Tag: water and mineral resources in tamil nadu

There are 17 major river basins found in Tamil Nadu. These are: Palar, Varaha Nadhi, Ponnaiyar, Vellar, Paravanar, Cauvery, Agniyar, Pambar, Kottakaraiyar, Vaigai, Gundar, Vaippar, Kallar, Thamiraparani, Nambiar, Kodayar, PAP. Most of the rivers which drain Tamil Nadu originate from uplands Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats. Among the 17 basins Cauvery river basin is the wider one.

Sandalwood occurs extensively mostly in the Eastern Ghats ranging from Vellore district in the North east of Tamil Nadu to the Nilgiris in the west in the dry deciduous forests of the region. In Tamilnadu only dead and drying sandal trees are brought to depots for rough cleaning and final cleaning

Iron ore, copper, bauxite, chromite and pyrite are the major metallic minerals of Tamil Nadu.Following are the places they are found:

1. Iron ore: Salem, Namakkal and Thiruvannamalai
2. Copper: Salem, Nilgiris, Coimbatore, Madurai
3. Bauxite: Salem, Nilgiris, Coimbatore, Vellore, Dhamapuri, Madurai and Villupuram
4. Pyrite: Villupuram

• Conventional sources of energy usually include fossil fuels like hydroelectric, thermal power, natural gas and oil.
  
• Non-conventional sources of energy include solar power, wind power, biogas, tidal power, and geothermal power.

Natural forms of minerals are called ores. An ore is a mineral compound that is mined for one of the elements it contains, usually a metal element. 

Based on state geographical records for Tamil Nadu, there are 15 major lakes identified for water management and irrigation purposes.

Lignite is a low grade brown coal, which is soft with high moisture content. The principal lignite reserves are in Neyveli in Tamil Nadu and are used for generation of electricity. These fuels are found at following places:

• Petroleum: Thiruvarur, Narimanam i.e Kaveri Delta Region
  
• Lignite: Neyveli
  

Resources used to generate power for heating, lighting, and industrial processes are classified as energy resources.

Limestone, mica, magnesite, steatite and salt are the non-metallic minerals of Tamil Nadu. Following are the places they are found

1. Limestone: Virudhunagar, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli, Tiruchirappalli, Kanchipuram and Salem.
2. Mica: Tiruchirappalli, Coimbatore and Ramanathapuram.
3. Magnesite: Salem, Namakkal, Coimbatore and Erode.
4. Steatite: Vellore, Cuddalore, Coimbatore, Salem, Tiruchirappalli.
5. Salt: Chennai, Thoothukudi, Cuddalore, Nagapattinam and Thiruvarur.

Mettur is an industrial plant located in Salem district in the state of Tamil Nadu and is constructed across the Kaveri River in Tamil Nadu. It was constructed in 1934 and took 9 years to complete. Maximum height and width of the Dam are 214 and 171 feet respectively.