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Mass Wasting in Canada

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 Ross Frank 10/7/2025 Landslides are a serious natural disaster that often happens in different parts of Canada, especially in places with mountains or steep hills. They occur when rock, soil, or mud slides down a slope, usually because of heavy rain, melting snow, earthquakes, or even construction that weakens the ground. British Columbia experiences the most landslides because it gets a lot of rain and has rugged terrain. These events can damage roads, homes, and power lines, and sometimes they even take lives. The cost of repairing the damage can be very high, and landslides continue to be a big problem for many Canadian communities. In Canada, landslides cost an estimated $200-$400 million a year. The flow rates of landslides can get upwards of 100 km/hr (62 MPH). This isn't shocking because, according to the Government of Canada, thousands of landslides occur every year across the country. The deadliest landslide in Canadian history happened in 1903. A small mining town known ...
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Volcanic Activity in Canada

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 Ross Frank  Earth Catastrophes and Disasters September 20, 2025      Although Canada is located mostly in the center of the North American Plate, the western side of Canada is included in the Pacific Ring of Fire. According to the Government of Canada, there have been 49 volcanic eruptions within the last 10,000 years. All of them have been in British Columbia and the Yukon Territory. The last eruption took place 150 years ago in northern British Columbia. Many experts believe that the forces that cause these volcanoes to erupt are still active, meaning they can erupt at any time. We just don't know when they are. There are 5 possibly volcanic areas in Canada, and they are all in British Columbia in the Pacific Ring of Fire. Source:  https://chis.nrcan.gc.ca/volcano-volcan/can-vol-en.php  
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Earthquakes in Canada

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 Ross Frank Earth Catastrophes and Disasters 9-5-25          According to the seismograph, there have been 0 earthquakes within the last 2 weeks. All of the light orange dots are the earthquakes that have occurred within the previous 5 years. The brighter orange dots are ones that occurred within the past 2 weeks. Only one of those bright orange dots is within the border of Canada. The largest concentration of earthquakes is on the western coastline of Canada. That is where the North American Plate and the Juan de Fuca plate meet. As I said in my last blog post, Canada sits almost completely on the North American Plate. So, there is not a lot of seismic activity in the country.       According to the Canadian government website an earthquake in British Colombia or the Ottawa-Montreal area could cause tens of billions of dollars in damage. Therefore, they are creating and improving an earthquake early warning system. Focusing on areas tha...
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The Position of Tectonic Plates in Canada

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 Ross Frank Earth Catastrophes and Disasters August 27, 2025      Canada is located in the northern part of North America. So, it is covered almost completely by the North American plate. The only part that isn't inside the North American Plate, is the western most part of Canada. The plate that is touching the North American Plate there is the Juan De Fuca Plate. Even though there are no plate boundaries, there is still a lot of seismic activity all around Canada. Most of the seismic activity happens in the eastern half of the country. There isn't a real explanation for the activity since there is no plate boundary, but it is believed to be due to crustal weakness in these areas.  Image:  https://geology.com/plate-tectonics.shtml#lithospheric Info:  https://www.seismescanada.rncan.gc.ca/zones/eastcan-en.php
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About My Country - Canada

 Ross Frank August 21, 2025 Earth Catastrophes and Disasters The country that I chose for this semester is Canada. Canada was founded on July 1, 1867. It is located in the northern part of North America. It has a population of 38.8 million as of 2024. Most of Canada is a cold and snowy place, so in the wintertime there are a lot of avalanches. With all that snow in the spring there are a lot of floods once the snow begins to melt and come down the mountains. Another hazard that occurs a lot is earthquakes.        It is good to know the difference between hazards, disasters, and catastrophes. First, everything falls under the umbrella of natural processes. Once humans get in its path, that's when it becomes a hazard, or it has the potential of threating human life. One step up from that is a disaster. A hazard is considered a disaster when it happens within a certain amount of time withing a defined space. The next level up from there is a catastrophe, it is...
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