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The smart city develops on geology: Comparing Rome
and Naples
GSA TODAY | MAY 2015 Donatella de Rita, geologist, Dipartimento di Scienze, Università
Roma Tre, Largo San Leonardo Murialdo 1-00146, Roma, Italy,
donatella.derita@uniroma3.it; and Chrystina Häuber, classical
archaeologist, Department für Geographie, Ludwig-Maximilians-
Universität München, Luisenstraße 37, 80333 München, Germany,
c.haeuber@lmu.de
ABSTRACT
A smart city is one that harmonizes with the geology of its terri-
tory and uses technology to develop sustainably. Until the
Republican Times, Rome was a smart city. The ancient settlement
of Rome benefitted from abundant natural resources. City expan-
sion took place in such a way as to not substantially alter the
morphological and geological features of the area; natural
resources were managed so as to minimize the risks. The geology,
together with prudent management, ensured Rome’s fortune.
Naples, which developed in a similar geological context and at
almost the same time, was exposed to more geological hazards
and had access to fewer natural resources. This was fatal for the
city that, while remaining one of the most important of the
Mediterranean, did not become the capital of an empire as Rome
did. The histories of Rome and Naples highlight the important
role of geology in the development of a city and the making of its
fortune. Over time, fast urban expansion, rapid population
growth, and the overuse of resources led to increased hazards for
both cities. As a result, the cities became unstable and fragile, and the formation of the Alps, part of the European plate containing
several natural processes resulted in disasters.
INTRODUCTION
For a city to become smarter means improving the manage-
ment of its infrastructure and resources to meet the present and
future needs of its citizens and businesses. Smart cities are
generally considered to be those that are able to invest increas-
ingly in technology with the belief that this will ensure sustain-
able prosperity. Nevertheless, many past examples have shown
how the indiscriminate use of technology in response to a
natural hazard–induced risk, instead of generating security, can
lead to higher risk and danger (Egner, 2012). We propose that a
smart city is one that harmonizes with the geology of its terri-
tory and uses technology to reduce economic costs and resource
consumption. In Europe, understanding how cities were born
several thousand years ago may help us plan better for the
future. We compare the diverse historical pasts of Rome and
Naples to highlight the importance of geology in determining
the fortune of one city compared to the other.
GSA Today, v. 25, no. 5, doi: 10.1130/GSATG222A.1
4
BASIC INFORMATION ABOUT ROME AND NAPLES
Rome and Naples are considered to be cities that developed by
the unification of small villages in the eighth century B.C. Both
cities have been shown to have existed for more than 2,500 years,
during which time they experienced alternating periods of
growth and decline. Rome originated from a small village in the
ninth century B.C. to become, over centuries, the center of the
civilization of the Mediterranean region (Soprintendenza
Archeologica di Roma, 2000). The origin of Naples is connected
to early Greek settlements established in the Bay of Naples
around the second millennium B.C. The establishment of a
larger mainland colony (Parthenope) occurred around the ninth
to eighth century B.C. and was then re-founded as Naples
(Neapolis) in the sixth century B.C. (Lombardo and Frisone,
2006; Giampaola and Longobardo, 2000).
Rome and Naples are located along the Tyrrhenian coast of
central-southern Italy in a very young orogenic area (Fig. 1).
Both cities lie on recent volcanic deposits (0.8 Ma to present)
and on fluvial or coastal sediments, and are not far from the
Apennine mountain chain (30–60 km). The geological evolution
of the Tyrrhenian margin of Italy generated the natural
resources and hazards that would affect the development of
these two cities. The geological history of central Italy is driven
by the collision between the African and European plates. After
the Corsica-Sardinia micro-plate broke away and started to
migrate eastward, progressively colliding with the western
margin of Adria (Apulia) and resulting in the formation of the
Apennines (22–19 Ma; Vai and Martini, 2001). At ca. 10 Ma,
rollback of the west-dipping subducting slab led to crustal thin-
ning west of the Apennines, which created the Tyrrhenian Sea
(Faccenna et al., 2001). Extensional faulting lowered the western
margin of the Apennines and facilitated the development of
volcanic activity in Latium (including the Sabatini and the
Alban Hills volcanoes) and the Campania (Phlegrean Fields,
Vesuvius, Ischia) (Peccerillo, 2005).
COMPARING THE RESOURCES AND RISKS OF ROME
AND NAPLES
From a historical-analytical perspective, Rome had more favor-
able geology and fewer risks than Naples. Rome developed on
small hilltops that were favorable for defense and communication,
and its position on the Tiber alluvial plain at the point where the
Tiberina islet was located provided easy communication between
the river banks (Häuber, 2013). The hills were also healthy places