2024 Essay Contest Finalist

Entry by Madeleine Biscardi

Though tsunamis, tornados, and hurricanes can be destructive to communities, these natural wonders can also teach us valuable lessons about how to care for our earth and prevent them. The Earth was created to weather the storms it makes and understanding the science around this can help save lives.

An example of this is Lowe Sound on Andros Island in The Bahamas. No one saw rising waters as a threat during Hurricane Matthew because local sea levels have never been over 4 feet, even at high tide, yet during the hurricane they reached over 6 feet. Which destroyed parts of the island. After further inspection of the island, the Natural Capital Project found that the mangroves which grew there naturally, were a buffer for the storm and could absorb some of the wave energy. Sadly, these trees were uprooted a few years earlier to make room for the sidewalks and roads which have since been destroyed by Hurricane Matthew (bioGraphic). If the community developers better understood the value of mangroves, they could’ve helped protect the community from the destruction of the storm. Knowledge about the Earth and the existing environment helps to soften the blow of some natural hazards because each factor on Earth is here for a reason.

There’s also other instances of nature helping to reduce the damage from natural disasters. Coral reefs can be natural wave breakers and a great way of shrinking the harm of huge floods. Places suffering from sea levels rising are also a target for large floods, investing in having healthy coral reefs can prevent massive devastation.

Knowing ways to prevent excessive amounts of destruction to areas is an extremely beneficial thing. These catastrophic events can happen to anyone and understanding the science behind it can help us to avoid too much impairment.