Argentina takes up most of the southern portion of South America. It covers a triangular area of 1,073,399 square miles. According to the CIA World Fact Book, Argentina has 4, 989 km of coastline, which comes in the second largest boundary in Argentina falling behind the border of Chile. It lies between the latitude twenty- two degrees and fifty-two degrees south and between longitudes fifty-four degrees and seventy-four degrees west.
Argentina’s natural resources include tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium, pampas, lead, and zinc. Very important to Argentina are their minerals, which include crude petroleum and natural gas. Most of Argentina’s land is used as permanent grazing land. Nineteen percent of the land is wooded and another nineteen percent is used for other things. The ground of Argentina is flat in the south by the plateau of Patagonia, rough along the west by the Andes, and fertile in the north by the plains of Pampas. Areas in the Andes are susceptible to earthquakes. Heavy flooding occurs in the northwest (CIA, 3)
To the west and south west of Argentina lie the Andes Mountains. To the east lies the Atlantic Ocean. Just off the southern tip of Argentina lie the Falkland Islands, which are still under British control despite Argentina’s claim to sovereignty. There was a short-lived occupation of the islands by Argentina’s military force in 1982. When British forces recaptured the island, the Argentina permitted a general election to be held in 1983. Raul Alfonsin won the presidency and began to correct the abuses of the English military, which had previously claimed the death of at least ten thousand native Falkland people who were suspected of subversion during the 1970’s and 1980’s ("Argentina", 542-543).
Argentina is divided into four general regions: the northeastern plains, the Pampa, the Patagonia, and the Andes mountains. Many of Argentina’s rain forest and wooded area lies in the northeastern plains. ("Argentina", 542-543)
The Pampa is south and west of the Parana River and extends to the Atlantic Ocean. Previously a sparse prairie, the Pampa has become the world’s most productive agricultural area. It is also the most populated region supporting more than two-thirds of the Argentine population. The Patagonia is barren semi desert lying south of the Colorado River. It provides many miles of pasture used for herding sheep. Patagonia is also rich in the natural resources that Argentina relies on to export ("Argentina, 542-543).
The Andes Mountains lie along the western border and contain many mineral resources as well as some of the worlds most rugged and treacherous mountain terrain. The highest peak in Argentina, Mount Aconcagua (22, 831 feet) is found here ("Argentina", 542-543).
Argentina is vastly abundant in their biodiversity. There are around "300 mammal species, 970 birds, 80 reptiles, 70 amphibians, and about 10,000 plant species." (Environmental, 1) "Argentina's natural resource base, including animal, freshwater, and marine fish, agriculture, forest, livestock, soil, and surface and ground water resources…is the institutional framework for environmental protection." (Environmental, 1) Cattle, sheep, horses, and goats are some of the common animals. There have been concerns from provinces in Argentina about environmental issues, but the government has yet to form a national policy. Argentina is mostly arid or semi arid. About 2/3 of the surface is dry. Therefore the need for water is growing rapidly. Some water is needed for industrialization and to irrigate farms. With all the advances that Argentina has been through, there is still the need for clean, pure water. Many citizens of Argentina lack the reserve of sufficient water and sewage. In Argentina, 47% of the land is covered by natural forest. Although, while Argentina is trying to become more industrialized, the forest are being cut out for the continuing of roads, and for more land use to grow crops.(GEO, 1999)
The population of Argentina as reported by the CIA World Fact book is 32,265,463 people. That was a July 1998 estimate. The majority age group (62%) of Argentina is from fifteen to sixty-four years old. In this age group, male population is 11, 457, 399 and female population is 11, 469, 364. Twenty-seven percent of people in Argentina form the age group from zero to fourteen. Contrary to the fifteen to sixty four age group, the birth to fourteen age group has more males than females. Male population is 5,124, 087 and female population is 4, 937, 060. Bringing up the rear with eleven percent are the sixty-five and older group. Females in this category are dominant. They have about 650,000 people than the male population. Males account for 1,553,158 and the female population is 2,201,614. Life expectancy of males is 70.9 years, and for women it is 78.34, with an average expectancy around 74.54 years. The population rate of Argentina is 1.29%. Eighty-five percent of the population is white and the remaining fifteen percent make up the mestizos, Amerindians, and other groups that are not white (CIA, 3-4).
The main religion is Roman Catholic with ninety percent of the population. Other religions include Protestant, Jewish, and other. Argentina’s has a variety of languages. They include Spanish, English, Italian, German, and French. Spanish is the official language. Most Argentine’s over the age of fifteen can read and write (CIA, 4).
Argentina’s population is at a low growth rate and compared to other Latin American rates their birth and death rate are also quite low. The average population density is 29 per square mile, although regions such as the Andes and Patagonia have less than five people per square mile. More than four-fifths of the populations live in urban areas ("Argentina", 542-543).
Argentina’s national capital is Buenos Aires. Argentina is a republic that has been described as a mixture between western European legal systems and US. The voting age is set at 18 and all citizens are allowed to vote. The executive branch is made up of the President, who also acts as the chief of staff, the vice president, and cabinet, which is appointed, by the president. The president and the vice-president are elected on the same ballot for a four-year term, much like the United States. The current president of Argentina is Carlos Saul Menem and his vice-president is Carlos Ruckauf.
The legislative branch is made up of a bicameral national congress (or Congreso Nacional as the Argentinians would call it) consisting of a 72 seat senate and a 257 seat chamber of deputies. Unlike the US, the term limits for the chamber of deputies is decided by random drawing. The terms range from 2 to 6 years. The judicial branch is made up of the Supreme Court. There are nine seats in the Supreme Court and the president with the senate’s approval appoints all judges (CIA, 5-6).
The flag of Argentina consists of three equal, horizontal stripes. They include light blue as the top stripe, white as the middle strip and blue as the bottom stripe (Argentina, 1). In the middle of the white stripe is a yellow sun with a face, which is known as the Sun of May (CIA, 6).
The economic situation, while not as well off as America, has begun to look better as it recuperates from the huge debts and high inflation that had amounted before President Menem took office. Menem implemented a comprehensive economic restructuring which promoted trade liberalization, deregulation, and privatization as well as focusing on the peso’s relationship to the US dollar in order to curb inflation. Argentina has a free market system. As of October 1998, the unemployment rate stands at 12%. It is estimated that 25.5% of the population lives below the poverty line, although this statistic is slowly decreasing (CIA, 5-7). Gross Domestic Product is at a growth rate of 4.3%. The distributions to agriculture are 7%, to industry is 37%, and to services are 56%. (CIA, 7)
Argentina’s society is divided into three different social classes. They are the upper class, the middle class, and the lower class. The upper class citizens include the farmers, ranchers, and the industrial tycoons. The industrial tycoons became prevalent in the 1980's. The middle class represents about 35 to 40 percent of Argentina's population. The people who make up the middle class society are those who are self-employed, civil servants, owners of small businesses and industries. The lower class is basically just the skilled workers.
The education literacy rate in Argentina is one of the highest. It is estimated to be 95.3%. At the primary education level, school enrollment is free. Secondary education is estimated to take a person four to six years to complete. The reason why there is not an exact amount of time is that it depends on exactly what field a person is heading in to. Argentina not only has primary and secondary education, they also have 46 accredited universities. The private and religious schools available in Argentina have to conform to the "nationally prescribed pattern of teaching in the Spanish language." (WorldMark, 22)
The main religion is Roman Catholic with ninety percent of the population. Other religions include Protestant, Jewish, and other. Argentina’s has a variety of languages. They include Spanish, English, Italian, German, and French. Spanish is the official language. Most Argentine’s over the age of fifteen can read and write (CIA, 4).
Argentina’s population is at a low growth rate and compared to other Latin American rates their birth and death rate are also quite low. The average population density is 29 per square mile, although regions such as the Andes and Patagonia have less than five people per square mile. More than four-fifths of the populations live in urban areas ("Argentina", 542-543).
Argentina is made up of many nationalities, all of whose traditions remain strong in the cultural mosaic. Traditions are commonly kept alive by way of fairs, fiestas, and the passing down of regional folklore. Buenos Aires is home to many cultural artifacts and includes more than 100 art galleries as well as many theaters, museums, and concert halls. Perhaps the most famous cultural institution is the Colon Theater, "a large and beautiful opera house featuring artists from Argentina and abroad" ("Argentina", 542-543).
Argentina exports 26 billion dollars worth of cereals, feed, motor vehicles, crude petroleum and steel manufactures. They export mainly to Brazil, followed by the US and Chile. Each year Argentina imports $32 billion worth of goods and materials. These include motor vehicle parts and vehicles, organic chemicals, telecommunications equipment and plastics. They import mainly from Brazil and the United States(CIA, 8).
Argentina has many forms of transportation. They include railways, highways, waterways, pipelines, ports and harbors, and airports. They have numerous unpaved airports and only a few paved airports. There are eleven ports and harbors. Railways and highways extend across the whole country. There are 11,000 km of navigable waterways to travel on (CIA, 9).
Energy resources in Argentina are very good at the present. They have oil, natural gas, and hydroelectric potential. Oil and natural gas are self-sufficient at this time. Exports are increasing due to the fact of natural gas and oil. Since 1990 the total consumption of energy has increased by 30%. From 1980 to 1990 the consumption has doubled. Contrasted with other countries and regions around the world, Argentina's cost for energy is relatively low. One major industry in Argentina is obviously oil. They have around 2.6 billion barrels of oil reserves. ("United States Energy Information Administration", 1999)
The largest producer of crude oil in Argentina is by YPF. Perez Companc and Petrolera San Jorge follow YPF. Smaller refineries like Eg3 are controlled by YPF. 14% of the retail fuel market is by YPF. ("United States Energy Information Administration", 1999) "Oil Production (1998 Estimated) produces 902,000 barrels per day(bbl/d), of which about 847, 000 bbl/d was crude oil." ("United States Energy Information Administration", 1999) 489,000 bbl/d is the oil consumption based on the 1998 estimate. ("United States Energy Information Administration", 1999)
In South America alone, Argentina has the second largest reserve of natural gas. Privately owned businesses that have a very competitive market strategy have control over most of the natural gas industry. The industry includes production, transportation, distribution, and marketing. Natural gas is expected to rise 3.6% annually over the next decade. This past decade, natural gas has already doubled. Prices of natural gas are determined on a competitive basis. The tariffs on gas are changed to fit the U.S. standard every six months. Once again, YPF controls most of this industry. ("United States Energy Information Administration", 1999)
According to the 1997 estimate by the United States Energy Information Administration, Argentina releases 34.8 million metric tons of carbon into the atmosphere. By the world's calculations, Argentina only produces 0.6% percent of total carbon emissions produced by the world.
While studying and researching Argentina, our group learned many new aspects and traditions we have never known before. Learning a new country can be interesting because you can characterize the differences of different countries with that of our own country. There are plenty of environmental issues out there in the world, and we found it difficult to pinpoint in books and research the effects that these issues have on our country.