Prone to Disaster

Japan is a hot spot for hazards, and considering where it's located it's no wonder why.  Located near major tectonic plate boundaries situated in the Pacific ring of fire; a ring of volcanoes lining the Pacific Ocean as a result from the subduction of the Oceanic plates beneath the lighter continental plates. The ring of fire is home to 75% of the world's volcanoes, 10% which are found in Japan alone and an epicenter for Earthquake activity.  

                                                   world's most active earthquake belt

Pacific Ring of Fire (Not actually on fire)

Japan is spread across four tectonic plates, the Pacific plate, the Philippine plate, the North American plate and the Eurasian plate.  The Japanese Islands are situated in a subduction zone in the northwestern margin of the Pacific Ocean where the Pacific Plate and Philippine Sea Plate are subducting.  

The four plates

Nishiwaki,  Hirotoshi "Introduction to the Landforms and Geology of Japan" 2009 http://www.glgarcs.net/ 

Keller, Edward A. DeVecchio, Duane E. Natural Hazards:New Jersey. Pretence Hall, 2012. Thired Edition

Mining in Japan

Mining in Japan is very minimal due to it's few minable resources, it is now the smallest sector of Japan's industrial-based economy.  Even though it's minimal and hard to extract the two main rocks mined in Japan are coal and Iron ore, they're also able to extract small amounts of nonferrous metals.  The country does have a large mineral processing sector of ferrous and nonferrous metals and industrial minerals.

Hazards, Disasters, and Catastrophes

A natural hazard is when a natural process and event become a threat to human life or property.  Volcanoes, fires and floods are only hazards if people are affected by them.  A disaster is when a hazard is so bad that in a certain time frame either 10 or more people are killed, 100 or more people are affect, a state of emergency is called, or international assistance is requested.  Any or these scenarios bumps the event up  from a natural hazard to a natural disaster.  Greater even than a disaster though, is a Catastrophe.  A Catastrophes is massive disaster that requires years of cleanup and recovery and exceptionally large amounts of money. The average yearly loss of life due to hazards is 80,000 and $50 billion annually.  

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