The Gobi Desert merges with Gansu in the north. Earthquakes are frequent in eastern Gansu. Chinese are the main racial group. Among the other ethnic groups in the province are Turks, Mongols, and Tibetans. Despite the presence of petroleum and coal deposits, Gansu is poor.
Agriculture is the primary economic activity, and wheat is the main crop.
A program of industrialization has resulted in the emergence of petrochemical industries. Gansu has been a part of China since the Ch'in Dynasty of 221 to 206 BC . The Learning Company, Inc.