Que para todos los efectos legales relacionados con este Convenio Específico señala como su domicilio el Palacio de Gobierno, sito en un predio sin número de la Calle 8, entre 61 y Circuito

This chapter introduces the types of anticipated consequences of disasters and emergencies for communities and the four integrated environments (interrelated aspects of

community)—the social, built, economic and natural environments. A discussion of who the affected community is, and the interrelationship between individuals, households,

communities and broader communities, sets the context for Chapters 7–10.

Emergencies and disasters—whether caused by the extremes of nature, failures of essential services or technology, exotic diseases, insect infestations, acts of violence, human action or any other cause—disrupt communities. It is in this environment that recovery is conducted. The impacts of disasters can be complex and need to be well understood to enable the effective provision of recovery services (see Chapter 12 and 16–19).

Any community recovery program should address the four key aspects (referred to as environments) in order to support individuals and communities to manage their own recovery (CSMAC 2004). Recovery takes place in the:

• social environment • built environment • economic environment • natural environment.

Depending upon the type of event and the impacted community, the four environments will be affected to different degrees.

For example, an event such as the equine influenza outbreak in New South Wales and Queensland in 2007/08, which caused no damage to the built environment, resulted in recovery activities that included assistance to the built environment through the provision of decontamination equipment stations and controls. Assistance was also provided as financial grants for livelihoods as part of the economic environment, and was provided as

psychosocial support as part of the social environment. Who is the affected community?

Disasters disrupt communities in many ways, including disruption to normal routines (Kreps 1998), physical harm and social disruption. In short, disasters are unexpected events and it is essential that the affected community is identified so that the needs of these groups of people can begin to be identified and then addressed.

There are many definitions of community, but for our purposes a community can be considered as a:

social, religious, occupational, or other group sharing common characteristics or interests and perceived or perceiving itself as distinct in some respect from the larger society within which it exists.

When thinking about engagement it is useful to look at communities as two distinct types:

• communities of place, and

• communities of interest (MCDEM 2010, p 9).

When identifying disaster-affected communities or parts of a community, it is also important not to be restrictive in how affected communities are defined. Caution needs to be exercised so that the process does not alienate people who, although not appearing to be obviously affected, may be experiencing consequences from the disaster. These people may include those who have witnessed an event, helped others affected, become distressed by hearing information about the emergency or felt they were at potential risk of the emergency (even if that risk did not eventuate).

Following a disaster, an understanding of who is affected enables planning of recovery activities. The affected community may consist of:

• groups/people directly affected by the disaster in terms of injury, death, and loss of people they know, possessions or accommodation—this includes those evacuated and/or displaced, emotionally affected, or those financially affected through loss of employment or livelihood (people may also be affected by a combination of these consequences): as a result of a disaster people may be forced to leave their homes (internally displaced people) to take up residence in another area that may have been unaffected

• groups with additional or complex needs— this may include Indigenous • populations, people with particular cultural, language or spiritual needs, people with physical or intellectual disabilities, the aged and infirm, and people with little personal or family support

• particular suburbs or areas, particular communities such as retirement villages or employees of a particular business closed by the disaster—the affected community, however, may comprise geographically dispersed populations linked only by a tourist destination or by a particular sub-group of a community with a shared interest (such as horse owners and workers during the equine influenza pandemic)

• repatriated persons or groups from overseas

• individuals, groups and organisations that suffer the secondary effects of disaster—these include friends, relatives, neighbours of those directly affected (whether affected here or overseas), or those linked through businesses. This group may also include the transition workforce provided by response, rescue, relief and recovery workers.

In the chapters that follow, discussion of the impacts on communities is broad and issues of vulnerabilities and additional and complex needs are not covered in detail. Refer to

state/territory or local government guidelines for more information.

More information and resources for working with CALD communities are listed in this handbook in Chapter 16.

Other references/resources:

For detailed information about Indigenous communities and emergency management, see

Keeping our mob safe: a national emergency management strategy for Indigenous remote communities (EMA 2007a). The aim of the strategy is to improve community safety in remote

Indigenous communities through a more coordinated approach to emergency management at local, state/territory and national levels.

Effects of disasters on a community

The range of impacts of disasters on a community can be described across the social, built, economic and natural environments. Figure 6.1 shows how all four environments constitute

community. The four environments are mainly separations for the purpose of functional

responsibilities within recovery—when working with communities in recovery each

environment should be coordinated with all others. The importance of supporting the social functioning of a community is fundamental to the implementation of recovery activities in all other environments, and to supporting the foundations of community sustainability.

Figure 6.1: The four environments—integral aspects of community recovery

This focus on the impact of disasters upon communities recognises that human beings do not function separately but as social groups with interdependence. Individuals are intrinsically connected to their community in conscious and subconscious ways through collective economic, emotional, physical, spiritual, environmental and cultural mores. So although the impact upon individuals and households needs to be understood and addressed, it is equally important to understand the impact and disruption to the social

capital and connectedness of communities and the need to support the restoration of communities to a functioning state.

The Mangrove Mountain community in New South Wales provides one example of how a community can be affected by a disaster—in this case an outbreak in 1999 of Newcastle Disease (which affects chickens). The impacts during the control period were substantial. For example:

• movement restrictions made movements of other products (such as citrus) more difficult, causing friction amongst farmer groups;

• there were conspiracy theories within the community and a degree of paranoia. Actions such as confiscating chicken sandwiches from kids at school bus checkpoints fuelled these emotions;

• farmer’s kids were bullied at school and spat on in the playground; and • the outbreak left significant divisions within the community. Two years later

the Government is still assisting with efforts to ‘heal’ community divisions (Productivity Commission 2002, p 127).

Effects on the social environment

Social wellbeing results when the essential needs of the populace are met. Generally speaking, social wellbeing occurs when income levels are sufficient to cover basic needs, where there is easy access to social, medical and educational services, and where people are treated with dignity and consideration.

Many attempts have been made to quantify social wellbeing. Seven indicators may be used: • wealth • employment • amenity • health • social issues • social belonging • recreation and leisure.

Disasters can impact upon all these aspects of social wellbeing and can degrade quality of life and undermine the social quality of the community.

Impacts on the social environment include the disappearance of much of what was once considered routine—from simple, everyday things to the loss of the communication network that you are familiar with, such as walking down the street and talking to people. These impacts are often intangible.

Social structures such as faith groups, educational facilities, networks and relationships, childcare, service groups, Rotary and Lions groups, non-government organisations, neighbourhood centres and health facilities can all be disrupted.

Chapter 7 considers social environment impacts in terms of safety, health and wellbeing, and psychosocial components.

Effects on the built environment

The effects of a disaster on the built environment depend on the disaster type, scale, magnitude, duration and location of impact.

Within the built environment, impacts may include:

• loss of essential services, power, water, food, fuel, sewerage, gas, communications, internet

• loss of community infrastructure; for example, public buildings, schools, hospitals, iconic buildings

• loss/damage/disruption of transport services (for example, roads, air, marine and rail transport infrastructure, facilities and assets), which has a flow-on effect on the movement of people and goods, and on transport and traffic management on transport networks (for example, road and rail closures, detours, vehicle permits and regulatory services, passenger transport, road traffic management systems)

• loss of property (residential, rural, industrial, public).

Chapter 8 considers the built environment in terms of effects on infrastructure that supports essential services, rural infrastructure, residential infrastructure, commercial or industrial infrastructure, and public building and asset infrastructure.

Effects on the economic environment

The effects of disaster on the economic environment can be classified in terms of direct and indirect impacts—that is, those that are tangible and can normally have a dollar value easily assigned, and those that are intangible.

Impacts on the economic environment may include: • loss of livelihoods

• disequilibrium, disorientation of service providers (disasters are not a usual method of doing business)

• reduction in cash flow for some small businesses, and injection of funds into others

• loss of tourism activities

• loss of employment opportunities for some people, and creation of employment opportunities for others

• the impact of donated goods and services on local economies (State Government of Victoria 2010).

Chapter 9 considers the economic environment in terms of effects on individuals, businesses, infrastructure and government.

Effects on the natural environment

The effects of disaster on the natural environment that impact on the community may be a result of the disaster or they may be a secondary impact or flow on from the disaster response or recovery process. Examples include air quality, water quality, land degradation

and contamination, bio-security, sense of place issues and impacts on the natural environment (including public lands and national parks) (State Government of Victoria 2010).

Chapter 10 considers the impacts on the natural environment that have flow-on effects to the community in relation to:

• air • water • land and soil • plants and animals.

Disasters may impact on all aspects of a community. The degree to which sustainable community recovery can be achieved depends on the disaster and on existing community and individual resilience and vulnerability. In creating a heightened awareness of the risks communities face, disasters afford communities the opportunity to adapt and reduce their exposure to potential future risks.