COLLECTION

COLLECTION

Environmental Hazards

Environmental Hazards

The environmental hazards you face depend on where you live. Take two U.S. locations as examples: If you live in Northern California you are more likely to be impacted by a wildfire, landslide, or earthquake than if you live in Charleston, South Carolina, but less likely to be hit by a hurricane. This is because the physical conditions in each place are different. The active San Andreas fault runs through California and causes regular earthquakes, while the warm waters transported by the Gulf Stream can intensify a storm heading for South Carolina. These environmental hazards shape human activity regionally. Building codes in California require builders to meet standards set to minimize structural damage in an earthquake and coastal cities have building code to reinforce roofs and walls to resist a storm’s high winds.

Grades

2 - 12+

Subjects

Earth Science, Geology, Meteorology, Geography, Physical Geography