Hazard

The definitions of the terms "Hazard" and "Threat" are very similar, so maybe the terms do not need to be distinguished. A usage example of the above terms is presented on the discussion section of the current entry.

Definitions

European Definitions

An accidental or naturally occurring phenomenon with the potential to cause physical or psychological harm to humans including loss of life, damage or losses of property, and/or disruption to the environment or to structures (economic social, political) upon which a community's way of life depends .

Other International Definitions

UNISDR

A dangerous phenomenon, substance, human activity or condition that may cause loss of life, injury or other health impacts, property damage, loss of livelihoods and services, social and economic disruption, or environmental damage.

The hazards of concern to disaster risk reduction as stated in footnote 3 of the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) are “… hazards of natural origin and related environmental and technological hazards and risks.” Such hazards arise from a variety of geological, meteorological, hydrological, oceanic, biological, and technological sources, sometimes acting in combination. In technical settings, hazards are described quantitatively by the likely frequency of occurrence of different intensities for different areas, as determined from historical data or scientific analysis.

National Definitions

Australia

Hazard is a source of potential harm or a situation with a potential to cause loss.

Hazard is a potential or existing condition that may cause harm to people or damage to property or the environment.

Hazard is an intrinsic capacity associated with an agent or process capable of causing harm.

Canada

Hazard is a potentially damaging physical event, phenomenon or human activity that may cause the loss of life or injury, property damage, social and economic disruption or environmental degradation.

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Germany

(Concrete) effects of dangers/threats (natural phenomena, technical failure or human error, human misconduct) on Critical Infrastructures..

United States

DHS

Natural or manmade source or cause of harm or difficulty.

NIMS

Something that is potentially dangerous or harmful, often the root cause of an unwanted outcome.

Other Definitions

Ontario (Canada)

Hazard is a phenomenon, substance, human activity or condition that may cause loss of life, injury or other health impacts, property damage, loss of livelihoods and services, social and economic disruption, or environmental damage.

These may include natural, technological or human-caused incidents or some combination of these.

Danger ou aléa: phénomène, substance, activité humaine ou condition pouvant causer des pertes de vies humaines, des blessures ou d’autres effets sur la santé, des dommages matériels, des pertes de moyens de subsistance et de services, des perturbations socio-économiques ou des dommages à l’environnement.

Ces dangers peuvent être d’origine naturelle, technologique ou humaine, ou une combinaison de ces facteurs.

Standard Definition

Source of potential harm

Possible source of danger, or conditions physical or operational, that have a capacity to produce a particular type of adverse effects

Discussion

Since the terms Threat and Hazard present significant similarities, a usage example is presented below in order to link the two terms with rlated entries of CIPedia©.

Example: The weather report indicated that a flood threat/hazard would be emerging. Shortly thereafter, an extreme weather event occurred, bringing heavy rainfall. This led to a flooding incident along the Elbe. As impacts of the flood, a bridge collapsed because it was damaged by the flood, a dike broke and a flooded purification plant ceased operation. Indirect impacts were the interruption of road and rail traffic across the bridge, water transport blocked by the collapsed bridge and production of drinking water along the banks of the Elbe had to be stopped. The consequences of the flooding incidents were: Seven casualties, an economical damage of 67 Million Euros, and 50 square kilometres of polluted agricultural area. The flooding incident at the Elbe led to several cascading effects of CI. The collapsed bridge affected the road, rail, and water transport in the area. The pollution due to the purification plant led to an interruption of drinking water production.

The last sentence shows that cascading effects need not result from damage, but can be a shutdown as a mitigation action to prevent further harm (to people, to a Critical Infrastructure, to economy).

See also

• Biological Hazard
• Geological Hazard
• Hydrometeorological Hazard
• Natural Hazard
• Socio-natural Hazard
• Technological Hazard