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Farms and villages are built on the slopes of active volcanoes, although they can erupt at any point of time. This is because the soil produced is very fertile. In India the ancient basalt lava flows from volcanic eruptions in the past have eroded into rich black soil of the Deccan Plateau, where cotton is now grown. Farmers in Indonesia grow rice in volcanic soil and vineyards and orange and lemon groves are found on the slopes of Mount Etna. Geothermal energy, or energy from the earth is another vital resource of volcanic areas. It would take 20000 times the world's coal supply to produce the heat that exists in the upper 7 miles of the earth's crust. Many geothermal power plants have been built in Iceland, New Zealand and Japan where groundwater and magma provide hot water and steam. Geothermal energy serves as a good alternative to fossil fuels and are relatively clean and almost endless energy resource for the future. Back (Affecting us?) | Next (Predict and control) |