Coastline: 15,134 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
International disputes: territorial claim in Antarctica (Ross
Dependency)
Climate: temperate with sharp regional contrasts
Terrain: predominately mountainous with some large coastal plains
Natural resources: natural gas, iron ore, sand, coal, timber, hydropower, gold, limestone
Land use: arable land: 2% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 53% forest and woodland: 38% other: 7%
Irrigated land: 2,800 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; native flora and fauna
hard-hit by species introduced from outside
natural hazards: earthquakes are common, though usually not severe
international agreements: party to - Antarctic-Environmental Protocol,
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear
Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands,
Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Law of the Sea, Marine Life
Conservation
Note: about 80% of the population lives in cities