Basement structural control in urban fracturing, a case study in Zacatecas, Mexico

In this groundbreaking research we present a novel methodology for systematic fracture measurement in streets, sidewalks and walls. This approach, which incorporates both urban fracture data and geologic fault data, is a significant step forward in our understanding of the relationship between urban fractures and geologic faults. By calculating the paleostress axis, we were able to determine if fractures follow the urban area street array or if geologic faults control fracturing, leading to parallel data. The result reveals reverse faults dispersed in the NW and SE quadrants, while the normal faults have a clear tendency towards the NW and, to a lesser extent, to the NE, with the extension axis directed to the NE-SW. The orientation of the normal faults is parallel to that observed in the fractures in sidewalks, streets, and walls, as well as to the distribution of slopes and to that of the basement deformation. Moreover, the main drainage is also directed towards the WNW-ESE, it is, fault controlled. The parallelism between the urban fracturing and basement deformation suggests a close relationship between them, despite the construction process or materials quality.