Location: Northern North America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean and North Pacific Ocean north of the US

Map references: Arctic Region, North America, Standard Time Zones of the World

Area:
total area: 9,976,140 sq km
land area: 9,220,970 sq km
comparative area: slightly larger than US

Land boundaries: total 8,893 km, US 8,893 km (includes 2,477 km with Alaska)

Coastline: 243,791 km

Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to depth of exploitation
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

International disputes: maritime boundary disputes with the US; Saint Pierre and Miquelon is focus of maritime boundary dispute between Canada and France

Climate: varies from temperate in south to subarctic and arctic in north

Terrain: mostly plains with mountains in west and lowlands in southeast

Natural resources: nickel, zinc, copper, gold, lead, molybdenum, potash, silver, fish, timber, wildlife, coal, petroleum, natural gas

Land use:
arable land: 5%
permanent crops: 0%
meadows and pastures: 3%
forest and woodland: 35%
other: 57%

Irrigated land: 8,400 sq km (1989 est.)

Environment:
current issues: acid rain severely affecting lakes and damaging forests; metal smelting, coal-burning utilities, and vehicle emissions impacting on agricultural and forest productivity; ocean waters becoming contaminated due to agricultural, industrial, mining, and forestry activities
natural hazards: continuous permafrost in north is a serious obstacle to development
international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea

Note: second-largest country in world (after Russia); strategic location between Russia and US via north polar route; nearly 90% of the population is concentrated in the region near the US/Canada border

NOTE: The information regarding Canada on this page is re-published from the 1995 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Canada Geography 1995 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Canada Geography 1995 should be addressed to the CIA.