Cyclone mitigation:

Mitigation means "measures taken in advance that are aimed to decrease or eliminate the impact of disasters on the community and environment". Today, the policy makers and disaster management specialists are rethinking their approach to disaster management by increasing investment in risk reduction & mitigation measures rather than concentrating on post disaster response (relief & reconstruction).

The Mitigation Strategies could be:

• Proper infrastructure development for providing accurate and prompt cyclone warning.
• Design and construction of robust buildings, roads, bridges and other infrastructure besides
• "Cyclone proof" buildings, which have storage and sleeping areas high off the ground and use water-resistant materials.
• Hazard reduction by trying to control the hazard in advance, such as, seawalls, diversion drains, coastal shelterbelts, protection and promotion of natural sea side vegetation (mangrove), etc.
• Land use planning, which "builds in" a distance between the hazard and the community.
• Management of Delta Zones.
• Contingency Plans at all levels (community, government and civil society), which include disaster mitigation strategies.
• Awareness and Educational campaigns that provide advice to the community on cyclone preparedness as well as mitigations measures.

• Develop healthy partnerships between stakeholders at all levels, especially government, private sector and the community to achieve sustainable mitigation strategies.

   

Ozone Layer Depletion:

Ozone is formed by the action of sunlight on oxygen. It forms a layer 20 to 50kms above the surface of the earth. This action takes place naturally in the atmosphere, but is very slow.

Ozone is a highly poisonous gas with a strong odour. It is a form of oxygen that has three atoms in each molecule. It is considered a pollutant at ground level and constitutes a health hazard by causing respiratory ailments like asthma and bronchitis. It also causes harm to vegetation and leads to a deterioration of certain materials like plastic and rubber. Ozone in the upper atmosphere however, is vital to all life as it protects the earth from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet radiation. The ozone layer in the upper atmosphere absorbs the sun’s ultraviolet radiation, preventing it from reaching the earth’s surface.

This layer in the atmosphere protects life on earth from the dangerous UV radiation from the sun.

In the 1970s, scientists discovered that chemicals called chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs, which were used as refrigerants and aerosol spray propellants, posed a threat to the ozone layer. The CFC molecules are virtually indestructible until they reach the stratosphere, where UV radiation breaks them down to release chlorine atoms.

The destruction of the ozone layer is seen to cause increased cases of skin cancer and cataracts. It also causes damage to certain crops and to plankton, thus affecting nature’s food chains and food webs. This in turn causes an increase in carbon dioxide due to the decrease in vegetation.