Belarus: minerals. Mineral deposits of Belarus
When you look at the mapBelarus, or as the official country - the Republic of Belarus, you think: what mineral deposits can be on the territory of this country in the center of Europe?
General characteristics of stocks
In view of the lack of mountains, deposits of ore inindustrial scale are excluded from the beginning. But taking into account the flat terrain and the developed water network, it is possible to assume the presence of mineral raw materials on the territory of the Republic of Belarus. Minerals of this type do form the main part of underground resources. More than thirty kinds of mineral raw materials are known on the territory of the state and more than four thousand deposits have been explored. On a special position in the country are potassium salts. Their estimated industrial reserves allow it to be in the leading group of European states. Deposits of rock salt on the territory of the country are considered almost inexhaustible. In addition, the minerals of the Republic of Belarus are the building materials of all kinds.
And also peat - marshy areas of the country are rich in deposits of this material.
Non-metallic minerals of Belarus
Potassium salts are practicallythe primary raw material of the Republic of Belarus. Minerals of this type are developed mainly at the Starobinsky and Petrykovskoye deposits. Their strategic reserves are estimated at ten billion tons.
For this indicator, the country is the third inworld. Three deposits of rock salt reserves are also explored, but mining is carried out only at Starobinsky and Mozyr. Dolomite deposits are being developed. In the Mogilev region there are deposits of phosphorites with a total capacity of sixty million cubic meters, but the prospects for their extraction are vague. The minerals of the Republic of Belarus for the construction industry are mined throughout the country. Reserves of over five hundred clay deposits are estimated at 1.5 billion tons. Deposits of gravel and pebbles, according to experts, are the same number. More sand in Belarus - silicate and construction. The country is rich in raw materials for the production of cement and lime, is known for deposits of building stone and refractory clay.
Fuel resources of the country
Reserves of gas and oil are also available in the RepublicBelarus. Mineral resources containing hydrocarbons are located in the southern part of the country. Over seventy oil fields have been explored, and half of them are actively used. The extraction is conducted only for local consumption. Its volume does not exceed two million tons. But this does not cover even fifteen percent of the country's needs.
And the extraction of natural gas reaches a volume ofTwo hundred million cubic meters per year, which is less than one percent of the state's needs. Shale gas reserves amount to more than ten billion cubic meters, but the production cost is very high, and therefore there are no prospects for today. There are no reserves of coal in the country, and two brown coal deposits have been discovered, which have not been developed. Peatlands occupy more than twelve percent of the entire country. Peat reserves in the country are more than thirty million cubic meters. Peat mineral deposits of Belarus are located throughout the country. A few thousand are known, but only a small number are developed. This type of raw material exhausts its purpose. If in 1975 170 sources of peat were developed, by the present time there are about forty of them.
Other resources
As already mentioned above, due to the lack of mountains inThere are practically no mineral resources of the ore type. Open only two iron ore deposits. Their total reserves, according to experts, are just over three hundred tons. But for the production of mineral paint, the deposits of marsh iron ores are used, which are scattered throughout the country at more than three hundred. But the country tries its best to apply its own, even a few, sources. High-quality use of mineral resources of Belarus can be seen even in relation to mineral water.
