Approaches in Risk Reduction (The ALARP approach)

Activities at work or play can be hazardous, with it being in our nature to take precautions to protect ourselves from the unexpected accidents or disasters. There always exists a risk, but then a question can be asked- does one need to put efforts so as to reduce this risk, which may result in life, injuries or monetary losses to a minimal, if not zero? If yes, then what kind of effort and how much of it is needed?

In view of these, one can talk of approaches, or one can say frameworks which can be used in defining approaches towards risk reduction. Some of these well known approaches used are –

1. As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP),
2. As Low As Reasonably Achievable (ALARA),
3. So Far As Is Reasonably Practicable (SFAIRP), and
4. There can be more.

Let us discuss ALARP in this post. ALARP, “As Low As Reasonably Practicable”, can be defined as an approach to reduce the risk to as low as possible using best available practices and standards. Here, “best Practice” can be referred to the best available technology in the best practicable environmental conditions. See Knol for a good explanation. Also see the figure below.

It is interesting to look at the HSE, UK for the definition of ALARP, and see how it came into existence. The case law of Edwards V. National Coal Board in 1949 became an act in 1974. The blog by Safety Health Environment Ltd, is useful to look at where Edward’s fatal accident, when a section of the road on which he was traveling subsided. The section of road concerned had no timber support although other sections were properly supported. Lord Asquith (the judge in National Coal Board) decided that it was not all of the roadways that needed shoring up; just the ones that required it. The Court of Appeal then decided that if the ‘consequences’ and the ‘degree of the risk’ are small and the ‘cost of the measures’ to reduce the risk is very expensive, it would be unreasonable to incur that cost. The UK legislation (Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974) then defined ALARP where they ensured that all plants/equipments and systems at work are safe and without risks to health, or life.

In monetary terms, ALARP is subject to cost-benefit based risk reduction; where the benefit should outweigh the cost.

Figure: A typical Risk Reduction Approach Diagram

Therefore, it is more a best common practice of judgement to balance risk and benefit. ALARP is not used in the same way by other countries as in the UK, for it may be interpreted according to the local culture. There are similar other approaches like ALARA and SFAIRP which will need mentioning.

Other Reference Sources and Links:

1. Health and Safety Executive (http://www.hse.gov.uk)
2. Knol (http://knol.google.com/k/alarp-as-low-as-reasonably-practicable-risk#)
3. Risk Portal.com (http://www.riskportal.com/images/stories/new-insights/ALARP.jpg)
4. Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ALARP)
5. A blog by Safety Health Environmental Services (http://safety-health-environment-law.blogspot.com/2010/01/edwards-v-national-coal-board.html)
6. Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (http://www.hse.gov.uk/legislation/hswa.htm)

Earthquake Threat in the Indian Subcontinent- India Seismic Zone Map and its Field Implementation

It is well established that 60% of India’s population is estimated to be directly under earthquake threat. And, add some more to it, it will cover the whole South Asian subcontinent. One may like to reiterate that approximately 20% of the present world population lives in the subcontinent, and the region has a 10-15% decadal increase in population. The internet (wikipedia) link elaborately explains composition of these countries. See the image below for the increase in population of India over the last 60 years. The subsequent image shows comparative population increase in the subcontinent.

Figure showing population increase in India (Source: Google Worldbank indicators)

Figure showing population increase in the Indian Subcontinent (Source: Google Worldbank indicators)

This increase in population coupled with concern of quality of structures being built leading to increased risk in these areas is thwarted with a parallel argument; whether things are actually that bad in these growing economies, such as South Asia?

Well, it is easier to immerse oneself in numbers or debate, and therefore, become lost. Or, else one can take note of the red spots in the zoning map with hope. Actually, the inspiration to this post is also the India’s earthquake zoning map until someone unknown re-filled the riskiest zone (Zone V) with red. Image below shows that Zone V is more dangerous than Zone II. Red draws most attention, and zoning can be, for ease of implementation, reflected by the fact that India’s seismic map has four zones now. Note Zone I doesn’t exist anymore in the map. This simplification was done to assist implementation in the vast plural context of India after the unfortunate 2001 Gujarat earthquake. This map is a result of the hard and perseverant intelligent work by the Bureau of Indian Standards along with senior experts such as Dr. Arya, and many other engineers who previously worked and have been working on this overwhelming issue of reducing earthquake vulnerability, or for that matter vulnerability to any natural disasters in the country.

Picture above: Map of India showing earthquake zones of India established by the Indian Standards Institution (BIS)

Source: Google image search. Original source: Bureau of Indian Standards

Or, it can be argued that major factors - such as terrain, political, technological capacities, growth, to name some will continue to challenge the implementation of earthquake risk reduction activities in the subcontinent for the coming years. And in case of India, one can pick these red blocks and see clearly where urgent interventions are required - its North Eastern states, and states of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Bihar. Recent devastations in the subcontinent in Kashmir (2005) and Kutch (2001) are well known. These red spots are the riskiest spots, also known as ‘hot spots’. Perhaps, an independent but interconnected framework may help.

Amidst the so called tough ground realities, a stronger coordination is required to avert this ‘time bomb’. “We are sitting on a time bomb”, is what I recall during a meeting with a senior official at Shimla (Zone IV), a nice mellow hill town and state capital of Himanchal Pradesh; situated in a state that is tweaked red. It was 2004 then.

A Useful Tool

Link to Google’s and World bank’s tool for checking a country’s population of last 50 years.

Launch of Quakeschool Website

We are very happy to launch our website . We hope that this will help us in communicating and providing latest updates about our work, as well as in generating interest of a larger audience with news updates, focused blog writing, and other interesting stuff.

All news items and blogs are carefully selected and meticulously written. The blogs are also translated in two local languages - Hindi and Gujarati. We utilize blogger.com for the open source blog interface.

We have also tried to include a special feature- the ‘Tools Window’. This sits on the website homepage, and provides a space where we can put exclusive links to special digital environments. Presently, it has a few tools, for instance, the first tool, known as ‘Hazard Informer’ helps a lay-person understand how Earthquake Hazard - in more simple terms - ground shakiness, is distributed over the planet. The second tool is the ‘Seismic Risk estimation tool’, which is a more comprehensive tool that estimates the earthquake risk to a facility. The tool is also of use in estimating the potential building damage, life and other potential losses, and further actions which one needs to take up to mitigate these.

We expect the tool count to grow as we go along. Work is underway on some more tools and your comments and suggestions on these are eagerly looked forward to. For example- the Facility Finder we have created for the India School safety portal is a useful resource tool for schools to find proximal external resources which can come in handy during emergencies.

Please contact us if you would like more information on the development of these and such similar tools.

We would like to thank Sumeet for his hard work and patience in uploading the website using the open source interface Joomla.

We hope that you will enjoy surfing our website.

Some thoughts on Education Infrastructure in Developing Countries

Schools are an integral feature in which the future citizens of the society are moulded to become responsible citizens. Hence it is necessary that the environment in which schools operate induces a sense of security, comfort and creativity in the students. Structurally safe and sound classrooms are imperative to install a sense of security in the students, and spacious and properly designed playgrounds where students unwind in recess are also an important feature of any school. Most of this is missing in a majority of schools in various cities and towns in the developing world. Schools crammed up in shopping complexes without even basic facilities of space and quality education are mushrooming in India, where we live. Also, these schools are located in risky areas as they are located in busy sections of a city without any place for school playgrounds, and no space for the students to play and unwind during recess.

Also there exists a great risk during fire and other unexpected events. The students are forced to mingle with the crowd and traffic outside since there is no way where they can have a dedicated space of their own. This causes serious safety concerns. Provision of open spaces, head counting and other simple crisis management techniques can be applied to improve the situation.

There are some preventive measures – such as, care can be taken to ensure that there is provisioning for first aid in the school premises, and serious medical emergencies are further catered by ensuring proper connectivity with the nearby hospitals. Fire safety drills should be introduced in the schools. There should be separate drills for external emergencies like earthquakes, bomb threats, etc. Proper emphasis should be given on the evacuation plans. Another important aspect is the accessibility of the school - dry runs (evacuation drills) may also tell if there are access problems for fire vehicles and ambulances. Over all, the safety of the premises needs to be taken very seriously so that the safety of the students is not compromised.

Safe schools are in everyone’s interest. By inculcating a sense of ‘security’ and ‘ease’ in the school environment, we can ensure that students perform to their best and their full potential is realized.