The fact that this earthquake occurred in the ocean may be one reason it has caused less damage than the earthquake in Haiti, which occurred on land. Offshore earthquakes generate less ground shaking than onshore earthquakes because the intensity of ground shaking diminishes with distance.
Although the 2010 earthquake in Haiti registered lower on the Richter Scale than the one in Chile a month later, the Haiti quake was far more destructive. Haiti is a poorer country and has few resources to prepare for or cope with a massive earthquake. Unlike Chile, which has strict building codes, Haiti has poor construction, which is why most of the buildings in the capital city collapsed. Chile, having learned from experience from a devastating quake in 1960, not only has strict building codes, but also has safety training and school drills for dealing with an earthquake. The quake in Haiti also struck a major metropolitan area, while the Chile quake occurred about 70 miles from a large city. The death toll in Haiti was over 250,000, compared to less than 1,000 in Chile.
The Sun is renewable energy because it's something that will never run out. The Sun will always be there no matter how many times it is used for solar power.
