What characterizes the resource potential of Brazil. Brazil natural resources
Among all the countries of Latin America, Brazil is the most endowed with a variety of natural resources. According to the reference book "Socio-economic geography of the foreign world", the country occupies the 1st place in the region in terms of reserves of iron, manganese ore, bauxites, copper, chromites, beryllium, niobium, zirconium, rock crystal, 2nd place in the region - in terms of reserves cobalt, tungsten, tin, asbestos, graphite. Large reserves of gold, uranium, nickel.
At the same time, there is a shortage of fuel resources, and geological exploration is constantly being carried out, especially in the coastal zone of the continental shelf, where oil and natural gas reserves have been discovered. The extraction of shale is promising, in terms of the reserves of which the country ranks second among foreign countries. Coal deposits are small and concentrated mainly in the south. According to British Petroleum in 2007. explored reserves of natural gas in Brazil amounted to 350 billion cubic meters. m., coal - 10.113 billion tons and oil - 11.7 billion barrels. Brazil's natural gas reserves are very small. So, in terms of the reserves of this energy carrier, Brazil occupies only the third place even within South America. It is the leader in the region in terms of coal reserves. In terms of oil reserves in Latin America, today the republic is inferior to Mexico and, of course, Venezuela. Nevertheless, even with their current volumes, Brazil ranks 17th in the world. Compared to 1980, when oil production was only 8.9 million tons, in 2001 it reached 56.3 million tons. fifty%. Oil and oil products account for about 25% of the value of imports. Nigeria supplies 28% of imported oil, Saudi Arabia - 26%. Moreover, in November 2007, on the shelf of the Atlantic coast, south of Rio de Janeiro, another such field was found, the largest of all previously explored. According to experts, the capacity of the new field is about 6 billion barrels. After the development and start of operation of the field, Brazil will be able to fully provide itself with energy resources.
Table 1.1 - Combustible minerals
The reserves of iron ore in Brazil are estimated at 26.13 billion tons, - 7.1% of all world reserves (in terms of iron ore reserves, Brazil ranks fifth in the world after Ukraine, Russia, China and Australia), and manganese ore at 345 million tons, - 9% of all world reserves of manganese ore. A distinctive feature of the country's iron ore is the high content of iron in hematite ores - 60-68%. Their rich reserves are concentrated in the states of Minas Gerais, Para, Mato Grosso. The world's largest iron ore deposit - Carajas (18 billion tons) is located in the state of Para. The second largest iron ore basin is located in the southeast of the country in the state of Minas Gerais, which means “Main mines” in translation. It was here that the main ore mining was carried out until recently. A large iron ore region is also located in the west of the country near the borders with Bolivia and Paraguay. The main importers are Japan, Germany, China, Republic of Korea.
Manganese ore in the country is mined 324 thousand tons per year. Most of the manganese ores are concentrated in the deposits of Carajas (Para state) and Serra do Navio (Amapa state). Nickel ore deposits are located in the states of Para, Goias and Minas Gerais. Brazil has 6.7% of the world's nickel ore reserves, which is 9.5 billion tons, which makes it possible to produce 82.5 thousand tons of nickel per year. Brazil is not rich in chromites: they are estimated to be 5 million tons, which is 0.3% of the world's reserves of this mineral, but this is the only country in Latin America that has chromites. Bauxites occur mainly in the state of Para (deposits of Trombetas, Paragominas, Carajas), in the state of Minas Gerais near the cities of Ouro Preto, Nova Lima, Belo Horizonte, in the east of the country, as well as deposits of aluminum ore can be found in the states of Maranhao , Bahia, Sao Paulo and Amapa. The world reserves of bauxite are estimated at 31 million tons, of which 7.7% are located in Brazil. Large bauxite deposits are found in the north of the country, in the Amazon. They are part of a vast bauxite-bearing zone stretching across Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana and Brazil. The content of alumina in bauxites is 50-60%, they occur at shallow depths, which allows them to be mined by open-cast mining. Brazil produces 22 million tons of aluminum ore per year, from which 1.6 million tons of aluminum are smelted per year. The main consumers of Brazilian bauxite are Canada, the USA and Ukraine. More than 100 deposits of polymetallic ores are known. Most of them are located in the river valley. Ribeira south of Sao Paulo.
Brazil has significant reserves of phosphates, tungsten (which is used in the smelting of durable steels), cassiterite (tin ore), lead, graphite, zirconium, and the rare radioactive mineral thorium. The mineral resources of Brazil also include semi-precious and precious stones: diamonds, aquamarines, topazes, amethysts, tourmalines and emeralds. The Republic is also provided precious metals: gold reserves in the country in 2006 amounted to 1,720 tons (1.9% of all world reserves of this metal), and silver - 11,689 tons (2.1%). Brazilian gold and silver deposits are concentrated in the states of Minas Gerais, Para, Mato Grosso, Bahia and Santa Catarina.
Table 1.2 - Ore minerals
MOSCOW STATE INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS (UNIVERSITY)
Department of World Economy
Report
"Social and environmental aspects economic development peace"
on the topic:
"Social and environmental aspects of the economic development of Brazil"
Performed
3rd year student of group 10
Shaimieva K.R.
Scientific adviser:
Ph.D. Professor Zakharov A.N.
Moscow-2006
general characteristics economic development of Brazil …………p. 4
Chapter 2
Social and Environmental Aspects of Brazil's Economic Development
2.1 Social aspects …………………………………………………….page 6
2.2 Environmental aspects …………………………………………………p.8
Conclusion
Introduction
Brazil is a dynamic developing country Latin America. Belongs to the type of key developing countries and to the NIS. It has significant natural resources and is ahead of other countries in the region in terms of economic, especially industrial growth. Brazil accounts for approximately 1.1% of world exports. The liberalization carried out externally economic activity in the post-war period stimulated the growth of imports rather than the increase in exports. Today in Brazil, exports outstrip imports.
It is worth noting that this country has all the prerequisites for high economic growth, but at the same time in Brazil there are a number of problems associated with the social and environmental aspects of its development. Data negative aspects economic development are extremely important to consider. This paper analyzes the economic potential of Brazil, as well as aspects of the social and environmental spheres of its life. Problems such as uneven distribution of income, poverty among the population, as well as environmental problems such as deforestation, environmental pollution and lack of water resources are considered.
The main purpose of the work is to identify the causes of such problems, as well as to analyze the future prospects of this country.
Chapter 1
Brazil's economic potential
1.1 General characteristics of the economic development of Brazil
Brazil is the largest country in Latin America. In terms of territory, it is second only to the Russian Federation, the USA, China, Canada, it has large reserves of more than 30 types of mineral raw materials (bauxite, tin, iron ore, copper - 14-22% of world reserves). It borders almost all South American countries except Ecuador and Chile. The capital is Brazil (about 2 million people). The population of Brazil itself exceeds 180 million people, accounting for 2.9% of the world's population. Brazil is a federal republic formed by a union of 28 autonomous states and a federal district. The country produces 1.5% of the GMP (2.6% PPP). Brazil accounts for about 45% of South America's economic potential. According to many socio-economic indicators, Brazil belongs to the developing countries. With great economic potential and a fairly high level of economic development, it is among the lower middle income countries. In terms of GNI per capita, the country is 2 times inferior to the world average, 10.4 times developed countries, but 2.1 times higher than the level of all developing countries, being slightly lower than the level of all Latin American. When calculating these PPP indicators, the level of Brazil approaches the world average. It has been a "country of the future" for a long time. Brazil belongs to the NIS.
The economic growth of this country was extremely uneven, where GDP increased slowly and economic growth declined in the 2000s. In general, a positive dynamics of production per capita is ensured. In terms of GDP growth in the current decade, Brazil is slightly higher than the level of Latin American countries, yielding to the world average indicators of the dynamics of countries with per capita incomes below the average.
Brazil GDP growth rate,%
1980-1990 1990-2000 2000-2004
Brazil 2.7 2.9 2.0
World 3.3 2.7 2.5
According to Brazil's leading economists, the country's economic development in 2006 will be more successful than in the previous year. Such forecasts are based, among other things, on the fact that Brazil's GDP growth rate for the period January-March 2006 amounted to 3.4% (according to the results of the quarter of 2005 - 1.4%).
An important economic indicator reflecting the business activity of Brazil may be the new BRIC-50 index, recently introduced by the company " Dow Jones Indexis. This index is based on the economic activity of 15 leading companies in Brazil. At the same time, this index will also apply to Russia, India and China, which form the BRIC.
Foreign trade is characterized by positive dynamics. In the first quarter of 2006, Brazil's foreign trade reached $83.5 billion, including exports of $49.5 billion and imports of $34.0 billion. Brazil's largest trading partners are the USA (22.1% of Brazilian exports), Argentina (11%) and the Netherlands (5.7%). The Russian-Brazilian trade turnover amounted to about 3 billion dollars, according to the results for 2005.
The social dimension of Brazil's economic development
The normal evolution of society requires an organic unity between social and economic development. Sustainable, healthy economic growth is impossible without social development, and it is impossible without economic growth. But on the path of harmonious socio-economic development, many difficulties and problems arise.
A serious brake on the economic development of Brazil are such social problems, how poverty and income inequality.
Perhaps the most striking expression social stratification the difference (differentiation) of incomes of various groups of the population acts. Statistically, this shows up when comparing the incomes of quantitatively equal groups of the population, for example, deciles (i.e. groups, each of which makes up 10% of the population) and with different levels of income or consumption. The groups with the highest and lowest incomes are compared.
Such data are published regularly in United Nations publications, and their comparison reveals a range of inequalities. Another statistic is the Gini coefficient, which also shows the distribution of income across population groups. In the limit of zero value, the coefficient means the absolute property equality of all groups, and the unit expresses absolute inequality. In Brazil, the bottom 10% share no more than 0.5% of national income, while the top 10% own 46.7%. The Gini coefficient is 0.58.
The problem of poverty, is one of the most important. Poverty is understood as the inability to provide the simplest and most affordable living conditions for the majority of people in a given country.
There are national and international levels of poverty. The national poverty line is the proportion of the population living below the national poverty line. The International Poverty Level is the income required to consume less than $2 a day. Since the mid 90s. The 20th century also determines the international level of extreme poverty (or, in other words, super-poverty) - income that ensures consumption of less than $ 1 per day. This is essentially the maximum acceptable level of poverty in terms of human survival. About 8% of the Brazilian population lives on less than $1 a day.
It is worth noting that Brazil has a high rate of urbanization. The number of citizens has already exceeded 80% of the population. The rapid growth of the urban population due to people from countryside exacerbated the problem of employment and other social problems. Largest cities Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo stand out with the highest crime rate in the world, and poverty only fuels this phenomenon.
Speaking of the Brazilian labor force, it is worth saying that it is defined by a weak degree of organization, a high proportion of unskilled workers, a growing supply and a high unemployment rate of 12% in the early 2000s. Only 1/3 of the labor force is subject to collective labor relations. Approximately 16% of workers are unionized. Employment is characterized by high turnover of workers, which reduces productivity.
It is worth mentioning agriculture, because it has a dual nature and impact on the social sphere. It brings a positive effect, but due to feudal remnants, up to 40% of those employed in agriculture do not receive cash payment. Brazil still has the highest concentration of land.
Environmental aspect of economic development
Brazil is a country with a significant amount of resources, has large reserves of more than 30 types of minerals (bauxite, tin, iron ore, copper - 14-22% of world reserves) and also ranks second after Russia in terms of reserves forest resources– 478 million hectares. Water resources are represented by a huge number of rivers, the main of which is the Amazon (the greatest river in the world). Almost a third of this big country occupies the Amazon River basin, which includes the Amazon itself and more than two hundred of its tributaries. This gigantic system contains a fifth of all the river waters of the world. In terms of the absolute value of water resources, Brazil ranks first in the world; in terms of water consumption in 2004, this figure was 0.5% of the total volume of water resources. But despite the availability of various resources, their inappropriate use leads to a noticeable reduction, and hence an imbalance in the country's ecology. Consider some of the problems associated with the ecology of Brazil: deforestation, urban pollution, lack of fresh water.
Deforestation
Brazil in 2004 is listed in the new edition of the Guinness Book of Records as the world leader in the destruction of forests, mainly in the Amazon. The region's rainforests are under threat from illegal logging and agricultural endeavors. From July 2004 to August 2005 alone, almost 19,000 square meters of forests were cut down. And in 2003, 600 thousand hectares of forest were cut down. Annually in Brazil, 22.3 thousand square kilometers are cut down. forest plantations. The Amazon has already lost 17% of its territory, which was originally 4.9 million square kilometers. Over the past half century, 615 thousand square kilometers have been destroyed. Amazonian rainforests. Reasons for deforestation are economic basis: construction of a transcontinental highway along the entire Amazon, planting lands with soybeans. Deforestation brings with it other problems, such as air pollution.
Environmental pollution in cities
Most of the environmental pollution of cities comes from growing urbanization. As mentioned above, Brazil is a country with a high rate of urbanization, if in the 90s the number of city dwellers was 66%, then in 2005 it was already 80%. Or an example of the over-urbanized metropolis of Sao Paulo, which accommodates, or rather absorbs, 22 million people and every day another thousand cars appear there, its population density is up to 12 thousand people per square meter. Hence the high level of emissions into the environment.
Lack of fresh water
The global trend towards a decrease in water reserves was the result of its uncontrolled use. For Brazil, the fact that the country has 8% of the world's drinking water may or may not have its advantages. It depends on the country itself. The waters of the country have not recently existed in parallel in several dimensions as a material for energy production, irrigation, environmental sanitation, navigation, etc. There is a real shortage of water resources in some parts of the country. On this occasion, the government of the country even expresses a desire to turn the San Francisco River. According to a government-approved project to turn one of Brazil's largest rivers, it is planned to change its course and direct two artificial branches to the traditionally arid regions of the northeastern territories. This will allow redirecting up to 26 thousand liters of water per second to supply 12 million inhabitants of a state like Pernambuco.
Conclusion
On the present stage Economic Development Brazil is a dynamically developing country with a high potential of economic and natural resources. Despite this, the country has a number of problems that most countries of the world face, such as inequality in income distribution and environmental pollution. Despite this, Brazil continues to stand in the way perspective development, while trying to reduce the level of damage from such problems: creating various government programs, organizations, as well as introducing various sanctions for violating the norms of the organization of environmental protection. In 2004, Brazilian President Ignacio Lulo approved a program to implement programs to combat hunger and improve the agricultural system within 3 years. Many economists talk about the fact that Brazil in the future will become post-industrial country and will overtake many countries in its development, and also the "Big Seven". But is it really so? It is unlikely, because the basis of economic growth is based on the orientation of the use of natural resources and cheap labor, this is characteristic of all the BRIC countries. But one of the most important factors determining post-industrial development is a highly developed social sphere. It can mean decent education, healthcare, etc. It is important to invest and invest in human capital, and not to link growth rates only with natural linkage.
Nevertheless, Brazil is a vivid example of the "country of the future", and life will show whether it will become one.
List of used literature
Textbooks and study guides
V.K. Lomakin " World economy» 3rd edition, 2007
E.L. Dodalko "World Economy", 2001
G.B. Polyak, A.N. Markov "History of the world economy", 2003
Articles
Article "BRIC countries - potential competitors of the" Big Seven "
Internet resources
http://www.latinbusinesschronicle.com
http://brasil.org.ru
http://polpred.ru
1. Using the physical and economic maps of Latin America, explain the location of deposits: a) oil and gas; b) iron ores and non-ferrous metal ores.
a) Caribbean countries, Venezuela, Ecuador b) Brazil, Chile, Peru, Bolivia
2. Caribbean countries do not include: a) Grenada; b) Mexico; c) Argentina; d) Honduras.
3. The Atlantic region does not include:
a) Paraguay; b) Brazil; c) Bolivia; d) Haiti.
4. The Andean region does not include:
a) Chile; b) Cuba; c) Paraguay; d) Peru.
5. The average population density of Latin America is:
a) 5 people/km2; b) 20 people/km2; c) 100 people/km2; d) 150 people/km2.
6. The Andean countries of Latin America are dominated by:
a) descendants of European settlers; b) blacks and mulattoes; c) Hispanic Creoles; d) Indians and mestizos.
8. Draw on the contour map of Latin America its major regions; indicate the exporting countries:
a) industrial products; b) agricultural products.
a) Brazil, Mexico, Venezuela, Argentina, Chile b) Brazil, Colombia, Paraguay, Uruguay, Ecuador
9. You know that there is a relationship between the level of development of a country and the state of its transport system. Present a model of the transport system of one of the countries of Latin America (optional). Propose a project "Transport of the future for one of the countries of Latin America." What changes will you introduce into the existing model of the transport system? How do you think it will affect the development of the country?
Transport of the future for Colombia
Vast distances, swamps, forests, mountains and a small population of Colombia impede the development of land transport, contributing to the increasing use of air travel. In addition, the navigation service Waze analyzed the situation on the roads of the world. It turned out that Colombia has the most traffic jams on the roadway. The Colombian city of Villavicencio ranked first in the world in terms of such negative indicators.
In this regard, in the future, I would suggest that Colombia develop a range of flying buses and cars. It would seem, what was the matter - aviation technologies are developing at a breakneck pace, what prevents cars from being lifted into the air? In fact, the first flying cars have already appeared, with a successful prototype introduced by Terrafugia in 2009. But the project is still expensive and unprofitable. And yet, the inventors do not give up hope to make the project available to the general public. Despite the huge costs associated with such modernization, in the future this step may have a positive impact on the development of Colombia: it will provide greater mobility for its citizens (multi-level traffic in the city would solve the problem of traffic jams for a long time), attract tourist flows and make it a pioneer in the field of innovation transport development.
Brazil has many of its own resources, such as forest or mineral resources, which allows this country to significantly reduce the cost of importing goods.
And according to some indicators, the country is a leader not only in its region, but also a generally recognized world leader.
Water resources
Due to its topography and high rainfall, Brazil boasts vast water resources, mostly in the form of rivers. There are practically no lakes in the country. The largest river in the world flows through the country (in terms of basin area). Brazil's hydropower resources are estimated at 120 million kilowatts, and less than half of that is in use. But the government of the country is currently actively dealing with this issue.
Land resources
Brazil has a unique location, as the country is located in several climatic zones at once. This makes it possible to grow cocoa, sugar cane and coffee here, which is possible only in an extremely limited number of world countries. Despite the large land resources, only 20% of the entire territory of the country is used for agricultural purposes.
forest resources
Brazil is one of the leaders in terms of the amount of forest resources, second only to Russia. Equatorial rainforests make up a significant part of the country's area (5 million km2) and are located in the Amazon. A quarter of all plant species known to science (about 50 thousand) are located on the territory of the country. With the production of fuel ethanol (from sugar cane), Brazil covers one fifth of its fuel needs for cars.
Mineral resources
The country ranks first in the region in terms of production and reserves of mineral resources. Thus, the country ranks third in the world in terms of manganese ore reserves. In addition, iron ore (2nd place in the world), aluminum, zinc, tungsten, nickel, and titanium ores are mined here. Brazil has large deposits of important strategic raw materials like uranium. In addition to uranium, more is mined: tantalum, thorium, zirconium, beryllium, niobium.
On the territory of the country, in one of the southern states, there is one of the largest gold deposits. The reserves of precious metal located in this place are among the five largest in the world. In addition to gold, many precious and semi-precious stones are mined in Brazil: emeralds, sapphires, aquamarine, amethyst, rock crystal and diamonds.
Alternative energy sources
Every year the use of alternative energy in Brazil is gaining more and more popularity. The country has everything necessary for this. Wind farms and solar power plants are being built. Brazil has clearly succeeded in solar energy (solar energy) and is developing these areas, supplying more and more parts of its territory with solar and wind energy.
Mineral, water, recreational resources of Brazil
Together with Russian Federation, USA, Canada, China and Australia Brazil is among the group of countries with the largest mineral reserves. It is known that Brazil has the richest, although not yet well explored, mineral deposits. The reserves of iron ore in Brazil are estimated at 48 billion tons, of which 18 billion lie in the Carajas mountain range, in the east of the Amazon in the state of Para. The Carajas field has been in operation since 1985. The reserves of iron ore found in Brazil to date are enough to satisfy the demands of the entire world community for this type of natural resource in the next 100 years (taking into account modern level and planned growth rates). In addition to iron ore, Brazil has found reserves of manganese ores (208 billion tons), 2 billion tons of bauxite, 53 million tons of nickel, the amount of which may increase to 400 million tons. Of great importance is also the recently confirmed fact of the presence of a large deposit of uranium ore - 265 thousand tons, with a high content of uranium (1.3%) in the states of Minas, Gerais and Goias. Brazil has reserves of potassium, phosphate, tungsten (which is used in the smelting of durable steels), cassiterite (tin ore), lead, graphite, chromium, gold, zirconium, and the rare radioactive mineral thorium. Brazil has several large deposits oil (Basia dos Campos, Basia dos Santos), which are estimated at 2 - 2.5 billion barrels, coal - 21 billion tons.
Brazil has one seventh of the world's forest resources. The bulk of the forests are concentrated in the Amazon and the Atlantic coastal zone. The development of the timber industry is hampered by a poorly developed transport infrastructure.
Brazil is one of the world's largest producers of gemstones such as diamonds, aquamarines, topazes, amethysts, tourmalines and emeralds.
Brazil has one of the longest water systems in the world, which includes eight river basins (water resources). The Amazon and Tocantins-Araguaia basins, in the north, account for 56% of the country's total water resources. The Amazon is the largest river in the world in terms of water volume and the second longest (6.577 km) after the Nile, with 3.615 km flowing through Brazil. For 3.885 km. the river is navigable, which allows ocean-class ships to enter the Peruvian port of Iquitos. The Paraná-Paraguay river system covers the southwestern part of the state of Minas Gerais, and extends further south. Merging with the Argentine Rio da Prata, near Buenos Aires, this system reaches the Atlantic Ocean. The Uruguay River, also part of the Prata basin, flows through the territory of the two southernmost states of Brazil. San Francisco is the largest river system in the country, entirely within its borders. Its length before it flows into the Atlantic Ocean is 1.609 km. Just like the Parana and Tocantins rivers, it originates in the Central Plateau. In the upper reaches, the river is navigable for small-tonnage vessels. Navigation for large-tonnage vessels is open only for 277 km. in the lower reaches of the river.
The concept of real resort areas has not yet found its application (recreational resources). The tourist complex is limited to several large and expensive hotels in Rio de Janeiro, mountain resorts in Minas Gerais. The main entertainment centers are located in the city centers or nearby. The number of foreign tourists visiting Brazil lags far behind the number of domestic tourists. Brazilians move around the country by road, although air transport is in high demand during holidays and vacations.