Tectonic Plates & The Channel Islands

• The British Channel Islands are located right near the boundary between the Eurasian Plate and the North American Plate. This boundary is classified as a transform boundary, which is a place where two of the Earth’s tectonic plates move past one another. As these plates move past one another, their interactions can create cracks or faults within the surrounding regions. Although the islands themselves are not directly on the boundary, they still possess a unique geology that has been shaped by many years of tectonic activity and erosion.
• The Islands are considered a micro fragment that have become detached from a larger continent. These fragments are created when two tectonic plates collide and part of the continent is pushed upward and becomes isolated.
• The boundary between the two plates is located just to the west of the Channel Islands, and it is responsible for the frequent earthquakes and occasional volcanic activity that occur in the region. However, the islands themselves are not directly on the boundary and are rarely subject to any significant tectonic activity.

Sources:

https://www.britannica.com/place/Channel-Islands-English-Channel

https://www.geolsoc.org.uk/Plate-Tectonics/Chap4-Plate-Tectonics-of-the-UK

https://www.nps.gov/subjects/geology/plate-tectonics-transform-plate-boundaries.htm

https://sciencetrends.com/transform-boundary-definition-and-examples

https://www.geolsoc.org.uk/Plate-Tectonics

Hazards, Disasters, & Catastrophes - What's the Difference?

  

• A hazard is defined as a POTENTIAL source of harm/damage, like a natural disaster or even something man-made.
• A disaster is something that actually causes a SERIOUS disruption or interference with a community, and can result in extreme human/economic/environmental losses that the community simply cannot handle.
• A catastrophe is a severe and sudden event causing great damage or especially the loss of human life. 
• The three terms sort of represent the varying degrees of severity what classifying damaging events or potential damaging events, with a hazard being the least extreme, a disaster ranking just above that, and a catastrophe being the worst of the three.

A Brief Overview of the Channel Islands

The Channel Islands are a group of islands located in the English Channel, just off the coast of Normandy, France. They include Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and Herm. A little fun fact about the islands is that they are technically classified as an "Autonomous British Crown Dependency" and are not part of the United Kingdom. They are independant in the fields of government, law, and financial systems, but the UK manages their defense & international relations. The islands are a very popular tourist destination due to their incredible natural beauty and are somewhere I'd love to visit myself someday!