The Psychological Effect of Crisis

by K.J. Wetherholt

In light of the Haitian earthquake and the subsequent aid efforts there, and having recently attended a meeting at one of the UN cluster agencies' headquarters in NYC on psychology, development issues and crisis, it was disconcerting to me that there is no current permanent program in place at the UN or among many different aid agencies, or one that can be immediately implemented, to commonly do psychological needs assessments among both crisis-affected populations and for workers in the field.

After food, water, and shelter, such needs are considered a tangential, secondary, or non-essential matters that only get ad hoc attention in rare circumstances. Some agencies or organizations are better than others at recognizing this as a critical need, which is especially true among crisis-affected populations, as the psychological well being--which includes issues of safety, security, and trust--fundamentally affect long-term recovery and development in post-conflict and post-disaster areas. This is indeed something that we will be seeing prove true, and with veritable profundity, during Haiti's post-earthquake reconstruction.  Continued...

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New danger: China's rivers blocked by quake

by The Environmentalist Staff

Cross-posted on Reuters, Chicago Sun-Times

Chinese authorities are rushing to dynamite dams of over 30 lakes caused by mudslides that have blocked rivers in the central China province of Sichuan. This is the latest in a series of threats from the May 12th 7.9 earthquake that has cost over 65,000 lives (that count is expected to rise), injured over 300,000 with over 20,000 still missing, and has left millions homeless:

Authorities are concerned the swelling lake will burst as water from the Jianhe river in Beichuan county in China's southwestern Sichuan province rises behind the earthquake-created dam, the Xinhua news agency reported.

"The lake ... may cause a devastating flooding if the barrier bursts," Xinhua said. Authorities want to control the flow of water -- rather than have the dam give way all at once -- by creating a spillway.

The Chinese government has been struggling to manage 69 dams that are threatening to break in the area and to provide shelter for the millions of homeless families. They have put out a request for donations of 3 million tents to the international community and have been sending large numbers of troops to repair the failing dams and blocked rivers.

Chinese environmental teams have also been sent to contain 50 sources of radiation from destroyed facilities in the region. International teams are preparing to review the impact to projects under construction for the purpose of providing carbon offsets as a way to lower China's impact on climate change.

The concern about the quake-formed lakes was exacerbated by a 6.0 aftershock -- one of over 94 recorded strong aftershocks -- on Sunday that was reported to have killed four more, injured 1,000, to have damaged another 400,000 structures and to have threatened another dam.

The loss of life has been even worse for families under China's one-child policy. Much of the structural damage in the initial quake was to poorly built schools that collapsed while they were in session. Many parents lost their their only children in the aftermath, leading to calls for investigation into the possibly corrupt construction practices and for a lifting of the one-child policy...

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China quake may reduce vital carbon offsets

by The Environmentalist Staff

The deadly China earthquake's toll continues to rise, with an estimated 50,000 dead and an entire region's infrastructure impacted. This includes 15 million tons of carbon that have been subject to offsets -- the barter system that allows developed nations to trade their pollution credits with developing nations, thereby providing an incentive for new infrastructure to be built in a carbon neutral manner -- within a 150 kilometer radius of Monday's quake centered in China's Sichuan province.

"We counted seven impacted companies among the world's top 20 project developers," said Laurent Segalen, Lehman head of emissions trading, who listed EcoSecurities, Deutsche Bank, Endesa and Mitsubishi Corp among developers with nearby projects.

They included projects to cut greenhouse gas emissions from chemical plants or by replacing fossil fuels using wind and hydropower.

Stockholm-based project developer Tricorona said on Thursday that it had over 10 offset projects in Sichuan that it said may have been affected and corresponded to 8 million tonnes emission cuts through 2012.

Carbon offsets are an essential part of greenhouse gas emission control of China's growing emissions caused by the ongoing development of coal-based plants and the increased automobile usage by their billions of citizens. The companies involved have not been able to assess the damage on their individual projects, but, given the scope of the destruction, it is a likely assumption that the carbon offset projects will be impacted, adding tons of greenhouse gases that would otherwise be taken out of the atmosphere, unless an alternative arrangement can be worked out in time.

The Chinese government has put out requests for assistance with the rescue and recovery effort, the scope of which, after the 7.9 earthquake that was said to have lasted approximately five minutes, has been estimated at least 50,000 dead with cities nearly leveled and infrastructure such as dams threatening to fail...

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