Northern Ireland

C

Natural Resources

The most valuable natural resources of Northern Ireland are its fertile soils and rich pasturelands. The chief minerals are basalt, limestone, sand and gravel, granite, chalk, clay, and shale; bauxite, iron ore, and coal also are found in small quantities. Peat is important as a fuel.

D

Plants and Animals

In general, the plants and animals of Northern Ireland are similar to those of the British Isles as a whole. The only distinctive plant is a species of wild orchid, Spiranthes stricta, found in the valleys of the Upper and Lower Bann rivers. Distinctive species of animal life include the pollan, a freshwater variety of whitefish found in Lough Neagh and Lough Erne.

III

Population

Around two thirds of the people are the descendants of Scots or English settlers who crossed from the British mainland to north-eastern Ireland after 1607 in the Ulster Plantation. The remainder of the population is descended from the original Irish inhabitants, principally those native to the province of Ulster.

A

Population Characteristics

Northern Ireland has a population (2004) of about 1,710,000, almost equally divided between urban and rural dwellers. The average population density is about 121 people per sq km (313 per sq mi), but the actual distribution of the population is very uneven; about 50 per cent of people in Northern Ireland are settled on the eastern coastal region, the centre of which is Belfast.

B

Political Divisions

Northern Ireland is divided into 26 local government districts based round the main population centres: Antrim, Ards, Armagh, Ballymena, Ballymoney, Banbridge, Belfast, Carrickfergus, Castlereagh, Coleraine, Cookstown, Craigavon, Down, Dungannon, Fermanagh, Larne, Limavady, Lisburn, Londonderry/Derry City, Magherafelt, Moyle, Newry and Mourne, Newtownabbey, North Down, Omagh, and Strabane. Each district is governed by an elected council.