- Burst pipes, power cuts, internet failures etc due to faults in infrastructure.
- Flooding that effects us and our homes directly.
- Flooding that interrupts the services we rely upon – sewage disposal, clean drinking water, electricity, transport, access to shops, schools, medical centres, etc. We might not need to vacate our homes but we might have to cope with lack of fresh water, no shops or food deliveries, power cuts etc.
- Storms that damage our homes directly.
- Storms which bring down trees blocking roads, cut off power supplies and telephone cables, preventing access to shops, schools, medical centres etc.
NB Storms are not limited to the winter months, and in summer months trees in full leave may catch more wind and be at a greater risk of falling. Hot, dry spells can put trees under stress equally increasing the likelihood that they may fall or loose branches. Whilst many parts of the UK now receive less rain than previously, it can more often come in a very intense rainfall where a significant amount of rain falls within a short time frame, and so trigger flooding.
- Freezing temperatures that burst pipes and cut of water supplies.
- Snow storms and freezing temperatures that disrupt services including electricity, transport, access to schools, shops, medical centres etc. Plus the risk of flooding when the snow melts.
- Snow and ice may deter some people from going out to the shops etc for fear of falling. Equally in very hot weather some people may avoid going out.
- Heat waves that disrupt transport and food supplies, and which may also lead to burst water pipes because of movement in the ground as it dries out.
- Extremes of heat – hot and cold – that make it difficult to maintain comfortable/ safe temperatures in our homes.
- Wild fires
- Pandemic outbreaks which are an increasing threat as global temperatures rise. Having experienced Covid we know how such an outbreak can create nationwide difficulties.
- Cyber attacks that disable systems that control water and electrical supplies, transport and communication networks.
All these are situations when our normal patterns of daily life may be disrupted such that we need to make adaptations. The better we are prepared, the more resilient we will be.
Some of these scenarios may affect just our own household or may affect our community to a greater or lesser extent, or may affected our whole country. As individuals if we can be more resilient we will reduce the pressure on the wider community, and rather be better able to help others in our community. If we as a community can be more resilient, then we will reduce the pressure on the nation, and if as a nation we can be more resilient, then we can be better able to help others in our nations.
The Green Tau 