The year 2011 has been the costliest ever in terms of economic losses caused by natural disasters. This has been partly attributed to increasing natural hazard effects caused by global warming and land use changes (in particular deforestation). This chapter provides an overview of risk-relevant issues and an evaluation of the role of carbon(C)-rich ecosystems within the overall context of natural disaster risk. Hazard mitigation ecosystem services which are discussed include the regulation of global, regional and local climates (via C storage, evapo-transpiration, and albedo); the provision of structural stability to soil substrates (reducing risks of shallow landslides, and erosion during flooding); retention and transpiration of water (reducing flooding frequencies and intensities in catchments); and the buffering against solid and fluid mass impacts (landslides, rockfalls, snow avalanches, wind-driven sea waves, storm surges, and tsunamis). The information provided may serve to advance the valuation of ecosystems and support development-relevant decision-making, especially in regions prone to natural disasters. It is highlighted that heedless destruction of ecosystems will come at an increasingly higher cost to current and future generations, with progressively fewer options to maintain or reinstate their services. Hence, sensible foresight stipulates a precautionary approach when dealing with the remaining ‘ecosystem capital’.