Japan Meltdown: Another Man-Made Disaster

By Stefan

No, of course earthquakes and tsunamis are natural phenomena. But it is known where – if not when – they are going to strike. So in principle society could take action to minimize the human impact.

It was known that the seabed off the northeastern coast of Honshu (the main island of the Japanese archipelago) is prone to earthquakes. It was known that a sufficiently powerful offshore earthquake would generate a tsunami. So why not leave the endangered coastal area uninhabited?

Crammed into the danger zone

This earthquake and most of its aftershocks were offshore. However, the next major earthquake may well occur, as long predicted, on land. It is a matter of when, not whether.

The area at greatest risk is the southern coastal strip of Honshu that stretches west from Tokyo – a city already devastated by earthquakes in 1891 and 1923. And yet the eastern half of this strip, up to Osaka, covering a mere 6% of Japan’s land area, is the country’s industrial powerhouse, with 45% of its population of 127.5 million. Tokyo and its outlying cities alone contain 30% of the country’s population. Would a rational society cram so many people and resources into the zone of maximum danger? (Read on)

Source: World Socialist Party (US)