The Tacarigua River (commonly known as the Caura River) is a river on the island of

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

. It originates in the

Northern Range The Northern Range is the range of tall hills across north Trinidad, the major island in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The hills range from the Chaguaramas peninsula on the west coast to Toco in the east. The Northern Range covers approx ...

and drains into the Caura Valley. It passes through the town of

Tacarigua Tacarigua (originally San Pablo de Tacarigua) is a town in the East–West Corridor of Trinidad and Tobago, located east of Tunapuna, north of Trincity and west of Arouca. It is on the banks of the Tacarigua River. The city is governed by the T ...

in the

East–West Corridor The East–West Corridor is the built-up area of north Trinidad stretching from the capital, Port of Spain, east to Arima. The term was coined by economist and political philosopher Lloyd Best, after gleaning the works of a technocrat named ...

before joining the Caroni River. The Caura River is important both recreationally and culturally.

Contamination

Currently the Caura River is at risk to pollution from fertilizers and pesticides used by the farmers within the valley and solid waste from visitors who visit for leisure. It was once an Arawak settlement. It was also in a sea of controversy as it was a proposed site for the building of a dam in 1943. And though it was started, it was never completed to this day, and equipment for the construction of this proposed dam still lies there to date. The money was embezzled and still cannot be accounted for. After this fiasco, there were successful attempts to turn Caura into a park for aesthetic purposes and this has proved well done. However, due to the recent spate of crime which has risen to plague the country, it has become a favorite hot spot for crime, with visitors reporting items stolen from their cars, as well as armed robberies.

Contamination

See also