Skip to main content
Book cover
  • Book
  • © 2019

Social-Ecological-Technological Effects of Hurricane María on Puerto Rico

Planning for Resilience under Extreme Events

Authors:

  1. Ariel E. Lugo

    1. San Juan, Puerto Rico

    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

  • Provides a holistic analysis of the effects of and the responses to an extreme event

  • Describes the effects of a major hurricane on a tropical society and its forests

  • Synthesizes information scattered in a wide array of sources to present the effects of hurricane events

  • Demonstrates the relevance of political and economic decisions to the magnitude of effects imparted by a hurricane on society

  • Connects social and political justice issues to biophysical principles of energetics

Part of the book series: SpringerBriefs in Energy (BRIEFSENERGY)

Part of the book sub series: Energy Analysis (ENERGYANALYS)

Sections

eBook GBP 39.99
Price includes VAT (United Kingdom)
  • ISBN: 978-3-030-02387-4
  • Instant PDF download
  • Readable on all devices
  • Own it forever
  • Exclusive offer for individuals only
  • Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout
Softcover Book GBP 49.99
Price includes VAT (United Kingdom)
Learn about institutional subscriptions

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Table of contents (8 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xiv
    PDF

  2. Introduction

    • Ariel E. Lugo
    Pages 1-3

  4. Immediate Ecological Effects

    • Ariel E. Lugo
    Pages 15-18

  5. Recovery and Long-Term Effects

    • Ariel E. Lugo
    Pages 19-28

  6. The Roots of Vulnerability

    • Ariel E. Lugo
    Pages 29-46

  7. Fundamental Lessons of Hurricane María

    • Ariel E. Lugo
    Pages 47-51

  9. Looking to 2080: A New Puerto Rico

    • Ariel E. Lugo
    Pages 75-83

  10. Back Matter

    Pages 85-112
    PDF
Back to top

About this book

This book deals with the immediate effects of, and response to, Hurricane María on the social, ecological, and technological systems (SETS) of Puerto Rico. The SETS approach to analyzing hurricane effects places into historical context the role of social and technological factors, and compares social and ecological resilience on the same temporal scales. Written from the perspective of a Puerto Rican scientist who experienced Maria's wrath first-hand, the book uses extensive empirical knowledge of the ecological effects of hurricanes on Caribbean forests and combines that knowledge with a detailed analysis of the effects of Hurricane María on the social and technological fabric of Puerto Rico.

The comparison suggests that the effects of extreme events are dictated not only by the strength of the physical event, but also by the conditions of affected SETS at the time when the event exerts influence over them. Moreover, SETS have historical legacies that influence how resilient they can be when affected by an extreme event. Therefore, preparation and response to extreme events require an integrated social, ecological, and technological effort, known as the SETS response. The SETS response requires an understanding of the energetics of extreme events and their effects on the economy, which in turn determines social and technological resilience. Hurricane María demonstrated that the social and technological systems of Puerto Rico were not adapted to dealing with extreme events, in contrast with the ecological systems, which were. Hurricane María’s effect on Puerto Rico can be used as an example from which valuable lessons emerge for making SETS more adaptable and resilient to extreme events.
Back to top

Keywords

  • Hurricane María Puerto Rico
  • SETS perspective
  • Socio-Ecological-Technological Systems (SETS)
  • Puerto Rico power outage
  • Puerto Rico hurricane recovery
  • Caribbean hurricane recovery
  • Impact of extreme events
  • energetics of extreme events
  • energy security
  • urban geography and urbanism
Back to top

Authors and Affiliations

  • San Juan, Puerto Rico

    Ariel E. Lugo

Back to top

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Social-Ecological-Technological Effects of Hurricane María on Puerto Rico

  • Book Subtitle: Planning for Resilience under Extreme Events

  • Authors: Ariel E. Lugo

  • Series Title: SpringerBriefs in Energy

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-02387-4

  • Publisher: Springer Cham

  • eBook Packages: Energy, Energy (R0)

  • Copyright Information: The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-3-030-02386-7Published: 17 December 2018

  • eBook ISBN: 978-3-030-02387-4Published: 06 December 2018

  • Series ISSN: 2191-5520

  • Series E-ISSN: 2191-5539

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XIV, 112

  • Number of Illustrations: 10 b/w illustrations, 16 illustrations in colour

  • Topics: Energy Policy, Economics and Management, Urban Sociology, Sustainability, Urban Ecology, Public Policy

Back to top
Access via your institution
eBook GBP 39.99
Price includes VAT (United Kingdom)
  • ISBN: 978-3-030-02387-4
  • Instant PDF download
  • Readable on all devices
  • Own it forever
  • Exclusive offer for individuals only
  • Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout
Softcover Book GBP 49.99
Price includes VAT (United Kingdom)
Learn about institutional subscriptions