Exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical; modified by northeast trade winds
Terrain: generally hilly, volcanic interiors
Natural resources: phosphates (Curacao only), salt (Bonaire only)
Land use: 8% arable land; 0% permanent crops; 0% meadows and pastures; 0% forest and woodland; 92% other
Environment: Curacao and Bonaire are south of Caribbean hurricane belt, so rarely threatened; Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius are subject to hurricanes from July to October
Note: consists of two island groups—Curacao and Bonaire are located off the coast of Venezuela, and Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius lie 800 km to the north
- People
Population: 183,503 (July 1990), growth rate 0.2% (1990)
Birth rate: 18 births/1,000 population (1990)