A NARRATION OF THE IMPACTS (NATURE AND SOCIAL) MOUNT TAMBORA ERUPTION IN 1815

Abstract

Indonesia is a country that located on the ring of fire, so it is rich in volcanoes, tectonic and volcanic earthquakes. In general, about 13 percent of the world’s volcanoes are in Indonesia (129 volcanoes) but in the history of the world volcanic disasters, half of the eruption victims were in Indonesia. Mount Tambora is one of the active volcanoes in Indonesia which has a very high risk of eruptions. The impact of the eruption in 1815 was more or less recorded in history. However, what were the conditions after the Mount Tambora eruption in 1815 and its impacts (nature and social) from records that documented by the colonial governments and local people (or from other sources)? Through literature study, this paper will concisely describe the conditions and impacts after the Mount Tambora eruption on the environment and society (local and global). The eruption of Mount Tambora had caused damage to the ecology due to the massive number of materials that were released then impacted on the climate and the environmental change. The danger of starvation, lack of clean water, diseases, unavailability of food due to land damage and seasonal changes that had resulted in various crop failures, made the Mount Tambora eruption in 1815 as a great disaster in the 19th century of Indonesian history. From the conditions after the eruption of Mount Tambora in 1815, it is hoped that the community will have the knowledge and awareness of the dangers of the Mount Tambora eruption. Thus, the community and the government will have understanding and preparedness in facing the next eruption of Mount Tambora.