Natural Resources of TX

Natural Resources of

Texas

Texas is the 2nd largest state in the U.S. behind

Alaska. The area of Texas is 267,277 square

miles.

#2

Texas makes up 7% of the total land area of

the United States.

7%

In the south we are mostly on a level plain and
along the coast are barrier islands and protected
bays.

Natural Resources

Cutting across Texas is an escarpment, or a
great curving arc or cliff, named the Balcones
Escarpment. It was formed by a long ago
earthquake.


This marks the
beginning of the
Hill Country. This
is a plateau, or
tableland.

As you travel northwest the land gets flatter and
higher with an abrupt change at the Caprock
Escarpment along with the Palo Duro Canyon
and Tule Canyons.

Palo Duro Canyon

http://www.destination360.com/north-america/us/texas/palo-duro-canyon-
state-park.php

In the west is the only place where mountains
can be found in Texas. The highest point is the
Guadalupe Peak.

Guadalupe Peak

8,749 feet

Multiple Choice

What protects the coast line?

• Plastic barriers
• Concrete walls
• barrier islands

• Metal fences

Multiple Choice

What is an escarpment?

• A steep slope or long cliff resulting from erosion or faulting.
• A man-made structure used for water storage.
• A type of tropical fruit found in South America.
• A flat plain with no elevation changes.

Multiple Choice

Where can mountains be found in Texas?

• Gulf Coastal Plains
• Panhandle Plains
• Pecos region in western Texas

• East Texas Piney Woods

Texas Water Resources

Texas’s Water Resources include the Gulf of
Mexico, bays and rivers. Rivers of Texas are
called the wrong way rivers because they take
needed water away from the dry areas of the
state due to the higher elevation in the
northwest.

To control floods and keep needed water
from flowing into the Gulf, rivers have
been dammed to form lakes.

Proctor Dam – Courtesy US Army Corps of Engineers

The only natural
lake in Texas is
Caddo Lake.

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/parkguide/rgn_pw_003.phtml

Aquifers are underground water
reservoirs used for irrigation.

Edwards Aquifer in the Hill Country
supplies water for San Antonio and for
farms to the west and is refilled by rainfall.

Guadalupe River

Barton Springs

Ogallala Aquifer in the Texas High Plains
has declining water levels and can not be
refilled easily, but it irrigates 5 million acres.

Cotton Farmers of the

Texas High Plains

Multiple Choice

Why are dams built?

• Dams are built for wildlife preservation
• Dams are built for transportation purposes
• Dams are built for air quality improvement
• Dams are built for water control, power generation, irrigation, flood prevention, and recreation.

Multiple Choice

Only natural lake in Texas

• Lake Austin
• Caddo Lake
• Lake Conroe
• Lake Travis

Can you guess how many
gallons of water it takes to grow
ONE pound of cotton?

1 Pound
COTTON
That’s about 20
water coolers!
=

100 Gallons!

Soil is a valuable resource for both
farming and ranching.

3 Vegetation Regions of Texas

Forests located in the
East provide one of the
top cash crops in Texas.

Grasses and
small shrubs of
the Savannas
grow in Central
and West Texas.

Stretching from Dallas to
San Antonio and around
Houston, the Grasslands
are the most heavily
settled regions.

Multiple Select

What three vegetations are found in TEXAS?

• Forest

• savannas

• grasslands

• Rainforest

Multiple Choice

What vegetation region is the most populated?

• Temperate grasslands
• Taiga
• Deserts
• Tropical rainforests

Texas’s Natural Economic Resources

Main Minerals are:

Petroleum

Coal

Sand
and

Gravel

Natural Gas

$

$

Some of Texas’ natural materials are used in building.
Do you have any of these natural stones in YOUR home?

Building Stones

Limestone

(Floors)

Granite

(Countertops)

Gypsum
(Drywall)

Texas Energy

1/4 of all the energy in the history of the United
States has been produced in Texas.

Create a Postcard

Create a Postcard of ONE Natural Resource
we visited today! Front and Back! You must use
color!

Brainstorm: Create a bubble map of

Natural Resources found in Texas and

explain how the resources are used. You

must have 6 resources!

Natural

Resources

Of

Texas