Final answer:
Subduction zones are dynamic regions where tectonic plates converge and one is forced beneath another, often creating significant geological features. They are not stationary over long periods and the statement is false. Over geological timescales, they can move and evolve, shaping the Earth's landscape.
Step-by-step explanation:
Subduction zones are regions where one tectonic plate is forced or subducts beneath another, typically an oceanic plate beneath a continental plate or an older, denser oceanic plate beneath a younger, less dense one. Subduction zones do not remain stationary over long periods of geological time. Instead, they can move and evolve significantly, often characterized by the creation of ocean trenches, volcanic arcs, and mountain ranges, and they play a crucial role in the recycling of the Earth's crust.
As one plate is subducted, it is forced into regions of high temperature and pressure, eventually melting and recycled into a convection current that balances with material rising along rift zones. Tectonic plates themselves move slowly at a rate of a few centimeters per year.
The statement that subduction zones remain nearly stationary over long periods of time is false. Although on a human timescale these zones might appear static or motionless as suggested by rocks in places like Australia's Kalbarri National Park, over geological timescales, they are dynamic and constantly reshaping the Earth's surface.