Final Assignment

Costa Rica will experience many different natural hazards in a year, but the most frequent and destructive natural hazard I believe is earthquakes. Costa Rica will experience hundreds of earthquakes a year, although not are high enough magnitude to be felt by the citizens of Costa Rica, they are happening daily. Costa Rica has a serious earthquake problem, so it would be beneficial to focus their resources on this situation, to prevent a serious disaster from happening. The reason why Costa Rica experiences all of these earthquakes each year, is due to the close proximity to the Cocos Plate. The Cocos Plate is located in the North Pacific Ocean, near the Southwest border of Costa Rica. The Cocos Plate is creating a convergent boundary with the Caribbean Plate. These are ocean-continental plates, and the Cocos plate is subducting under the Caribbean plate. The effect of this type of plate boundary is earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, and flooding. This was also the cause for the 200 earthquakes of a 3.8 magnitude or higher, that Costa Rica experienced in 2018. An earthquake warning system would be on of the first step I would take to help the people of Costa Rica.

Having a warning system in place, would hopefully give people a minute or two to find a safe place to be, when the shaking begins. Another important step to take, would be to locate crucial facilities, like a police and fire station, as well as a hospital in a location that will not be least affected. Another crucial measure to take would be the structural support of the building. It is important that the buildings are up to code and have a higher chance of withstanding the damages of a high magnitude earthquakes. Costa Rica experiences earthquakes across the country due to its location, but the area that receives the most earthquakes is the surrounding area near the capital of San José. These cities are located on the South-West region of the country. This includes the cities that are located along the coast to the North Pacific Ocean, and include cities such as Puerto Quepos. To help limit the damage and the death toll of these natural hazards, I would start my making improvements to this region of the country.

To start, I would create a simple warning system that would alert to citizens in the area of a potential earthquake. This may give them a few minutes to find a safe place to be at when the earthquake hits, this would help to prevent serious injury or death due to being unprepared or in an unsafe location. Another important step to take, would be to locate crucial facilities, like a police and fire station, as well as a hospital in a location that will not be least affected. Another crucial measure to take would be the structural support of the building. It is important that the buildings are up to code and have a higher chance of withstanding the damages of a high magnitude earthquakes. If these improvements seem to be successful in this area, I would begin to spread them throughout the country. The North-East coast along the Caribbean Sea, is the least prone to experiencing harsh earthquakes. This is the area would be my first choice to build a house. It is one of the furthest areas from the tectonic plate within the country, and you would still be able to enjoy a beautiful coastline that Costa Rica has to offer.

References:

https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/earthquakes/costarica.html

https://costa-rica-guide.com/travel/health-safety/natural-disasters/

http://temblor.net/earthquake-insights/does-the-17-august-m6-2-golfito-earthquake-foretell-the-next-megathrust-rupture-along-costa-ricas-osa-peninsula-7646/

https://www.adventure-life.com/costa-rica/news/earthquake-in-costa-rica

Coastal Hazards

Costa Rica is surrounded by both the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. Due to its geographical location, Costa Rica has a high chance of experiencing coastal floods. The northern border of Costa Rica, located along the Pacific Ocean, has a higher chance of experiencing a coastal flood. Although the northern side is expected to be hit with extreme coastal flooding, in 2017 it was the eastern side of the country that experienced this type of hazard. Coastal erosion is another hazard that Costa Rica is dealing with. The Cocels beech, in Costa Rica, is dealing with the washing away of its beach, while trying to save an iconic tourist destination. This erosion is due to climate change. Many beach communities in Costa Rica are threatened by these rising sea level. These hazards may not just take jobs away from the locals, but also damage many houses in these communities.




References:
http://thinkhazard.org/en/report/61-costa-rica/CF
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-costa-rica-environment-climatechange/costa-ricas-little-jamaica-coast-struggles-to-ride-out-climate-storm-idUSKCN1IP23V

Extreme Weather

This year, Costa Rica is experiencing the effects of an El Niño, particularly in the North. With the El Niño, they have had a slight increase in temperature, throughout this area, and have not experienced the same amount of rainfall as normal. They experienced 50% less rain this January, which makes this one of the driest January’s recorded in the province of Limon. The lack of rain and the warm temperature are beginning to have an effect on their agriculture, due to all the dry land.

Due to this event, they have begun water restrictions in certain areas. Along with these restrictions, they have received money from the National Emergency Commission, to help with any damages. Along with these funds to help pay for the damages, the Costa Rican government created the Permanent Attention Committee to monitor and evaluate the impacts of these events.

Resources:

https://news.co.cr/government-announces-contingency-plan-to-minimize-effects-of-el-nino-phenomenon/77237/

https://news.co.cr/droughts-and-high-temperatures-are-expected-this-month-in-costa-rica-as-a-result-of-el-nino/78969/

Mass Wasting

Mass wasting: sometimes called mass movement or slope movement, is defined as the large movement of rock, soil, and debris downward due to the force of gravity. In other words, the earth's outer crust is being 'wasted' away on a 'massive' scale and falling to lower elevations.

After a survey was taken throughout Costa Rica, it was determined that there are about 1,400 locations in Costa Rica that are prone to landslides. San José, the capital of Costa Rica, is a prominent location for landslides to occur. In 2010, there were 27 deaths due to landslides, in Costa Rica, 23 of these deaths happened in the capital, San Jose. 

There is no warning system in place, to help the people of Costa Rica determine if a possible landslide may occur in the area around them. It is important that citizens are aware of the potential of a landslide happening in their neighborhood, by watching how much rain falls in their area. It is also important to see if you are in an area that is known for having landslides in the past. 

Resources:
https://study.com/academy/lesson/mass-wasting-definition-types-causes-processes.html
https://www.welovecostarica.com/costa-rica-landslides-watch-out/
https://www.worldnomads.com/travel-safety/central-america/costa-rica/costa-rica-natural-dangers

Volcanoes

Due to Costa Rica's close proximity to a tectonic plate boundary, the county has several major volcanoes that have formed throughout the country. Costa Rica is home to six active volcanoes, as well as sixty-one dormant or extict volcanoes. Costa Rica's volcano, Arenal, is one the most notible volcaones of the country. Arenal was one of the most active, in the country, until it entered a resting phase in 2010. The Poas volcano remains one of the most active volcano, but it was not had a major eruption since 1910. These volcaones and many others located in Costa Rica, have become major tourist attractions in Costa Rica. 

To keep citizens safe from a possible volcanic eruption, Costa Rica may shut down a national park where a volcano is located. In May of 2018, the Poas Volcano Natioanal Park was closed due to safety reasons, and this has also happened at the Turrialba National Park as well. Costa Rica does not use an early warning system, when it comes to possible eruptions of these volcanoes. It seems like the  only safety measure they take is to shut down the park and to try and keep as many people as possible away from the danger. 

References

https://www.arenal.net/volcanoes-costa-rica

https://news.co.cr/tourists-and-businesses-impatient-for-poas-volcano-national-park-in-costa-rica-to-reopen/73127/

Earthquakes

Just off the coast of the South-West boarder of Costa Rica, in the Pacific Ocean, is where the Cocos Plate is subducting under the Caribbean Plate. Due to the location of these tectonic plates, it is this area of Costa Rica that experiences the most earthquakes. Accoriding to the IRIS monitoring website, the most recent earthquake to take place in Costa Rica happened on Febuary 13, and it had a 4.5 magnitude.  In the area surrounding San José, Costa Rica's capital, there is the most potential for a higher magnitude earthquake. Even though this are of COsta Rica has the highest potential to experience the most damage, the entire country has a high change of experiencing earthquakes.



Due to the frecuency of earthquakes in Costa Rica, they have new policies to reduce the damage to the people and tourist of Costa Rica. They have began to build structures to "prevent" them from collapsing in the event of an earthquake, as well as not instulling natural gas lines, to prevent unnecessary fires. The building that are not having natural gas lines installed are mostly tourist destinations. In July of 2018, it was reported that Costa Rica was doing trial runs of implementing an Earthquake Early Warning System. This would allow any citizen with a smartphone ot recieve alerts, when an earthquake could erupt.


References:
https://www.delapuravida.com/2011/powerful-6-0-friday-the-13th-earthquake-in-costa-rica/
http://ds.iris.edu/seismon/zoom/index.phtml?rgn=Central_America
https://costa-rica-guide.com/travel/health-safety/natural-disasters/
https://news.co.cr/costa-rica-could-soon-have-an-earthquake-early-warning-system/74618/

Tectonic Plates

Costa Rica is located on the overlapping area of the Cocos Tectonic Plate and the Caribbean Plate, which created a convergent boundary. Due to the Cocos Plate moving under the Caribbean Plate, it has resulted in the formation of a volcanic arc in Costa Rica. The subduction zone in Costa Rica is the cause of the volcanic arc, that is shown in the picture to the left. Another effect of these plates is earthquakes, which Costa Rica can experience many earthquakes a year. In 2018, over 200 earthquakes with a magnitude of 3.8 or higher, was recorded in Costa Rica. 

The south-west area of Costa Rica is located near the border of the two tectonic plates. These colliding plates are known as a convergent boundary. The types of plates that are colliding are ocean-continent plates, which means the Cocos Plate is moving under the Caribbean Plate. This type of plate boundary often is the cause of volcanic formation, earthquakes, tsunamis, and flooding.





References:
https://geology.com/volcanoes/arenal/
https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/earthquakes/costarica/archive/2018.html
Keller, Edward A., and Duane Edward DeVecchio. Natural Hazards. 4th ed., Pearson Education,
       2014.