Energy And Mineral Potential Of The Central American-caribbean Region (circum-pacific Council For Energy And Mineral Resources. Earth Science Series)

This volume presents an overview of the known and potential energy and mineral resources in relation to the geological framework and geohazard conditions in the Central American - Caribbean region. It contains 61 papers by leading geoscientists who have been involved in investigating the geology, geophysics, resources, and geohazards of the region and presented their papers at a symposium in San Jose, Costa Rica. The papers include assessments of oil and gas, coal and peat, and geothermal resources, as well as metallic and industrial mineral resources and geohazard conditions. They also contain recommendations to encourage exploration and development in the region. In as much as this volume provides access to a large body of previously unavailable data, it is of special interest to scientists working in this region and to those who would like to obtain an overview of the resource potential. Front Matter....Pages I-XX Front Matter....Pages 1-1 The Role of National Institutions and International Cooperation in the Development of the Geological Sciences in the Central American-Caribbean Region....Pages 3-6 The Known and Potential Resource Base for Economic Development in the Central American-Caribbean Region....Pages 7-10 Geodynamic Map of Costa Rica....Pages 11-17 Central America and the North Caribbean: Resource Implications Inferred from Paleomagnetic Data and Plate Tectonic History....Pages 19-29 The Status of Mineral Production in the Caribbean Basin Countries....Pages 31-45 Circum-Caribbean Sedimentary Basin Development and Timing of Hydrocarbon Maturation as a Function of Caribbean Plate Tectonic Evolution....Pages 47-56 The Human and Economic Losses of Selected Natural Disasters in Latin America, 1970–1987....Pages 57-62 Central American Resource Studies....Pages 63-67 Front Matter....Pages 69-69 Caribbean Region: Perspectives on Petroleum....Pages 71-83 Sedimentary Basins of Costa Rica: Late Mesozoic-Cenozoic Evolution and Hydrocarbon Potential....Pages 85-94 An Integrated Geological and Geophysical Interpretation of the San Carlos Basin, Costa Rica....Pages 95-103 Preliminary Tectonic Outline of Northern Guatemala....Pages 105-113 The Cobán Formation in the Petén Basin, Guatemala....Pages 115-121 The Petroleum Potential of the Netherlands Antilles....Pages 123-130 Sedimentary Basins and Petroleum Potential of Puerto Rico....Pages 131-136 An Oil and Gas Assessment of the U.S. Continental Slope in the Gulf of Mexico....Pages 137-141 The Perpetual Mystery of Petroleum Migration....Pages 143-147 Back Matter....Pages 149-150 Front Matter....Pages 151-151 Coal in the Central American-Caribbean Region....Pages 153-157 Exploration, Development, and Utilization of Coal in Costa Rica....Pages 159-161 Coal Resources of the Baja Talamanca Area of Costa Rica....Pages 163-167 Back Matter....Pages 213-213 Front Matter....Pages 151-151 A Mining Design Project for the Zent Coal, Limon, Costa Rica....Pages 169-173 Utilizing Coal in the Cement Industry in Costa Rica....Pages 175-178 Coal Districts of Venezuela....Pages 179-181 Status of Coal Exploration in the Atlantic Coast of Colombia....Pages 183-190 Opportunities for Collaborating in Utilization of Clean Coal Technologies....Pages 191-192 Peat Deposits of Central America and the Caribbean Region....Pages 193-197 Deposits of Peat in Costa Rica....Pages 199-207 Economics of Selected Energy Applications of Peat in Panama and Costa Rica....Pages 209-212 Back Matter....Pages 213-213 Front Matter....Pages 215-215 Status and Geologic Setting of Geothermal Fields in Central America, Mexico, and the Caribbean....Pages 217-224 Seismological Studies at the Miravalles Geothermal Project....Pages 225-230 Geophysical Exploration of the Las Pailas Geothermal Field, Rincon de la Vieja, Guanacaste Province, Costa Rica....Pages 231-238 Momotombo Geothermal Field....Pages 239-245 Current Status of Geothermal Activities in Guatemala....Pages 247-255 Geothermal Prefeasibility Studies in Honduras....Pages 257-261 Prefeasibility Geothermal Assessment of Platanares, Department of Copan, Honduras....Pages 263-268 An Economic Prefeasibility Study of Geothermal Energy Development at Platanares, Honduras....Pages 269-275 Application of Geothermal Energy to Mineral Processing: Cyanide Heap-Leaching of Low-Grade Gold Ore....Pages 277-282 Environmental Impacts Associated with Geothermal Exploration, Development, and Power Generation....Pages 283-286 Back Matter....Pages 287-287 Front Matter....Pages 289-289 The Outlook for Volcanic-Hosted Gold Deposits in the Republic of Costa Rica....Pages 291-298 Origin of Gold from the Golfo Dulce Placer Province, Southern Costa Rica....Pages 299-304 Back Matter....Pages 353-353 Front Matter....Pages 289-289 Nickel Potential of the Caribbean Plate and Adjacent Regions....Pages 305-313 The Jamaican Bauxite Industry: Glimpses Into Its Past, Present, and Future....Pages 315-318 Mineral-Energy Resources in the Dominican Republic....Pages 319-321 Selected Precious-Metal Occurrences in the Lesser Antilles....Pages 323-328 Biogeochemistry for Future Mineral Resource Exploration Programs in the Central American-Caribbean Region....Pages 329-334 Industrial Minerals—Key to Economic Development....Pages 335-337 The Occurrence, Production, and Trade of Non-Metallic Industrial Minerals in Costa Rica....Pages 339-343 A Provisional Study of Costa Rican Diatomites as Raw Materials for Filter-Aids....Pages 345-351 Back Matter....Pages 353-353 Front Matter....Pages 355-355 The Distinctive Hydrology of Tropical Islands....Pages 357-361 A Quaternary Volcanic Aquifer System in Central America: Key Factors in Groundwater Potential and Protection....Pages 363-368 Structure and Depositional Patterns and Their Influence on the Hydraulic Conductivity of Fan-Deltas in Southern Puerto Rico....Pages 369-377 Karst Localities in Costa Rica and Their Geologic Background....Pages 379-386 Back Matter....Pages 387-387 Front Matter....Pages 389-389 Landslides on the Panama Canal....Pages 391-395 Geologic Hazards in Honduras....Pages 397-401 Extent and Socio-Economic Significance of Slope-Instability on the Island of Hispaniola (Haiti and Dominican Republic)....Pages 403-410 Use of Seismic Refraction Techniques for Investigating Recent Landslides in a Tropical Rain Forest in Puerto Rico....Pages 411-414 Back Matter....Pages 415-416 Back Matter....Pages 417-422 Energy and Mineral Potential of the Central American-Caribbean Region is a compilation of the latest results in this area. It covers topics such as petroleum resources, coal resources, geothermal resources, metallic minerals, industrial minerals, hydrology and environmental problems, and geologic hazards. The volume is of special interest to scientists working in this region and to those who would like to obtain an overview of the resource potential.