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First Comes the Disaster, Then Comes the Debris

How to Dig Out from A Destructive Storm



Florida National Guard in Keaton Beach, Florida, after Hurricane Helene.  ©The National Guard/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
Florida National Guard in Keaton Beach, Florida, after Hurricane Helene. ©The National Guard/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

From hurricanes and typhoons to landslides and tsunamis, many types of natural disasters leave unfathomable amounts of debris in their wake.


How should debris clean-up be handled—especially when it often contains toxic and hazardous materials—and what can be learned from previous natural disasters?


Massive Debris Fields

Hurricanes and related natural disasters leave behind solid and liquid waste, such as concrete, wood, and tar from damaged buildings. Debris can include household furnishings, power and telephone grid parts, as well as water and sewage distribution infrastructure, says the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs Emergency Preparedness Section’s Disaster waste management guidelines


Household debris placed next to a road in Staten Island, New York, after Hurricane Sandy (2012).  ©John de Guzmán/Flickr (CC BY-ND 2.0)
Household debris placed next to a road in Staten Island, New York, after Hurricane Sandy (2012). ©John de Guzmán/Flickr (CC BY-ND 2.0)

Natural waste, like clay, mud, trees, and bushes, can be among the debris, and there are chemicals and other raw materials from industries and workshops. There is also waste from relief operations and camps, including food waste and excreta.


Pesticides, too, pose a risk, as do damaged boats, cars, buses, bicycles, solvents, and healthcare waste.


Tons of post-disaster waste not only puts public health at risk because of hazardous material like asbestos, but waterways, oceans, and landfills can also become contaminated. 

Tons of post-disaster waste not only puts public health at risk because of hazardous material like asbestos, but

waterways, oceans, and landfills can also become contaminated.


Ocean Garbage Patches

Disaster debris has been known to accumulate in the world’s five ocean garbage patches or gyres (whirlpools circulating in the ocean). The five ocean garbage patches are the Indian Ocean Garbage Patch, the North Pacific Garbage Patch, South Pacific Garbage Patch, and two patches in the Atlantic Ocean.


The North Pacific Garbage Patch is the largest and is estimated to contain 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic weighing 79,000 tons and span an area of 1.6 million square kilometers (about 617,000 square miles) based on a 2018 model. This includes part of the estimated 30% (or about 1.5 million tons) from the tsunami that struck Japan in March 2011 and dispersed into the Pacific Ocean.


A house turned upside down by the force of the Japan tsunami 2011.  ©UK Department for International Development/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
A house turned upside down by the force of the Japan tsunami 2011. ©UK Department for International Development/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Government Response to Disasters

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) was involved with the removal of the debris that traveled across the Pacific to the US from the 2011 tsunami. According to NOAA, the agency received $5 million from the Japanese government, which went toward removing about 635 metric tons of debris in total from Alaska, Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, and California.


In August 2005, when Hurricane Katrina wreaked havoc across New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, chemical and petrol refining plants and contaminated areas like Superfund sites (containing hazardous material) were covered with floodwater, as were other areas, such as oil and gas wells.


FEMA debris specialist Phillip Jones takes a photograph to record the debris Hurricane Katrina left on this lot in the 9th Ward in New Orleans.  ©FEMA/Marvin Nauman
FEMA debris specialist Phillip Jones takes a photograph to record the debris Hurricane Katrina left on this lot in the 9th Ward in New Orleans. ©FEMA/Marvin Nauman

The NOAA project team “surveyed more than 1,500 square nautical miles of nearshore waters across Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana, and located and mapped more than 7,100 individual items,” said Jason Rolfe, marine debris response team lead at NOAA.


Hurricane Katrina was soon followed by another massive storm—Hurricane Rita—that caused unprecedented damage.


“Agencies learned that submerged debris removal was far more costly […] than debris stranded on the shores,” he said. “NOAA developed improved methods to assess and map submerged debris and built a comprehensive reference used for future responses.”


Diverting Debris from Landfills

“By reducing the burden on landfills, responsible rubble removal helps conserve natural landscapes and mitigates the release of harmful pollutants.”

Landfills solve some debris problems, but they can also be overfilled or misused. 


“When post-disaster rubble is disposed of irresponsibly, it often ends up in overflowing landfills, which pose environmental and public health risks,” said Carlo Ruiz, recovery solutions and human mobility policy adviser at the UN Development Programme (UNDP) Crisis Bureau.


“Responsible removal prioritizes recycling and reusing items, diverting them away from landfills, and minimizing environmental impact,” he said. “By reducing the burden on landfills, responsible rubble removal helps conserve natural landscapes and mitigates the release of harmful pollutants.”


Communities can help with debris removal. “Community-based waste management programs have emerged as a sustainable solution that not only tackles waste effectively but also brings about numerous benefits,” said Ruiz.


Residents can separate their waste into different categories, making it easier to recycle and divert waste from landfills, he explained. “Experiences […] have also shown that most of the material that has been collected is recyclable or reusable. Recyclers can crush rubble and convert it into material for roads and other non-structural purposes.”

 

These kinds of programs can also offer “short-term employment to the crisis-affected population, in particular to the poorest households,” Ruiz added.


Examples from the Far East

During Typhoon Bopha in the Philippines in 2012, over 6.2 million people were affected and 230,000 homes destroyed, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Approximately 6 million coconut trees (or 84,476 hectares of coconut farms) were damaged. However, much of this debris was repurposed as lumber, construction materials, handicrafts, and furniture as part of rehabilitation efforts, undertaken in collaboration with UNDP.


Uprooted coconut trees after Typhoon Bopha in Boston, Davao Oriental, the Philippines.  ©Sonny Day/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
Uprooted coconut trees after Typhoon Bopha in Boston, Davao Oriental, the Philippines. ©Sonny Day/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Years earlier, the UNDP was involved three months after the 2004 tsunami in Banda Aceh, Indonesia.


As part of the Tsunami Recovery Waste Management Project, the city received assistance to clear about 1 million cubic meters of debris, recover recyclable materials used to reconstruct 62 miles of roads, and manufacture 12,000 units of wooden furniture. A staggering 67,000 tons of recycled material, including glass, plastic, and cardboard, was sold in local markets.


Aftermath of the tsunami on December 26, 2004, in Banda Aceh, Indonesia.  Wikimedia/US Navy (Public Domain)
Aftermath of the tsunami on December 26, 2004, in Banda Aceh, Indonesia. Wikimedia/US Navy (Public Domain)

Safety First

It is advisable not to disturb any materials that could contain asbestos—it is commonly found in boiler and pipe insulation, floor tiles, and roofing.

During a clean-up in the aftermath of a disaster, there are a number of safety measures for people to follow. These include keeping children and pets away from flood water or damaged material, and avoiding contact with water that enters the home as it could be contaminated.


It’s also important to get rid of chemicals separately, and refrain from turning on drinking water until the system has been inspected. It is advisable not to disturb any materials that could contain asbestos—it is commonly found in boiler and pipe insulation, floor tiles, and roofing.


NOAA has published comprehensive response guidance for states and territories along the Atlantic Ocean and the US as a whole. This includes a flowchart that involves contacting the National Response Center for dealing with hazardous waste or the Federal Emergency Management Agency for debris that “threatens public health and safety and removal is in the public interest.”


Southeastern US is currently grappling with massive amounts of debris in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in late September and Hurricane Milton in October. When government assistance is delayed or unavailable, working together as a community is key to overcoming a disaster and its aftermath.

 

*Yasmin Prabhudas is a freelance journalist working mainly for non-profit organizations, labor unions, the education sector, and government agencies.

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