7 ms·

It is crazy to see the amount of major cities that are on top of high risk areas.

• dredmorbius 2y ago
  Including Atlantis! ;-) (Mid-Atlantic Rift Zone.) Historically virtually all cities were located either along coastlines or major river transport, as shipping was far and away the cheapest way to move large volumes (and masses) of goods. Even today that pattern remains strong. Tectonic movement is also associated with factors that often produce economically-critical natural resources, from minerals to simply fertilising soil. Australia, which sees little seismic activity, has famously infertile farmland, in which even minuscule additions of mineral fertilisers --- not the Big Three of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, but trace minerals such as iron, copper, selenium, zinc, and manganese. Again, that's where cities tend to form. And coastlines are strongly associated with earthquakes, especially those along subduction zones (Western Americas, Eastern Asia). Not only do those have many earthquakes, but some of the largest and most destructive, along with tsunamis which can further the devastation. Note that coasts nearer to rift zones (eastern Americas, western Europe, both west & east Africa) have fewer earthquakes. Several of those also have major populations.
• RIMR 2y ago
  The boundaries between tectonic plates are usually really rich in minerals, water, and other resources. Perfect conditions to build society.