Feedback

COUNTRIES
of the WORLD

. Index

. 1996 Index

. Flag

. Geography

. People

. Government

. Economy

. Transportation

. Commun'tions

. Defense

. Geo Names

. Feedback

===========

World Geography 1996

Map references:

World, Time Zones

Area:

total area:

510.072 million sq km

land area:

148.94 million sq km

water area:

361.132 million sq km

comparative area:

land area about 16 times the size of the US

note:

70.8% of the world is water, 29.2% is land

Land boundaries:

the land boundaries in the world total 250,883.64 km (not counting shared boundaries twice)

Coastline:

356,000 km

Maritime claims:

contiguous zone:

24 nm claimed by most but can vary

continental shelf:

200-m depth claimed by most or to depth of exploitation, others claim 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

exclusive fishing zone:

200 nm claimed by most but can vary

exclusive economic zone:

200 nm claimed by most but can vary

territorial sea:

12 nm claimed by most but can vary

note:

boundary situations with neighboring states prevent many countries from extending their fishing or economic zones to a full 200 nm; 43 nations and other areas that are landlocked include Afghanistan, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Burkina, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Czech Republic, Ethiopia, Holy See (Vatican City), Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malawi, Mali, Moldova, Mongolia, Nepal, Niger, Paraguay, Rwanda, San Marino, Slovakia, Swaziland, Switzerland, Tajikistan, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Uzbekistan, West Bank, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Climate:

two large areas of polar climates separated by two rather narrow temperate zones from a wide equatorial band of tropical to subtropical climates

Terrain:

highest elevation is Mt. Everest at 8,848 meters and lowest depression is the Dead Sea at 392 meters below sea level; greatest ocean depth is the Marianas Trench at 10,924 meters

Natural resources:

the rapid using up of nonrenewable mineral resources, the depletion of forest areas and wetlands, the extinction of animal and plant species, and the deterioration in air and water quality (especially in Eastern Europe and the former USSR) pose serious long-term problems that governments and peoples are only beginning to address

Land use:

arable land:

10%

permanent crops:

meadows and pastures:

24%

forest and woodland:

31%

other:

34%

Irrigated land:

NA sq km

Environment:

current issues:

large areas subject to overpopulation, industrial disasters, pollution (air, water, acid rain, toxic substances), loss of vegetation (overgrazing, deforestation, desertification), loss of wildlife, soil degradation, soil depletion, erosion

natural hazards:

large areas subject to severe weather (tropical cyclones), natural disasters (earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions)

international agreements:

23 selected international environmental agreements included under the Environment entry for each country and in Appendix E: Selected International Environmental Agreements

Thank you for making this an award winning site

Please put this page in your BOOKMARKS - - - - -

www.usais.org - USA Immigration Services. U.S Green Cards, Visas, Citizenship, Green Card Lottery, INS Forms, Immigration Information.

ITA Home Page	The IMMIGRATION Superhighway	Feedback
ITA WWWDesign	Flags of all Countries	Yahoo search

Revised 13-August-1997
HTML Colors; Greece Geography Economy, people, communications, transportation, flags, maps