Disaster Assistance Program Research Articles

Assessing social equity of federal disaster aid distribution: A nationwide analysis.

In this study, we conduct the first comprehensive, nationwide assessment of social equity performance of multiple federal post- and pre-disaster assistance programs that differ in targeted recipients, project types, forms of aid, and funding requirements. We draw on the social equity and distributive justice theory to develop and test a set of hypotheses on the influence of program design and specificity on their aid distributional patterns and equity performance. The analysis uses panel data of about 3000 US counties to examine the relationship between a county's receipt of federal assistance and its recent disaster damage, socioeconomic, demographic, political, local government, and geographic characteristics in a two-stage random effects Tobit model. Expectedly, we find that post-disaster grants are largely driven by recent disaster damage, while damage is simultaneously influenced by local socioeconomic conditions. For all disaster programs, disproportionately more federal aid is allocated to populous counties. For programs geared toward state and local governments and targeting community recovery and mitigation, more aid is received by counties with better socioeconomic conditions. Conversely, for programs targeting individual relief and recovery, more aid is given to counties with lower incomes and greater social vulnerability. Results also indicate that counties located in high-risk regions receive greater outlays. These findings shed light on the varying degrees of social equity of federal disaster assistance programs tied to their cost-share requirement, funding caps, and inherent complexity of application procedures.

Concurrent disasters: Perceived administrative burdens and household coping capacities

AbstractWeather‐related disasters during the COVID‐19 pandemic exacerbated the vulnerabilities of individuals and households, and concurrent disasters are becoming more of the norm as we face more extreme weather patterns. This study seeks to extend administrative burden scholarship to better understand the administrative burdens (real and perceived) that a citizen experiences when applying for disaster assistance while facing concurrent disasters. Using logistic regression analysis and Generalized Structural Equation Modeling, we analyze primary survey data from households in five Texas counties that were impacted by the 2021 Winter Storm Uri. Our findings indicate that learning, compliance, and psychological costs, disaster‐related damages, and infrastructure losses, coping with concurrent disasters during the pandemic, and social vulnerability factors, such as age and the lack of insurance increase administrative burdens and difficulties for disaster aid applicants. Practical implications include recommendations to more effectively address concurrent disasters and reduce associated administrative burdens and inequities in disaster assistance programs.

Sustainability assessment of economic recovery program in post disaster area at Susup Village, Central Bengkulu, Indonesia

This article addresses the sustainability of post disaster assistance program for economic recovery in the context of the 2019’s Flood and landslide in Bengkulu Province by presenting an analysis of its sustainability (e.g., Exit Strategy) of the economic recovery program. The purpose of this sustainability assessment were: first, to ensure that that the program will continue to run even though the program will be ended; and second, to ensure the process of business still running and the member of business group take initiative to have better motivation towards a better situation and increased their income. Data was gathered through Focus Group Discussion (FGD) and analysed using Multi-Dimensional Scaling (MDS) approach. Based on the MDS analyses for all dimensions was resulted an index of 58.88%, meaning that the program was “moderately/sufficiently sustainable” for the business groups in Susup Village, Merigi Sakti District, Central Bengkulu

Is Agricultural Insurance Fulfilling Its Promise for the Developing World? A Review of Recent Evidence

Innovations in agricultural index insurance have raised expectations that the private sector can overcome shortcomings associated with more traditional indemnity-based products like multiperil crop insurance and strengthen agricultural risk management at scale across developing countries. This article updates previous reviews on agricultural insurance but differs in that it goes beyond the prognosis that recent innovations can help make insurance more commercially viable. As such, it addresses two important challenges that have received limited attention. First, it distinguishes different types of farm households and recognizes that many are excluded from the insurance market, describing additional innovations that can help make insurance more accessible to these excluded groups. Second, it acknowledges that insurance for catastrophic risks is unaffordable for most farmers and summarizes new developments in disaster assistance and safety net programs that can provide broader protection against these risks. The review concludes that cost-benefit analyses of subsidized insurance programs will be crucial for guiding public spending decisions.

Assessing distributive inequities in FEMA's Disaster recovery assistance fund allocation

Social vulnerability is significant in differential disaster impacts and outcomes and has been shown to influence the pace and progression of post-disaster recovery processes. Various disaster assistance programs - designed to support individual survivors, states, local governments, non-governmental entities, and businesses - may be distributing funds inequitably because they are not accounting for social vulnerabilities. One such program, the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Individuals and Households Program (IHP) program supports homeowners and renters for rental, repair, replacement, and permanent housing construction of disaster-damaged houses as well as providing other needs assistance to disaster victims with disaster-related non-housing expenses. To date, limited exploration connecting underlying social vulnerabilities and distribution of federal disaster assistance funds has provided only an incomplete understanding of the connections between underlying socio-economic conditions and often inequitable federal recovery assistance distribution. We analyzed county-level IHP assistance provided to homeowners between 2010 and 2018 and explored the relationships between fund distribution and social vulnerability indicators while controlling for total damages. Employing ordinary least squares regression analysis, we assessed links between Total Assistance, Housing Repair/Replace Assistance and Other Needs Assistance against social vulnerability variables from the Social Vulnerability Index (SoVI) framework. Results highlight specific social vulnerability variables influencing FEMA's distribution of disaster recovery assistance with race/ethnicity-related variables as the most frequent (regularly negative) influence on recovery fund receipt. Findings suggest that disaster assistance receipt is linked to underlying social vulnerability. As such, greater attention to and inclusion of social vulnerabilities would lead to more equitable distribution of disaster recovery funds.

Clear and Present Dangers: The Multiple Health Hazards of Volcanic Eruptions.

Clear and Present Dangers: The Multiple Health Hazards of Volcanic Eruptions.

Grassland productivity estimates informed by soil moisture measurements: Statistical and mechanistic approaches

AbstractSoil moisture is a fundamental determinant of plant growth, but soil moisture measurements are rarely assimilated into grassland productivity models, in part because methods of incorporating such data into statistical and mechanistic yield models have not been adequately investigated. Therefore, our objectives were to (a) quantify statistical relationships between in situ soil moisture measurements and biomass yield on grasslands in Oklahoma and (b) develop a simple, mechanistic biomass‐yield model for grasslands capable of assimilating in situ soil moisture data. Soil moisture measurements (as fraction of available water capacity, FAW) explained 60% of the variability in county‐level wild hay yield reported by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). We next evaluated the performance of mechanistic, evapotranspiration (ET)‐driven grassland productivity models with and without assimilation of measured FAW into the models’ water balance routines. Models were calibrated by comparing estimated ET with ET measured using eddy covariance, and calibration proved essential for accurate ET estimates. Models were validated by comparing NASS county‐level hay yields to the modeled yields, which were the product of normalized transpiration estimates (the ratio of transpiration to reference ET) and an empirically derived grassland water productivity (the ratio of accumulated biomass to normalized transpiration) estimate. The mechanistic model produced more accurate estimates of wild‐hay yields with soil moisture data assimilation (Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency [NSE] = 0.55) than without (NSE = 0.10). These results suggest that improved estimates of grassland productivity could be achieved using in situ soil moisture, which could benefit grazing management decisions, wildfire preparedness, and disaster assistance programs.

Governmental Disaster Assistance and Moral Hazard: Focusing on the Slight Damage Assistance Program for the Pohang Earthquake Victims

AbstractThis study shows that an inappropriately designed disaster assistance program may provoke disaster victims to commit fraud, resulting in moral hazard. We analyzed the case of the Pohang ear...

Individual Disaster Assistance For Socially Vulnerable People: Lessons Learned From the Pohang Earthquake in the Republic of Korea.

The Republic of Korea has been considered to be relatively safe from earthquake hazards because of the geological location of the Korean Peninsula, which has a low level of intraplate seismic activity. However, an earthquake with a moment magnitude of 5.4 struck the city of Pohang on November 15, 2017, causing 90 casualties and 52 million USD in property losses. During the recovery process after the earthquake, the Korean government provided individual disaster assistance to victims who reported their damages. However, the government disaster assistance could have been unfairly distributed among the socially vulnerable victims who essentially relied on that assistance. This study identifies whether the government disaster assistance was fairly distributed to socially vulnerable victims using a statistical model based on the data from the Pohang earthquake that occurred in 2017 in Korea. A conceptual model was constructed using a structural equation model (SEM) of three factors-social vulnerability, physical vulnerability, and the amount paid out in individual disaster assistance. Furthermore, interviews with and a survey of the victims were conducted to verify the problems identified by the conceptual model. This study found that socially vulnerable victims were less likely to take advantage of the government disaster assistance program.

Capturing, Preserving, and Digitizing Legacy Seismic Data from the Montserrat Volcano Observatory Analog Seismic Network, July 1995–December 2004

Abstract An eruption of the Soufrière Hills Volcano (SHV) on the eastern Caribbean island of Montserrat began on 18 July 1995 and continued until February 2010. Within nine days of the eruption onset, an existing four-station analog seismic network (ASN) was expanded to 10 sites. Telemetered data from this network were recorded, processed, and archived locally using a system developed by scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP). In October 1996, a digital seismic network (DSN) was deployed with the ability to capture larger amplitude signals across a broader frequency range. These two networks operated in parallel until December 2004, with separate telemetry and acquisition systems (analysis systems were merged in March 2001). Although the DSN provided better quality data for research, the ASN featured superior real-time monitoring tools and captured valuable data including the only seismic data from the first 15 months of the eruption. These successes of the ASN have been rather overlooked. This article documents the evolution of the ASN, the VDAP system, the original data captured, and the recovery and conversion of more than 230,000 seismic events from legacy SUDS, Hypo71, and Seislog formats into Seisan database with waveform data in miniSEED format. No digital catalog existed for these events, but students at the University of South Florida have classified two-thirds of the 40,000 events that were captured between July 1995 and October 1996. Locations and magnitudes were recovered for ∼10,000 of these events. Real-time seismic amplitude measurement, seismic spectral amplitude measurement, and tiltmeter data were also captured. The result is that the ASN seismic dataset is now more discoverable, accessible, and reusable, in accordance with FAIR data principles. These efforts could catalyze new research on the 1995–2010 SHV eruption. Furthermore, many observatories have data in these same legacy data formats and might benefit from procedures and codes documented here.

Leveraging lessons learned to prevent future disasters\u2014insights from the 2013 Colombia-US binational exchange

In 2013, scientists implemented a binational exchange for emergency planners and responders in communities near Nevado del Ruiz in Colombia and volcanoes of the Cascade Range of the United States (US). This program was designed to promote understanding of volcanic disasters and effective mitigation options, motivate participants to strengthen emergency planning efforts, and promote trust-building among participants. The 2013 Binational Exchange was funded by the Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP), a joint U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)—U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) program.During a week-long visit to Colombian emergency response agencies, Nevado del Ruiz, and lahar-destroyed ruins of the city of Armero and the region of Viejo Rio Claro, US participants became familiar with Colombian counterparts who have had recent and frequent experiences addressing volcanic crises. Aging survivors and authorities of the Nevado del Ruiz catastrophe of 1985 gave participants first-hand accounts, and ideas for improved preparedness and response. While in the US, Colombian participants observed emergency response capabilities and facilities, and received training in systems of incident command. Colombians made presentations to the US public and officials about the similarities of lahar risks in both nations.This article describes the 2013 Binational Exchange as an experiential learning event and uses results of post-exchange discussions and interviews as evidence of steps achieved within the learning process. Six years hence, this article provides examples of progress with volcano hazards mitigation in both nations. The article offers the binational exchange model as an effective tool that employs both experiential learning and socialization of participants to create a highly motivating and effective learning environment.

Governance for resilience: Canada and global disaster risk reduction

ABSTRACT As approaches to international disaster risk reduction have changed, the international community's responses have evolved since the issue arose in 1990 with the United Nations International Decade for Disaster Risk Reduction (henceforth DRR). Canada has been a strong participant in these efforts, most recently through the Sendai Framework, designed to guide the world’s responses to disaster from 2015 to 2030. A key shift of the Sendai Framework is a move toward “disaster risk governance” rather than disaster management, suggesting a move away from relief-based governance and assistance models and toward resilience-based models. As DRR becomes more integrated into the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it will theoretically blur the boundary between “relief” and “development” activities and policies. This paper will analyze the implications of this blurring for Canada’s international disaster assistance policies, and include some comparison with domestic disaster response policies. In the process, the work will review the history, development, and outcomes of Canada’s involvement in the global DRR process, with particular focus on Canada’s contribution to resilience-based governance. It will evaluate Canada’s progress toward the support of resilience-based governance as demonstrated through recent examples of disaster assistance responses, policies and programs.

Podcast: Volcano Disaster Prepping

Third Pod from the Sun talks with volcanologist John Ewert, a founder of the U.S. Geological Survey’s Volcano Disaster Assistance Program.

A process-based model of pre-eruption seismicity patterns and its use for eruption forecasting at dormant stratovolcanoes

Using long-term data sets, the eruptive size, timing and style can typically be successfully forecast for dormant volcanoes using current monitoring data and knowledge of precursory eruptive patterns. The USAID-USGS Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP) utilizes seismic data over multiple eruption cycles and across volcano types to successfully forecast eruption size, style and onset times, as well as changes within ongoing eruptions. From millions of seismic event observations, we show that seismic data, a proxy for rate-dependent strain changes in the magmatic system, combined with a process-based conceptual geologic model enables eruption forecasting, especially for stratovolcanoes dormant >20 years. We show that this model often works for some open systems, ones that sufficiently reseal to plug the conduit, and also where a deep intrusion occurs after phreatic or phreatomagmatic explosions have begun.This model is divided into four seismicity and geologic stages. We describe each of the four stages of seismicity in detail and how they relate to the ongoing geologic process of that stage:Stage 1. Deep intrusion and seismicity occurring at 10 to 40 + km depth below the volcanic edifice;Stage 2. Distal VT seismicity induced at distances from 2 to >30 km laterally from the summit by magma intruding into and inflating the upper-crustal magma storage region;Stage 3. Vent-clearing seismicity associated with the initial vent creation and clearing phase of eruptive activity.Stage 4. Repetitive event seismicity associated with the final ascent of magma from 2 km to the surface.We present 36 examples of this seismic progression from 26 volcanoes. We believe that this progression generally correlates with the magma flux and the eventual explosivity and is invaluable for forecasting eruptions.

Beyond Localism: Harnessing State Adaptation Lawmaking to Facilitate Local Climate Resilience

Notwithstanding the need for adaptation lawmaking to address a critical gap between climate-change related risks and preparedness in the United States, no coherent body of law exists that is aimed at reducing vulnerability to climate change. As a result of this gap in the law, market failures, and various “super wicked” attributes of hazard mitigation planning, local communities remain unprepared for present and future climate-related risks. Many U.S. communities continue to employ land-use planning and zoning practices that, at best, fail to mitigate these hazards, and, at worst, increase local vulnerability. Even localities that have implemented otherwise robust adaptation plans tend to focus almost entirely on accommodation strategies, even when retreat strategies are warranted. The result is the continued use of land-use planning and zoning practices that allow for intensified land uses in risk-prone areas. Such maladaptive development carries with it current and future costs from locking in infrastructure and patterns of development that place people and property in harm’s way. When addressing this preparedness gap, many scholars focus on flaws in the federal flood insurance and disaster assistance programs. This Article builds on a small but growing literature on the potential for land use and other local lawmaking regimes to proactively facilitate climate resilience, and the barriers local governments face that cause them to continue to promote maladaptive development. Using New York’s recently enacted adaptation law as a case study, I ask whether state mandates and incentives, although facially limiting of local autonomy, are nevertheless needed to empower local governments to overcome otherwise intractable obstacles to decreasing the intensity of development in vulnerable areas. I conclude by identifying specific attributes of state adaptation lawmaking that may be needed to support and encourage local government efforts to promote resilience. Ultimately, I conclude that, by helping local governments overcome barriers to robust adaptive development, state lawmaking has the potential to empower local governments to proactively move people and infrastructure out of harm’s way.

The Value of Remotely Sensed Information: The Case of GRACE-Enhanced Drought Severity Index.

A decision framework is developed for quantifying the economic value of information (VOI) from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellite mission for drought monitoring, with a focus on the potential contributions of groundwater storage and soil moisture measurements from the GRACE Data Assimilation (GRACE-DA) System. The study consists of: (a) the development of a conceptual framework to evaluate the socioeconomic value of GRACE-DA as a contributing source of information to drought monitoring; (b) structured listening sessions to understand the needs of stakeholders who are affected by drought monitoring; (c) econometric analysis based on the conceptual framework that characterizes the contribution of GRACE-DA to the US Drought Monitor (USDM) in capturing the effects of drought on the agricultural sector; and (d) a demonstration of how the improved characterization of drought conditions may influence decisions made in a real-world drought disaster assistance program. Results show that GRACE-DA has the potential to lower the uncertainty associated with our understanding of drought, and that this improved understanding has the potential to change policy decisions that lead to tangible societal benefits.

Overview of the eruptions of Sinabung Volcano, 2010 and 2013–present and details of the 2013 phreatomagmatic phase

A small phreatic eruption of Sinabung Volcano, North Sumatra on 28 August 2010, at 18:30 local time marked the first eruption in the past ~1200years. The eruption took place from two small vents in the south crater area. Explosions and ash emissions from these vents generated multiple ash plumes that reached altitudes of up to 5km during early- to mid-September. By the end of September 2010, only low level steam plumes were visible and the alert level was reduced from Level 4 (highest) to Level 3. The 2010 eruption effectively ended at this time. Beginning two days after the initial 2010 eruption, activity of the eruption has been monitored continuously by a telemetered seismic network surrounding the volcano and by remotely sensed observations. This monitoring system was supplemented with a near-field continuous GPS network, beginning in February 2011. Persistent fumarolic emissions continued for almost 3years following the 2010 eruption, before a new eruption began on 15 September 2013. This eruption continues to the present. The ongoing eruption is divided into 5 major phases: 1) phreatomagmatic phase (July 2013–18 December 2013); 2) first dome and collapse phase with pyroclastic density currents (PDCs; block-and-ash flows and related surges) to south (18 December 2013–10 January 2014); 3) lava-flow and collapse phase (10 January 2014–mid-September 2014); 4) second lava dome and collapse phase with PDCs to south (mid-September 2014–July 2015); 5) lava dome collapse and ash explosion phase with PDCs to southeast and east (August 2015–present). The volcano erupted intermittently during the early phreatomagmatic phase with small vertical ash explosions. Then the eruption became increasingly vigorous with more repetitive and intense vertical ash explosions during late October through November. The first small pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) began on November 1. These pyroclastic flows descended the southeastern flank to a distance of 2km.Swarms of volcano-tectonic (VT) earthquakes and volcanic tremor lasting hours occurred repeatedly during the phreatomagmatic phase and some of these VT-swarms were followed by explosions. In early December 2013, during the transition between phreatomagmatic and dome-collapse phases, swarms of hybrid earthquakes took place preceding and accompanying dome growth. The first lava dome was observed in satellite images on 18 December near the main crater rim. Partial collapses of the dome produced PDCs beginning on 30 December. Growth of this first lava dome continued into January and was accompanied by additional collapses and PDCs. By about 10 January, the lava had transitioned from a summit dome morphology into a lava flow morphology. The resulting lava flow descended the southeast flank of the volcano, producing flow-front and marginal collapses with associated PCDs. One such flow-flank collapse on 2 February 2014 resulted in a PCD that killed 16. The lava flow phase continued through mid-September 2014, when a second summit lava dome began to grow and collapse, producing PDCs initially to the south and southeast, and then beginning in July 2015 to the east and southeast.The eruption of Sinabung resulted in major impacts on the population of the resort and farming area near the volcano and in the Ginting and Karo Regencies of North Sumatra. Local residents, having not experienced eruptions in their lifetimes, were initially curious and eager to receive any information about the eruption regardless of its source. Various institutions provided information with little coordination, resulting in confusion. With time communications have improved and communities and the responsible governments have become better prepared in dealing with the persistent eruption. The Government of Indonesia has provided funding to support villagers who lived within a 5km radius danger zone to stay in relocation camps as a permanent relocation area is being identified. Unfortunately, on 21 May 2016, 9 additional fatalities took place in the village of Gamber, within the danger zone, when a dome collapse sent a pyroclastic density current into the area.Throughout the eruption, the volcano has been monitored by the Indonesian Center for Volcanology and Geologic Hazard Mitigation (CVGHM) in partnership with the USGS-USAID Volcano Disaster Assistance Program and the Disaster Prevention Research Institute of Kyoto University. Monitoring techniques have included seismic, geodetic, gas, satellite and field observations, as well as occasional sampling of ash and lava for geochemical analyses. In this paper, we summarize key aspects of the monitoring data, their interpretations and their use in forecasting eruptive behavior and in issuance of alerts and warnings. More detailed interpretations of the monitoring data and their use are found in other papers of this special issue.

Using a process-based model of pre-eruptive seismic patterns to forecast evolving eruptive styles at Sinabung Volcano, Indonesia

Most volcanoes worldwide are not monitored in real-time; for those that are, patterns of pre-eruptive earthquakes coupled with conceptual models of magma ascent enable short-term forecasting of eruption onset. Basic event locations, characterization of background seismicity, and recognition of changes in earthquake types and energy release are most important to successful eruption forecasting. During renewed activity at Sinabung volcano, Indonesia, this approach was used by the Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazards Mitigation (CVGHM) and the USGS Volcano Disaster Assistance Program to forecast eruption onset, identify changes in eruptive styles and raise or lower alert levels and extend or contract evacuation zones. After >400years of quiescence, Sinabung began erupting in August 2010. The volcano was unmonitored at the onset of these eruptions, which were phreatic, but soon after a monitoring network was installed by CVGHM. Increasing swarms of high-frequency volcano tectonic (VT) earthquakes were used to forecast continuing phreatic eruptions. Volcanic activity decreased in mid-September 2010, while additional intrusions at depth (inferred from continued distal VT swarms) continued through September 2013, when explosive phreatic eruptions recurred. Explosive eruptions were forecast based on increases in real-time seismic amplitude measurement (RSAM) and VT seismicity. Seismicity changed markedly in late November and early December 2013 with the occurrence of deep earthquakes and an overall transition from low-frequency (LF) dominated and irregular (in time and magnitude) earthquakes to more regular LF and hybrid seismicity – a transition that accompanied the continued rise, eventual emergence and growth of a lava dome in the summit crater. This lava dome was first observed on 18 December. In late December 2013 to early January 2014, the eruptive style changed again as additional ascending magma deformed the summit and the dome grew beyond the capacity of the summit crater, resulting in the en masse collapse of the lava dome (2Mm3) on 11 January and the largest pyroclastic flow to date. The collapse was forecast on the basis of a several order of magnitude increase in RSAM, continued strong distal VT seismicity, an increase in proximal seismicity, and large-scale observed deformation of the summit area. Similarly, a later collapse of a second summit lava dome on 1 February 2014 was forecast on the basis of increased distal seismicity. Here, we demonstrate how a process-based volcano seismicity model was used in combination with real-time data to forecast the time and magnitude of eruptions, as well as changes in eruption style.

Eruption!: Volcanoes and the Science of Saving Lives by Elizabeth Rusch (review)

Reviewed by: Eruption!: Volcanoes and the Science of Saving Lives by Elizabeth Rusch Elizabeth Bush Rusch, Elizabeth . Eruption!: Volcanoes and the Science of Saving Lives; illus. with photographs by Tom Uhlman et al. Houghton, 2013. 76p. (Scientists in the Field) ISBN 978-0-547-50350-9 $18.99 R Gr. 5-9. This Scientists in the Field entry focuses on the work of the Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP), a cadre of scientists within the U.S. Geological Survey that trains international vulcanologists and seismologists in monitoring techniques, and joins them (by invitation only) with assistance and advice during a crisis. Rusch's admirably organized title begins with the tragic story of the pre-VDAP eruption of Nevado del Ruiz in Colombia in 1985, in which some 23,000 lives were lost. Drawing on their experience with the eruption of Mount St. Helens, a team of American scientists determines to make an organized effort to share what they've learned about how to install monitoring apparatus in remote and potentially lethal locations. As scientists from other nations arrive and share their own experiences, the total knowledge base broadens, making it clear this is truly an international effort. This title's culminating event, which Rusch and Uhlman witnessed and documented in 2010, is the eruption of Mount Merapi in Indonesia. VDAP-trained Indonesian scientists ran this show, with some remote back-up from VDAP (already committed at other hotspots) and with coordinated satellite data from the international community. Timely evacuations saved most, if not all, lives, and in the aftermath of the explosion VDAP returned to Mount Merapi to learn from their Indonesian colleagues unique features of this eruption. Rusch treats with particular respect the decisions of those who chose not to evacuate, and the reasons why people make their livelihoods alongside a volcano that continually threatens their lives. Images of destruction may initially draw the casual browser, but far more impressive is the balance of vivid photographs that bring the international scientists into the limelight. A glossary, chapter notes, bibliography, and index are included. [End Page 50] Copyright © 2013 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois

The Environmental Consequences of Subsidized Risk Management and Disaster Assistance Programs

Federal subsidized crop insurance has been a major fixture of US agricultural policies for the past several decades. In recent years, the program has expanded rapidly and now constitutes the largest and most expensive agricultural subsidy initiative in the United States. Similar programs have been introduced around the world. All these programs have one common denominator: Absent generous subsidies, participation is minimal. Such subsidies introduce the potential for a wide range of distortions. Intensive margin distortions may result from moral hazard as insured growers alter their production practices. Distortions at the extensive margin may arise as acreage decisions reflect the presence of subsidized risk management, resulting in lands with alternative uses being planted to crops. A range of environmental effects may arise as a result of these distortions. Not all those effects are negative, because subsidized insurance may result in less intensive use of chemical and fertilizer inputs. We review the history and operation of the current program and discuss the options currently being deliberated for future crop insurance programs.