evidence: 1.1.1.WATER RESOURCES Suriname is rich in hydrologic resources. Its abundance of water is considered "white gold" (Webster, 2001). Annual average rainfall in Suriname is 2,200mm or 355km3/yr in the country's territory. About 50 per cent of Suriname's annual rainfall occurs during the four months of the long wet season, while about 20 per cent occurs during the long dry season. It is considered that evapotranspiration and evaporation losses represent 49 per cent of this precipitation. Internal renewable water resources are about 88km3/yr. Suriname's major rivers flow northward into the Atlantic. In the savannah belt, average annual precipitation rates vary from 1,900 to 2,600mm. The infiltration and percolation of rainwater in this province is high, and the surface runoff is small. Average annual precipitation rates in the coastal plain vary from 1,500 to 2,500mm (Webster, 2001). Suriname has seven major streams draining toward the Atlantic Ocean. The largest are the Marowijne and Corantijn (Courantyne) rivers that form the country's borders, respectively, in the east and the west. These two rivers flow northward and drain almost 58 per cent of the country. The Coppename and the Suriname rivers also flow northward and together drain about 24 per cent of the country.