Miscellaneous - http://maxpages.com/victoriaclub5/Human_Post_Tsunami

An article in the Wall Street Journal on December 31, 2004 commented that human destruction of coral reefs that had formerly protected some coastal areas was a significant factor in the loss of life and damage in the area. The article pointed to the Surin Island chain off Thailand's coast as an example of protection afforded by the still intact reefs of the area. Fewer people perished in the protected areas. Many reefs areas around the Indian Ocean have been dynamited because they are considered impediments to shipping, an important part of the South Asian economy. Other factors have been the removal of coastal dunes and mangrove forests. 5. Post-tsunami humanitarian situation

Main article: Humanitarian response to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake A great deal of humanitarian aid is needed due to widespread damage of the infrastructure, shortages of food and water, and economic damage. The United Nations suggests that a further 150,000 at extreme risk of disease (http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=12963&;Cr=tsunami&Cr1=). Epidemics are of special concern, as they are likely due to the high population density and tropical climate of the affected areas. The overwhelming concern of humanitarian and government agencies is to provide sanitation facilities and fresh drinking water to contain the spread of diseases such as cholera, diphtheria, dysentery and typhoid. Nations all over the world have so far provided over USD3 billion in aid for damaged regions, with the Australian federal government pledging USD 810 million (including a USD 754 million aid package for Indonesia (http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/125942/1/.html)), the German government offering USD 660 million, the Japanese government offering USD 500 million, the Canadian government offering CAD 425 million, the United States government offering USD 350 million, and the World Bank offering USD 250 million. Officials estimate that billions of dollars will be needed. On 10 January 2005 a cricket match was held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne, Australia, between an "Asian XI" and a "Rest of the World XI", which raised AUD 14.5 million for disaster relief. Coastal fishing communities, some of the poorest people in the region, have been the most devastated with high loss of life as well as boats and fishing gear (http://www.ukabc.org/tsunamis.htm). Some economists believe that damage to the affected countries' economies will be minor because losses in the tourism and fishing industries are a relatively small percentage of the GDP. However, others caution that damage to infrastructure is an overriding factor. In some areas, drinking water supplies and farm fields may have been contaminated for years by salt water from the ocean (http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn6840). Both the earthquake and the tsunami may have affected shipping in the Malacca Straits by changing the depth of the seabed and by disturbing navigational buoys and old shipwrecks. Compiling new navigational charts may take months or years. (http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=387928) In the days after the event, significant effort was spent in burying bodies hurriedly. This may not have been the best way to allocate resources. See Dead bodies and health risks. The World Food Programme is feeding 2 million people affected by the tsunami (http://www.wfp.org/). In mid-January Indonesian officials annouced that all foriegn aid troops inside their borders are to be withdrawn by mid-March of 2005 6. Environmental impact of the tsunami

Beyond the heavy toll on human lives, the Indian Ocean earthquake has caused an enormous environmental impact which will affect the region for many years to come. It has been reported that severe damage has been inflicted on ecosystems such as mangroves, coral reefs, forests, coastal wetlands, vegetation, sand dunes and rock formations, animal and plant biodiversity and groundwater. In addition, the spread of solid and liquid waste and industrial chemicals, water pollution and the destruction of sewage collectors and treatment plants threaten the environment even further, in untold ways. According to specialists (http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn6840), the main effect is being caused by poisoning of the fresh water supplies and the soil by salt water infiltration and deposit of a salt layer over arable land. It has been reported that in the Maldives, 16 to 17 coral reef atolls that were overcome by sea waves are totally without fresh water and could be rendered unhabitable for decades. Uncountable wells that served communities were invaded by sea, sand and earth; and aquifers were invaded through porous rock. Salted-over soil becomes sterile, and it is difficult and costly to restore for agriculture. It also causes the death of plants and important soil micro-organisms. Thousands of rice, mango and banana plantations in Sri Lanka were destroyed almost entirely and will take years to recover. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is working with governments of the region in order to determine the severity of the ecological impact and how to address them (http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=414). UNEP has decided also to earmark a USD 1,000,000 emergency fund and to establish a Task Force with this aim.

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