Toxic Releases Due to Storms
Crisis
A major risk of storms is their destruction of industrial facilities that house toxic substances. For example, hurricanes can damage containers for harmful gasses and storm surges can flood storage facilities for toxic chemicals and sewage. These pollutants are then released into the surrounding environment, hurting humans and nature, creating a ‘second storm’ of dangerous impacts that persist long after the original storm has subsided. The World Health Organization refers to these as ‘natech’ disasters: Natural Hazards Triggering Technological Accidents.
The climate emergency is increasing the severity and frequency of extreme weather events. Therefore, the risk of natech disasters is growing. Industrial facilities can be poorly prepared for these events or unable to avoid damages. This includes fossil fuel facilities, which not only help cause worsening storms, but house huge amounts of toxic chemicals. Low income and marginalized communities are disproportionately exposed to natech disasters as they are more likely to live near industrial facilities.
Natech disasters can be reduced by setting up early warning systems for storms and floods, improving the resilience of industrial sites, and providing better housing options for those who currently live in danger. But the only way to fully eliminate the escalating natech risk is to remove fossil fuel infrastructure completely.
The player with the lowest Infrastructure Resilience must add 1 Community in Crisis per Temperature Band.
They can reduce this effect by 1 for each Infrastructure Resilience token in their player board.
For example: 5 Temperature Bands – 3 Infrastructure Resilience = add 2 Communities in Crisis.
Resilience tokens are not discarded.
Support the UN Race to Resilience.
Ask local industrial facilities and government organizations that run utilities for emergency plans coordinated with climate emergency projections, or ask managers to prepare one if you work at one of these sites.