Natural Resources of Texas
When one thinks of natural resources, probably the first things that come to mind are fossil fuels. If you bring the state of Texas into the equation, you think of the big oil wells. Texas tea, black gold, swamp juice, whatever you want to call it, oil is a big part of people’s perception of Texan natural resources. But there are a lot more natural resources in Texas than you might think. The natural soils make for good farming and ranching conditions, we’ve got great rock deposits for a variety of industrial uses, and we have a number of different mineral deposits scattered through the state. It’s time we took a look at some of the many natural resources Texas has to offer.
First up, of course, has to be the big one. Out of 254 counties in the state, 232 produce some quantity of oil. How did the petroleum industry get started in Texas? People actually knew about petroleum deposits in Texas long before they could figure out a good use for the stuff. Indians knew of seeps in the ground where petroleum oozed up long before Europeans found their way to the Americas. Those Europeans didn’t know what to do with it either at first. Hernando de Soto’s crew used the stuff to caulk their boats to make them watertight. The first Texas oil well was drilled in Nacogdoches County in 1866, and other small wells followed. The first major oil well in Texas was drilled in Corsicana in 1894, and the BIG one, Spindletop, blew out in grand style on January 10, 1901. But the demand for the oil took a while to catch up to production. After Spindletop, the country started seriously moving towards a petroleum-based economy.
The Term Paper on Oil 2 Crude Petroleum Reservoir
Petroleum, or crude oil, naturally occurring oily, bituminous liquid composed of various organic chemicals. It is found in large quantities below the surface of the earth and is used as a fuel and as a raw material in the chemical industry. Modern industrial societies use it primarily to achieve a degree of mobility on land, at sea, and in the air that was barely imaginable less than a hundred ...
Petroleum has played a major part in shaping the economic, geographic, and social history of the state. As stated earlier, most Texas Counties produce some petroleum, but there are a number of areas where it is especially concentrated. The most important of these is the Permian Basin. In the latter half of the Paleozoic era, sediments rich in organic matter accumulated here when a shallow sea got cut off from the main oceans and evaporated off, leaving lots of dead critters and evaporites. These sediments eventually got buried and compressed, causing the oil and gas to form “pockets in permeable rock, surrounded by impermeable rocks so that they couldn’t escape. There the fluid sits until someone pokes a hole (well) into the area and the contents rush out as the tremendous pressure is released. Other areas of Texas with notable petroleum sources include East Texas’s Woodbine Formation (formed in the Late Cretaceous), much of the Gulf Coast and the Gulf itself, and various smaller pockets in South and South Central Texas.
Coal may be overshadowed by petroleum in Texas, but it’s still here. Pennsylvanian age bituminous coal was mined in North Central Texas in sizable quantities. Bituminous coal can also be found in Cretaceous age rocks in near Eagle Pass and in the Trans-Pecos region. But the major player in Texas coal is Lignite, even though it is a lower grade coal. The Texas lignite comes from vegetative material deposited around 50 million years ago in coastal lagoon type environments, near rivers and their deltas. The material was buried before it could decay, so it sat there and was buried under more and more sediments. The enormous weight of the sediments produced the heat and pressure required the turn the organic matter into coal.
The Term Paper on Sedimentary Rock 2
Sedimentary rock formation begins with igneous, metamorphic, or other sedimentary rocks. When these rocks are exposed at the earth’s surface they begin the long slow but relentless process of becoming sedimentary rock. Weathering All rocks are subject to weathering. Weathering is anything that breaks the rocks into smaller pieces or sediments. This can happen by the forces of like wind, rain, and ...
Helium is a non-petroleum gas that most people are fairly familiar with. But many people are surprised to learn that it is also a natural Texas resource. Helium is often found with natural gas produced by wells in the Panhandle. Helium is not just used to float blimps and balloons. It is classified as an inert gas and won’t burn, making it ideal for activities like shielding in welding and a variety of scientific and medical uses.
Rocks are also important Texas natural resources. Portland Cement is one of the most important building materials in modern construction, and it’s our leading non-fuel mineral product, accounting for about 10% of the total U.S. production. The major ingredient in Portland cement is crushed limestone, and in Texas that mostly comes from the Balcones Escarpment. Larger crushed rock from this area is used as a base layer for roads and buildings, to protect them from the shifting soils. Very pure limestone is procesed into lime, wich is then used in a wide variety of agricultural, industrial, and construction activities. Other rocks crushed for building materials include basalt, used for railroad track beds, and marble, used for fancy terrazzo floors.
Texas is also a major producerof sand, gravel, and our infamous clay.
Gypsum, an evaporite that accumulated when shallow inland seas got cut off from the oceans and evaporated out, is found in large quantities in Central and North Central parts of the state. Calcined gypsum, which has been heated in a kiln, is made into sheetrock and pllaster. Regular gypsum is used in Portland cement and as a fuel additive, amoung other things.
