Panama Environment - 2022

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Environment - current issues

water pollution from agricultural runoff threatens fishery resources; deforestation of tropical rain forest; land degradation and soil erosion threatens siltation of Panama Canal; air pollution in urban areas; mining threatens natural resources

Environment - international agreements

party to: Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 2006, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation

Air pollutants

particulate matter emissions: 11.18 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions: 10.71 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions: 5.97 megatons (2020 est.)

Climate

tropical maritime; hot, humid, cloudy; prolonged rainy season (May to January), short dry season (January to May)

Land use

agricultural land: 30.5% (2018 est.)

arable land: 7.3% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 2.5% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 20.7% (2018 est.)

forest: 43.6% (2018 est.)

other: 25.9% (2018 est.)

Urbanization

urban population: 69.1% of total population (2022)

rate of urbanization: 1.92% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

total population growth rate v. urban population growth rate, 2000-2030

Revenue from forest resources

forest revenues: 0.08% of GDP (2018 est.)

Revenue from coal

coal revenues: 0% of GDP (2018 est.)

Major infectious diseases

degree of risk: intermediate (2020)

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea

vectorborne diseases: dengue fever

Waste and recycling

municipal solid waste generated annually: 1,472,262 tons (2015 est.)

Major lakes (area sq km)

salt water lake(s): Laguna de Chiriqui - 900 sq km

Total water withdrawal

municipal: 759.1 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

industrial: 6.2 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

agricultural: 446.1 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

Total renewable water resources

139.3 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)

NOTE: The information regarding Panama on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Panama 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Panama 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.