Earth Catastrophe and Disaster Blog

 Ross Frank Earth Catastrophes and Disasters 11/15/25       Coastal erosion occurs when land and sediment are eroded from coasts due to waves, rain, human activities, and other factors. This can lead to land and property getting swallowed up by the rising sea levels, which changes the waves in coastal regions. Canada has the longest coastline in the world, at 243,797 km. So, coastal erosion would be a natural hazard that would affect millions of Canadians. Coastal erosion can be caused by waves due to the rising sea level. All over Canada, shorelines are being forced inland because of the rising sea. This is a problem because that means there is a loss of land and property. There are also habitats that get lost with the loss of land on the coasts. Due to the size of Canada's coastline alone, I would say that there is a great risk of coastal erosion affecting the country. Erosion is a natural process, so there is no way to stop it from happening. But there are ways to...

 Ross Frank 10/21/2025 Extreme weather is becoming a big problem in Canada because of how large and diverse the country’s climate is. Canada faces all kinds of severe weather events like floods, wildfires, snowstorms, and heatwaves, and these are happening more often because of climate change.  For example, heavy rain can cause serious flooding that damages homes and roads, and long dry periods can hurt farmers by ruining crops and limiting water supplies. Another example is the heatwaves, there was a sample of 6 different areas in Canada, and those areas had an average of 9.6 degrees Celsius above the average temperature. A heatwave can put extra stress on people and different areas that don't need the stress. Extreme heat can cause different health problems.  The effects of extreme weather in Canada can be devastating for both people and the economy. Wildfires in places like British Columbia and Alberta have destroyed entire neighborhoods and forced thousands of people ...

 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 ...

 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  

 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...

 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