Natural resources: petroleum, fishing, natural gas

Land use: arable land: 77% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 9% forest and woodland: 0% other: 14%

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Environment:
current issues: pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by
ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens
contamination of aquifers
natural hazards: hurricanes (especially June to October); periodic
landslides
international agreements: party to - Climate Change, Endangered
Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity

Note: easternmost Caribbean island

@Barbados:People

Population: 256,395 (July 1995 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 24% (female 30,175; male 31,507)
15-64 years: 66% (female 86,103; male 82,727)
65 years and over: 10% (female 15,849; male 10,034) (July 1995 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.24% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 15.45 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)