Paper Overview: Mitigation refers to taking actions to reduce or eliminate long-term risks to human life and property, from hazards. Structural mitigation efforts achieve risk reduction through construction, physical alteration, or application of engineering solutions. Non-structural mitigation refers to risk reduction through modification of human behavior that occurs without construction. For this essay, you are required to select one of the hazards listed below and discuss at least one structural and one non-structural mitigation option for dealing with that hazard. For each mitigation option, you must describe the nature of the project in detail and describe obstacles that may exist in implementing the project. You must conclude your paper with a discussion on what mitigation option is superior in addressing that hazard. 4-6 sources at minimum Paper Details: Select ONE of the below hazards: Natural Hazard: • Flooding, such as the 2013 Alberta floods. • Wildfires, such as the 2016 Fort McMurray Wildfire. • Biological Hazard: Epidemics, such as the 2014-15 West Africa Ebola Outbreak.(MY PREFERED) • Technological Hazards: Train derailments, such as the 2013 Lac-Mégantic Rail Disaster. Human-made Hazard: • Vehicular attacks, such as the 2018 Toronto Van Attack. Structure your paper as follows: Title Introductory Section • Provide a description of the risks associated with the hazard you have chosen – Throughout the paper, you are encouraged to refer to an actual disaster(s) resulting from that hazard (see examples above) • Include a paper thesis, i.e. what is the overall argument of the paper? – e.g. “For this particular hazard, structural mitigation options are most useful for risk reduction”, OR” Both structural and non-structural mitigation options must be used in tandem for most effective risk reduction” • Explain what you will be doing in the paper, i.e. paper outline – e.g. “The paper begins by discussing ___xyz______ and __zyx_______ as structural and non-structural mitigation options for dealing with flood risk, and concludes with a discussion regarding the superiority of non-structural mitigation for addressing flooding hazards.” – NOTE: Wherever you deem appropriate in your essay, you must define what you mean by structural and non-structural mitigation. Structural Mitigation Section • Name a structural mitigation option that can be applied to prevent or decrease the consequences of the hazard • Describe the nature of the structural mitigation option in detail • Describe obstacles that may exist in implementing the structural mitigation option Non-Structural Mitigation Section • Name a non-structural mitigation option that can be applied to prevent or decrease the consequences of the hazard • Describe the nature of the non-structural mitigation option in detail • Describe obstacles that may exist in implementing the structural mitigation option Discussion/Conclusion • Discuss whether the structural OR non-structural mitigation intervention is most effective for risk reduction, OR whether both should be applied in tandem • Provide reasons to support your argument • Conclude your paper with an area of future research or a question for readers to ponder over.
