GIS and mapping

The unacknowledged reason why there is a lack of flood risk mapping in Canada is because such maps generally face public resistance. Indeed, it is not uncommon in Canada to see flood or wetland mapping withdrawn or modified because of public pressure.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) recently invested in a geologic mapping project throughout Puerto Rico using airborne hyperspectral imaging to chart surface geologies essential to natural hazards resilience.

This observation points towards land cover changes being a critical factor in landscape dynamics, stressing the human pressure as a discriminant cause/effect term for natural vs. human-induced landslide fatalities.

The objective of this report is to show how the European Crisis Management Laboratory Mapping Team at the Joint Research Centre plays a key role in delineating all the components of disaster events, with its daily reports and on-demand products.

The GEUS report indicates that dumping of soil at the top of the slope triggered two large earthflows, driving instability across the site.

The new National Seismic Hazard Model shows where damaging earthquakes are likely to occur, informing public safety and infrastructure policies.

Since July 2023, in partnership with the European Commission's INFORM Risk Index, MapAction is working to support national and subnational disaster managers to update or rebuild their disaster forecasts, mitigating tools and risk atlases.

Permafrost is thawing and changing rapidly, posing serious challenges to the Arctic region and the whole planet. A new map, produced as part of the Nunataryuk project, gives a picture of the extent of permafrost in the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions.