earthquakes
It is for sure that earthquakes cannot be stopped but its effects can be reduced through
many methods and predictions and tools. The protection of the cities from the earthquakes is a
grand challenge which needs focus as far as the cases of disasters in Japan, Nepal, Chile, Haiti
are considered. There have been many progress in the understanding of the seismic activity but
there are no such satisfactory way of protecting the buildings widely. The anti-seismic
technology is found to be quite advance for the new buildings because it is possible to build
individual frame which can withstand the majority of the recorded earthquake5. Also, there are
devices as isolation system along with the dampers that are designed for reducing the vibrations
of the structures which are induced by the earthquakes. Considerably, there are large numbers of
buildings existing in the earthquake prone zone which do not have the built-in protection system
5 Theconversation.com, 2020. Our New Anti-Earthquake Technology Could Protect Cities From
Destruction. [online] The Conversation. Available at: <https://theconversation.com/our-new-
anti-earthquake-technology-could-protect-cities-from-destruction-44028> [Accessed 31 March
2020].

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specifically in the developing countries6. These technologies are used rarely for the protection of
the existing building but need the substantial alteration of the real structure. There are needs for
alternative solution which can protect multiple buildings without having the need to alter with
the use of a single device. There are devices such as vibrating barrier for reducing the vibrations
of the structures that are caused by the ground waves of earthquakes. The device is likely to be
buried in the soil and disconnected from the surrounding buildings which should be able in
absorbing a particular portion of dynamic energy that is arising from the ground motion. About
some altered procedures it can be said that the interpretation of recorded ground motions can be
quite useful. The construction of seismic hazard maps is also useful because in many regions the
expectancy maps are available for the planning purposes. This hazard maps or the expectancy
map can be helpful in anticipating any type of impending earthquake and can make the people of
the coastal cities prepared for the activity.
6 Oceanservice.noaa.gov, 2020. What Is A Tsunami?. [online] Oceanservice.noaa.gov. Available
at: <https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/tsunami.html> [Accessed 31 March 2020].

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References
Earle, S., 2020. 11.4 The Impacts Of Earthquakes. [online] Opentextbc.ca. Available at:
<https://opentextbc.ca/geology/chapter/11-4-the-impacts-of-earthquakes/> [Accessed 31 March
2020].
Fema.gov. 2020. Fema.Gov. https://www.fema.gov/media-library-data/20130726-1508-20490-
4336/nehrp_strategic_plan.pdf.
Lomonaco, Pedro, Mohammad Shafiqual Alam, Pedro Arduino, Andre Barbosa, Daniel T. Cox,
Trung Do, Marc Eberhard et al. "Experimental modeling of wave forces and hydrodynamics on
elevated coastal structures subject to waves, surge or tsunamis: the effect of breaking, shielding
and debris." Coastal Engineering Proceedings 36 (2018): 53-53.
Oceanservice.noaa.gov, 2020. What Is A Tsunami?. [online] Oceanservice.noaa.gov. Available
at: <https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/tsunami.html> [Accessed 31 March 2020].
Tait, James, Ryan Orlowski, Jessica Brewer, and Matthew D. Miller. "12 Coastal sediment
management as a response to intensifying storms and sea level rise." Towards Coastal Resilience
and Sustainability (2018): 79.
Theconversation.com, 2020. Our New Anti-Earthquake Technology Could Protect Cities From
Destruction. [online] The Conversation. Available at: <https://theconversation.com/our-new-
anti-earthquake-technology-could-protect-cities-from-destruction-44028> [Accessed 31 March
2020].