Caroni County was a historic county of Trinidad and Tobago. It occupies in the west central part of 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 ...

, the larger island in the Republic of

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

. It lies south and southwest of

Saint George County Saint George is a county in Trinidad and Tobago. It occupies the northwestern portion of the island of Trinidad and is bounded by the Caribbean Sea to the north, the Gulf of Paria to the west, Caroni County to the south and Saint David County and ...

, west of Nariva County and north of Victoria County. To the west it is bounded by the

Gulf of Paria The Gulf of Paria ( ; es, Golfo de Paria) is a shallow (180 m at its deepest) semi-enclosed inland sea located between the island of Trinidad (Republic of Trinidad and Tobago) and the east coast of Venezuela. It separates the two countries ...

. County Caroni includes the towns of

Chaguanas The Borough of Chaguanas is the largest municipality (83,489 at the 2011 census) and fastest-growing
– Afra ...

, the largest town (by population) in the country and

Couva Couva is an urban town (48,858 in 2011 census) in west-central Trinidad, south of Port of Spain and Chaguanas and north of San Fernando and Point Fortin. It is the capital and main urban centre of Couva–Tabaquite–Talparo, and the Greate ...

, the capital of the Couva–Tabaquite–Talparo region. Administratively it is divided between the Borough of Chaguanas, the Region of Couva–Tabaquite–Talparo and the Region of Tunapuna–Piarco. The county was divided into four Wards: Chaguanas, Couva, Cunupia and Montserrat. The major towns of County Caroni are Chaguanas and Couva. The

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as H ...

and industrial zone of

Point Lisas Point Lisas is a major industrial centre in Trinidad and Tobago and is host to the ''Point Lisas Industrial Estate'' and the ''Port of Point Lisas'', both of which are managed by Plipdeco (the Point Lisas Industrial Port Development Company). Po ...

is located in Caroni, and the region is also a site for agriculture. Caroni County, which takes its name from the Caroni River, stretches from the hills of the Central Range into the lowlands of the Caroni Plains and the

Caroni Swamp The Caroni Swamp is the second largest mangrove wetland in Trinidad and Tobago. It is located on the west coast of Trinidad, south of Port of Spain and northwest of Chaguanas, where the Caroni River meets the Gulf of Paria. The Caroni Swamp ...

. It is heavily associated with

sugar cane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, perennial grass (in the genus '' Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fibrous stalk ...

and the "sugar belt", but it actually accounts for no more than one third of the sugar belt. The now-defunct state-owned sugar company, Caroni (1975) Ltd, took its name from the county. Caroni is often used symbolically to represent the

Indo-Trinidadian Indo-Trinidadians and Tobagonians or Indian-Trinidadians and Tobagonians, are people of Indian origin who are nationals of Trinidad and Tobago whose ancestors came from India and the wider subcontinent beginning in 1845. Indo-Trinidadians and ...

heartland and the power base of the

United National Congress The United National Congress ( UNC or UNCTT) is one of two major political parties in Trinidad and Tobago and the current parliamentary opposition. The UNC is a Centre-left politics, centre-left party. It was founded in 1989 by Basdeo Panday, a ...

. There are two waterfalls located in the Central Range in Caroni County, Brasso Venado Falls in Brasso Venado and Carmelita Falls in Gran Couva. These are the only two waterfalls in Central Trinidad. Prior to 1990 local government was administered by the Caroni County Council. After 1990 areas formerly administered by the Caroni County Council were divided into the regions of Couva, Tabaquite–Talparo, Tunapuna, Piarco and the

Borough of Chaguanas The Borough of Chaguanas is the largest municipality (83,489 at the 2011 census) and fastest-growing
– Afra ...

. In 1992, Couva and Tabaquite–Talparo merged to form

Couva–Tabaquite–Talparo Couva–Tabaquite–Talparo is one of the nine regions of Trinidad and Tobago, and one of the five regions which form the Gulf of Paria coastline on Trinidad's West Coast. Its regional capital and commercial center is Couva. Couva–Tabaquite–Tal ...

and Tunapuna and Piarco merged to form

Tunapuna–Piarco Tunapuna–Piarco is one of the 9 regions of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the most populous region in the country by total population and the fifth-largest by total land area. Geographically located in Northern Trinidad, Tunapuna–Piarco shares its ...

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Caroni, Trinidad And Tobago Counties of Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad (island) Former counties