GEOL354-16S1 (C) Semester One 2016

Geodynamics and Geohazards

15 points

Details:
Start Date: Monday, 22 February 2016
End Date: Sunday, 26 June 2016
Withdrawal Dates
Last Day to withdraw from this course:
  • Without financial penalty (full fee refund): Sunday, 6 March 2016
  • Without academic penalty (including no fee refund): Sunday, 22 May 2016

Description

This inter-disciplinary course focuses on the dynamics of potentially hazardous geological events and the connections between geodynamics and societal risk.

This course focuses on the processes of geological hazards and how they impact on society. Some attention is given to techniques and strategies for hazard mitigation. Lectures on the tectonic evolution of New Zealand provide a framework for understanding contemporary earthquake, volcanic, flood and landslide hazards. Topics such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, liquefaction, rockfall, and flooding will all be addressed. Case studies revealing how natural and human environments were impacted by these hazards and how these hazards were successfully (or unsuccessfully) mitigated will be presented. Students taking this course will gain an understanding of the fundamentals of geological processes and impacts that will greatly benefit those wishing to do further tectonics and/or geohazards research.

Timetable:
Lectures: 2 lectures per week, schedule to be advised
Laboratories: there are no laboratory classes for this course
Field trips: there will be a mandatory one day weekend field trip on Saturday, May 7th

Goal of the Course
Students will understand how geological hazards operate at the process level, and how geohazard behaviour over spatial and temporal time-scales influences how hazards are assessed and mitigated.

Learning Outcomes

  • Students successfully completing this course will:

  • Understand how New Zealand’s tectonic evolution and modern tectonic setting influences the locations and magnitudes of contemporary earthquake, landslide, and volcanic hazards
  • Understand the fundamentals that govern geohazard behaviour in both time and space
  • Understand the links between hazards (e.g., seismically-triggered landslides, volcanically-triggered debris flows)
  • Know how to develop risk assessments from hazard behaviour
  • Understand the links between hazard behaviour and societal risk

    Summary of the Course Content:

    The topics coved by this course are:
  • Introduction to geohazards
  • Active tectonics of New Zealand
  • Earthquake science and paleoseismology
  • Landslides, rockfall, and rock fracturing
  • Flooding
  • Hazards of volcanic eruptions: lava flows, pyroclastic density currents, lahars, ash fall and volcanic gas
  • Feedbacks amongst geological hazards
  • Risk assessment and mitigation of geological hazards
  • Risk and hazard communication

Prerequisites

45 points from GEOL240-245

Timetable Note

Week #  -  Week starting  -  Lectures  -  Lecturers:

9 - Introduction to Geodynamics and Geohazards - Active tectonics of New Zealand I - AN
10  - Active tectonics of New Zealand II - Geodynamics: Tectonics and Magma - AN
11 - EQ Hazards - Seismic hazard assessments and the NZ Seismic Hazard Model - JP
12 - Palaeoseismology - Geomorphic expressions of earthquake hazards I - JP
13 - Geomorphic expressions of earthquake hazards II - JP
14 - Volcanic Eruptions - TW
15 - Characterising volcanic hazards - Landscape evolution from volcanic eruptions - TW

SEMESTER BREAK

18 - Volcanic hazard and risk assessment - Volcanic risk management - TW
19 - Case-study: rockfall and liquefaction I - Case study: rockfall and liquefaction I - SB
20 - Rock fragmentation and earthquake shaking - Landslide hazards I - TD
21 - Landslide hazards II - Landslide hazards III - TD
22 - Floods I - Floods II - TD
23 - The future of geodynamics and geohazards - Course summary and examination preparation - TD

Course Coordinator

Tim Davies

Lecturers

Tom Wilson , Andy Nicol and Jarg Pettinga

Assessment

Assessment Due Date Percentage  Description
1-day seismic and co-seismic hazards field trip and report 25% 1-day seismic and co-seismic hazards field trip and report
Volcanic hazard simulation report 25% Volcanic hazard simulation report
Final examination 50% Final examination


Assessment
1 day seismic and co-seismic hazards field trip and report 25%
Volcanic hazard simulation report 25% (Dates TBA)

Textbooks / Resources

There are no required textbooks for this course; students will be directed to specific journal articles or books as necessary.

Course links

Library portal

Additional Course Outline Information

Academic integrity

Goal of the Course
Students will understand how geological hazards operate at the process level, and how geohazard behaviour over spatial and temporal time-scales influences how hazards are assessed and mitigated.

Summary of the Course Content
The topics coved by this course are:
• Origins of interplate and intraplate stress fields
• How faults make earthquakes
• How rocks fragment and erode
• How rivers incise, transport sediment, and flood
• How landslides and other mass wasting processes are initiated and behave
• Hazards of volcanic eruptions: lava flows, pyroclastic density currents, lahars, ash fall and volcanic gas
• Feedbacks amongst geological hazards
• Risk assessment and mitigation of geological hazards.


Marks and Grades
The Department of Geological Sciences uses the following scale to convert marks into grades:
100 – 90 A+ 74 – 70 B 54 – 50 C-
89 – 85 A 69 – 65 B- 49 – 40 D
84 – 80 A- 64 – 60 C+ Below 40 E
79 – 75 B+ 59 – 55 C

The Department of Geological Sciences reserves the right to adjust this mark/grade conversion, when deemed necessary.

Late Work
It is the policy for this course that late work is not accepted. Or, late work should be accompanied with a detailed explanation of why the work is late. The work will be marked and marks will be subtracted for each day the work is late. Days late include week-end and holidays.

Academic Liaison
Christopher Oze (room 329, HUchristopher.oze@canterbury.ac.nzUH, is in charge of liaison with students in geology courses. Each year level will appoint a student representative(s) to the liaison committee at the start of the semester. Please feel free to talk to the Academic Liaison or the student rep about any problems or concerns that you might have.

Students with Disabilities
Students with disabilities should speak with someone at Disability Resource Service. Their office is room 317 in the Rutherford Building. Phone: 364 2350 (or ext. 6350), email: disabilities@canterbury.ac.nz

Policy on Dishonest Practice
Plagiarism, collusion, copying and ghost writing are unacceptable and dishonest practices.
• Plagiarism is the presentation of any material (text, data, figures or drawings, on any medium including computer files) from any other source without clear and adequate acknowledgement of the source.
• Collusion is the presentation of work performed in conjunction with another person or persons, but submitted as if it has been completed only by the names author(s).
• Copying is the use of material (in any medium, including computer files) produced by another person(s) with or without their knowledge and approval.
• Ghost writing is the use of another person(s) (with or without payment) to prepare all or part of an item submitted for assessment.

In cases where dishonest practice is involved in tests or other work submitted for credit, the student will be referred to the University Proctor. The instructor may choose to not mark the work.

Reconsideration of Grades
Students should, in the first instance, speak to the course co-ordinator about their marks. If they cannot reach an agreeable solution, students should then speak to the Head of the Geological Sciences Department. Students can appeal any decision made on their final grade. You can apply at the Registry to appeal the final grade within 4 weeks of the end of the semester. Be aware that there are time limits for each step of the appeals process.

Aegrotat Applications
If you feel that illness, injury, bereavement or other critical circumstances has prevented you from completing an item of assessment or affected your performance, you should complete an aegrotat application form, available from the Registry or the Student Health and Counselling Service. This should be within seven days of the due date for the required work or the date of the examination. In the case of illness or injury, medical consultation should normally have taken place shortly before or within 24 hours after the due date for the required work, or the date of the test or examination. For further details on aegrotat applications, please refer to the Enrolment Handbook. You have the right to appeal any decision made, including aegrotat decisions.

Missing of Tests
In rare cases a student will not be able to sit a test. In such cases, the student should consult with the course co-ordinator or the Head of the Department of Geological Sciences to arrange alternative procedures. This must be done well in advance of the set date for the test.

Indicative Fees

Domestic fee $832.00

International fee $3,638.00

* All fees are inclusive of NZ GST or any equivalent overseas tax, and do not include any programme level discount or additional course-related expenses.

For further information see School of Earth and Environment .

All GEOL354 Occurrences

  • GEOL354-16S1 (C) Semester One 2016