Terrain: mostly hilly to rugged and mountainous with little level land
Natural resources: sun, sand, sea, surf
Land use: arable land: 15% permanent crops: 6% meadows and pastures: 26% forest and woodland: 6% other: 47%
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Environment:
current issues: lack of natural freshwater resources
natural hazards: rarely affected by hurricanes; frequent and severe
droughts, floods, and earthquakes
international agreements: NA
Note: important location along the Anegada Passage - a key shipping lane for the Panama Canal; Saint Thomas has one of the best natural, deepwater harbors in the Caribbean
@Virgin Islands:People
Population: 97,229 (July 1995 est.) note: West Indian (45% born in the Virgin Islands and 29% born elsewhere in the West Indies) 74%, US mainland 13%, Puerto Rican 5%, other 8%
Age structure: 0-14 years: NA 15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA
Population growth rate: -0.29% (1995 est.)