GE488 Natural Hazards

Contents and structure

The course provides the students with insights into different kinds of geohazards, including landslides, avalanches, floods, tsunamis and earthquakes. The main focus is on gravitational mass movements, and the students will gain a broad understanding of rock falls, debris flows, quick clay slides and snow avalanches. Examples of these phenomena are investigated further during practical exercises. An important part of the training aims to enable the students to identify the potential danger of geohazards in a given area and to evaluate the need and type of mitigation measures.

Learning Outcome

 Knowledge:

Students will have:

- Knowledge about the processes that create landslides, avalanches, flooding, tsunamis and earthquakes, and how they interplay and propagate.

- Knowledge about how geohazards can affect infrastructure and people.

- Knowledge of different types of landslides and avalanches, the slide processes and trigger mechanisms.

- Insight into how climate change can affect the frequency and extent of flooding, landslides and avalanches.

 

Skills:

Students will be able to:

- Understand the content of reports and articles dealing with geohazards.

- Conduct basic assessments of the potential danger and extent of landslides and avalanches, based on the analysis of maps, databases and available reports.

 

General qualifications:

Students will be able to:

- Communicate with geologists and the general public about geohazards.

- Identify and specify potential geohazards that should be assessed by geologists before land is used for infrastructure projects or housing.

Entry requirements

90 ECTS in environmental sciences or geoscience at the time of application

Teaching methods

Lessons, assignments, project work and excursions

 

Excursions

Two days in the field at different locations in Sogn/Nordfjord, where students investigate rock fall deposits, debris flow channels, snow avalanche fans, flood damage, unstable/slide-prone slopes.

Compulsory learning activities

- Approved reports from the following assignments: Tsunamis, Earthquakes, Slides and Floods.

- Approved excursion and associated field reports.

- Oral presentation of project work.

The project consists of collecting information about one assigned recent geohazard event. Students work together in groups. The following should be presented: Pre-event configuration including geographic and geological framework of the area, risk evaluation and mitigation methods, chronology of the event, impacts and consequences of the event.

Assessment

Individual 4 hrs written exam

Grading A-F

Examination support material

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