Form 1 Social Studies

Our environment

The Natural Resources of Trinidad and Tobago

Natural resources – those resources which occur naturally, they include:

 Air
 Water
 Soil
 Plants
 Animals
 Raw minerals
 Space and land
 Wind, Geothermal, tidal and solar energy.

Our country has been blessed with natural resources, these have emerged from a build-up of many
years of plant and animal matter underground that became buried. In addition, the rock formations
of a place as well as the way rivers move over the surface of the land, has helped to create mineral
deposits.

Minerals are substances found in the Earth’s crust, they usually occur in small amounts but
sometimes they appear in large enough quantities and concentrations that it can be extracted by
quarrying (cutting into the rock or ground to obtain stone and other materials).

Most resources are physical resources – they can be seen physically and touched.

The main physical resources in our country are:

 Petroleum
 Natural gas
 Asphalt
 Gypsum
 Limestone
 Sand and gravel
 Rivers and forests.

Human resources are the people of a country.

Renewable resources are those that are naturally capable of being replaced by natural
ecological cycles. Examples include forests, water, solar energy, wind energy, etc.
Non renewable resource- unable to be replaced or replenished once used. Examples include
petroleum, natural gas, etc.

Resources of Trinidad and Tobago

Commercial petroleum drilling began in the early 20th century on Trinidad, and oil production
subsequently expanded to offshore exploration as well. Large natural gas reserves off the coasts of
Trinidad and Tobago are also exploited. Although oil production has declined from its peak in the
late 1970s, both oil and natural gas contribute substantially to the country’s economy. Liquefied
natural gas is a major export commodity. In addition to the large quantity of natural asphalt in Pitch
Lake, Trinidad also has deposits of coal, gypsum, limestone, sand and gravel, iron ore, argillite, and
fluorspar.

Source: https://www.britannica.com/place/Trinidad-and-Tobago/Resources

Geologically, and lram the pelSpective 01 the iodustrial mineralogiSI, Trinidad is COrJl)OSOO 01 Ii)
tile Northem Rangeor low grade phyllites aod ｱｵ｡ｲｴｬｾ･ｳ ｷｾｨ subordinate limestones, (ii) a ben
running east·west along the SO\Jlhern margin ot the Northern Range, that contains silica rich sands
and gravel (iii) the Nonhern Basin ｷｾｨ clays, silts and sands, tringed along its SOUlhern boundary by
thesilica rich Sum Sum and Durham Sands (Iv) the Central Range, containing the yellow limestones
and (v) the Soulhern Basin, containingclays, sands, ｰｯｲ｣･ｬ｡ｮｾ and sandstone deposits_

H.w. – locate a map of Trinidad comprising the natural resources and its location in our country.
Map showing the location of Oil and natural gas in Trinidad
 Some of the uses of crude oil are:

1. A product of crude oil i.e. petroleum which is used to make clothes like rayon,
nylon, polyester, etc.
2. Petroleum is also used in manufacturing of furniture like carpet or linoleum
flooring.
3. It is used in refrigerator, the moulded interior panels, door liners, etc in our
households.
4. Crude oil is used in the manufacturing of car's hoses, wiring, and many fluids.
Map showing the location of limestone in Trinidad
 Map of Trinidad showing location of forests, agricultural land, etc.

Uses of Abovementioned land cover types.

Forests –
 Timber,
 recreation (hiking), nature parks/sites.
 indigenous groups gathered food and were dependent on forests for all their basic needs
such as food, clothing, and shelter.
 Forests prevent soil erosion and floods. Roots of trees bind the soil particles together and
prevent the soil from being washed or blown away.
 Trees help to regulate the climate of a place.
 Some trees, such as coconuts and palms, help to break strong winds in coastal areas. They
act as shields or windbreakers against incoming storms or strong tidal waves.
 We get timber from more than a thousand species of trees such as sal, mahogany, teak, and
rosewood.
 Several timber- based industries such as those of plywood, sawmills, paper and pulp, and
cardboards are all dependent on these trees.
 Forests are a source of resins (used to make varnish and paint), latex (used to make rubber),
bamboo.

Agricultural land – farming.

Residential land – building of houses.

Industrial – this is land on which factories and industrial estates are built.

Gypsum
GYPSUM DEPOSIT Gypsum is a fairly common mineral in Trinidad but is chiefly found as thin slivers
ｾｨｩｮ the sedimentary de ｰｯｳｾ of tna Southern Basinand Central Range. II is an important
consideration in evalualing clay deposils lor ceramicproduct maoulacture, because gypsum creates
problemsduringliring, InAgostinl Street, Champs Fleurs, attlleloolhillsol the Northern Range, there is
a concen· trated ､･ｰｯｳｾ or gypsum which was exploiled to supply the Carib Glassworl

According to the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries (Tand T), it I mainly located at- Agostini
Street and Champs Fleurs.

Uses of Gypsum

 It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of
 plaster,
 blackboard/sidewalk chalk,
 drywall.
 A massive fine-grained white or lightly tinted variety of gypsum, called alabaster, has been
used for sculpture by many cultures

Clay
Clay –In Trinidad, clay is the most abundant and extensively utilized non-petroleum raw
material. Localities include Longdenville, Wallerfield (near Arima), Valencia-Quare River
area, Mayo, Carlsen Field, Guatapajaro Road 4 miles south of Cumuto, Arima-Blanchisseuse
Road, San Rafael, Central Trinidad, Plaisance Industrial Estate – Pointe-a-Pierre, Winfield
Scotts Quarry, Tobago at Rocky Bay, Old Government Stock Farm and Bishops High School.

Use of Clay

• Clay is extracted from the central and south eastern areas of Trinidad and primarily
used in the manufacture of blocks, tiles and pottery (including deeyas).

Other

 Blue coloured limestone and sharp sand and gravel of various grades are quarried in
the Northern Range for use in the construction industry.
 Plastering sand, or red sand, is quarried in central Trinidad and used as a low grade
fill material and as a construction finishing material.
 Yellow- coloured limestone is quarried in the south central portion of Trinidad.
The MAIN rivers in Trinidad are:

The Caroni River, The Ortiore River, The Nariva

Please locate them on the map below.

Map of Trinidad including rivers

Uses of Rivers

Irrigation in agriculture, fishing, for drinking water, for transportation and for recreation/ leisure
activities like swimming and boating, religious ceremonies (by Hindus and Spiritual Baptsist).
 The Pitch Lake in La Brea, Trinidad.

See the following for images of the pitchlake: https://youtu.be/6TLoEUJgpLA

See the following for information about the pitch lake: https://youtu.be/Y5PjIO3VrJw

The pitch Lake is a world Heritage Site as declared by UNESCO. See the following:
https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5645/#:~:text=People%20occasionally%20swim%20in
%20the,the%20cable%20and%20electrical%20industries.

Uses of Pitch/Asphalt

 The main use (70%) of asphalt is in road construction, where it is used as the glue or binder
mixed with aggregate particles to create asphalt concrete.
 Its other main uses are for bituminous waterproofing products, including production of
roofing felt and for sealing flat roofs.
 Canal and reservoir linings.
 Dam facings, and other harbour and sea works;
 Asphalt so used may be a thin, sprayed membrane, covered with earth for protection against
weathering and mechanical damage, or thicker surfaces, often including riprap (crushed
rock).
 Asphalt is also used for coatings,
 Soundproofing, waterproofing, and other building-construction elements and in a number of
industrial products, such as batteries.
 Floor tiling.