Climate: temperate, but varies with altitude; cold, cloudy, rainy/snowy winters; cool to warm, cloudy, humid summers with occasional showers
Terrain: mostly mountains (Alps in south, Jura in northwest) with a central plateau of rolling hills, plains, and large lakes
Natural resources: hydropower potential, timber, salt
Land use: arable land: 10% permanent crops: 1% meadows and pastures: 40% forest and woodland: 26% other: 23%
Irrigated land: 250 sq km (1989)
Environment:
current issues: air pollution from vehicle emissions and open air
burning; acid rain; water pollution from increased use of agricultural
fertilizers; loss of biodiversity
natural hazards: avalanches, landslides, flash floods
international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air
Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air
Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear
Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83,
Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Air Pollution-Sulphur
94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea
Note: landlocked; crossroads of northern and southern Europe; along with southeastern France and northern Italy, contains the highest elevations in Europe
@Switzerland:People
Population: 7,084,984 (July 1995 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 17% (female 594,565; male 622,436)
15-64 years: 68% (female 2,375,792; male 2,448,213)
65 years and over: 15% (female 623,136; male 420,842) (July 1995 est.)