[SLIDE 1] Good evening, everyone.

Today, I will discuss about ACTIVE FAULTS AND SEISMIC

ZONES OF THE PHILIPPINES.

As a short introduction, let’s have a quick TRIVIA about earthquake.

[SLIDE 2] Did you know that The state that is most prone to earthquake is Alaska?. This is
because the state is located along the Pacific “Ring of Fire” and joins the Pacific and North
American plates. And one of the fastest-moving underwater tectonic faults in the world is in
southeastern Alaska.

[SLIDE 3] Next is that Standing water smells before an earthquake.

Ponds, canals, lakes and other standing water may give off an unpleasant smell or become
slightly warmer before an earthquake. This is due to gases being released underground as the
plates shift. This can contribute to a change in the behavior of wildlife in the area.
Earthquake, being a natural disaster, is often experienced by prone Areas which includes our
country, Philippines.

[SLIDE 4] Here are some of the strongest earthquakes occurred in our nation

[SLIDE 5] Included in the list is Mindoro Earthquake happened on Nov 15, 1994 in Oriental
Mindoro with 7.1 magnitude which destroyed 24 bridges and 3 major power plants

[SLIDE 6] Aside from the list, another marking earthquake was the magnitude 6.1 earthquake
Earthquake that happened on Monday, April 22 2019.

[VIDEO] Here is a glimpse of the panic and destruction inside the Chuzon Supermarket in
Porac, Pampanga, as shown in CCTV footage.

[SLIDE 7] Another building that was devastated due to the same earthquake is Santa Catalina
de Alejandria Church in Porac, Pampanga. The bell tower of the church that was built in the
18th century crumbled after the powerful earthquake shook the town.

[SLIDE 8] The Philippines has been experiencing all sorts of natural disasters all year round –
severe heat waves, strong typhoons, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, and recently several
earthquakes. In 2016 alone, there were 216 earthquakes recorded.

[SLIDE 9] And these natural events happen because of the country’s geographical location. The
Philippines lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire, home of several tectonic plate boundaries.

[SLIDE 10] Three of these tectonic plates encircle the country: the Philippine Plate in the East;
the Eurasian plate in the West; and the Indo-Australian Plate in the South.
[SLIDE 11] The existence of several fault lines across the country is a manifestation of the
movements of these tectonic plates. Geologists define fault line as slip-up or cracks in a volume
of rock due to rock-mass movement. A large fault within the Earth’s crust is the result of the
movement of tectonic plates. A rapid movement of a fault line may produce powerful energy that
can trigger a very strong earthquake. Or in simple words, fault line is a long crack in the surface
of the earth.

There are five active fault lines in the country, these are the Western Philippine Fault, the
Eastern Philippine Fault; the South of Mindanao Fault, the Central Philippine Fault, and the
most famous one the Marikina Valley Fault or the West Valley Fault.

[SLIDE 12] Active fault line #1 is Marikina Valley Fault System

This is the most hazardous fault in the nation. This is because it runs right through the heart of
Manila's most up-and-coming and busy areas. On top of that, according to PHIVOLCS or the
Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, the Marikina Valley Fault Line is the most
seismically active fault line in the Philippines.

In addition to this, it's possible that it may cause Taal Volcano to erupt as a consequence of this
fault line shifting.

The following are the places that the Marikina Valley Fault passes through:
● Biñan
● Calamba
● Carmona
● Marikina
● Montalban
● Muntinlupa
● Oriental Mindoro
● Pasig
● San Mateo
● San Pedro
● Santa Rosa
● Tagaytay
● Taguig

[SLIDE 13] Active fault line #2. Western Philippine Fault Line
If you didn't know, the water level might cause problems as well. In actuality, the West Valley
fault line does not run on land, but rather through the seas of the Western region of the
Philippines.

Here are the locations where the Western Philippine fault line crosses:
● Luzon Sea
 ● Mindoro Strait
● Panay Gulf
● Sulu Sea

[SLIDE 14] Active fault line #3. Eastern Philippine Fault Lines
In the same way that the Western Philippine Fault was discovered under the ground, so was the
Eastern Philippine Fault. These active faults can be found in the Philippine Sea.

[SLIDE 15] Active fault line #4. Southern Mindanao Fault Lines
The Mindanao fault may be seen running across the Celebes Sea as well as the Moro Gulf.
Fortunately, even if the Southern Mindanao Fault is located in the city, it is unlikely that it would
pose a threat to people there.

Nonetheless, if the fault line shifts, the whole region of Southern Mindanao is in jeopardy. Even
the provinces and cities that are directly close to it are in danger, so everyone should be ready.

[SLIDE 16] Active fault line #5. Central Philippine Fault Zone
This is responsible for the archipelago's fault creep, slow slide occurrences, and big
earthquakes on the other end of the spectrum. Since this fault line is similar to the Marikina
Valley Fault Line, it goes across numerous provinces and cities in various cities from the
northern portion of the archipelago down to the northern part of Davao.

The following is a list of places where the Central Philippine Fault Lines can be found:
● Agusan del Norte
● Agusan del Sur
● Aurora
● Davao del Norte
● Eastern Leyte
● Masbate
● Quezon
● Southern Leyte
● The entire Ilocos Norte

[SLIDE 17] The Philippine archipelago is divided into two seismic zones only. Seismic zone is
used to describe an area where earthquakes tend to focus. First seismic zone is Zone 2 covers
the provinces of Palawan (except Busuanga) , Sulu and Tawi- Tawi while the rest of the country
is under Zone 4.
Indeed, earthquakes are inevitable, we cannot stop natural disasters from happening.

[SLIDE 18] But in response to possible damages brought by the earthquake, National Structural
Code of the Philippines (NSCP, 2015) was drafted as the primary design code in the country,
providing guidance to civil and structural engineers on the design and assessment of buildings
and any other structures since its first edition in 1972.

In relation to the last earthquake that has damaged Porac, Pampanga, it was said that the
results of the task force's investigation regarding Chuzon Supermarket showed that the collapse
of the building was caused byChuzon's numerous building code, workmanship, and supervision
violations.Truly, reference to NSCP will be of great help for the betterment of building structures
in our society.

[SLIDE 19] That’s all for my report. Thank you for listening!