URBAN, PLANNING AND DESIGN IN A SEISMIC-PRONE REGION (THE CASE OF RASHT IN NORTHERN IRAN)

To effectively reduce seismic risk and the vulnerability of the enviro nment to future earthquakes in the world's high risk zones, there is a n urgent need for a comprehensive and cohesive system of planning and design to integrate, facilitate, complement, and strengthen decisions at various levels and different aspects, eventually leading to a safer environment. The catastrophic Manjil Earthquake of June 1990 in North ern Iran, in spite of tremendous human and property losses provided a unique opportunity to study and analyze, among other areas, the role u rban planning and design can play in effectively mitigating seismic ri sk in the urban areas of the seismic-prone regions of the world. In th is article, urban planning and design activities to reduce seismic ris k will be discussed, and reference will be made to the case of the Cit y of Rasht in Northern Iran.