Climate: tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands
Terrain: Andes Mountains and Maracaibo Lowlands in northwest; central
plains (llanos); Guiana Highlands in southeast
Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, gold, bauxite,
other minerals, hydropower, diamonds
Land use: arable land: 3% permanent crops: 1% meadows and pastures: 20% forest and woodland: 39% other: 37%
Irrigated land: 2,640 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues: sewage pollution of Lago de Valencia; oil and urban
pollution of Lago de Maracaibo; deforestation; soil degradation; urban
and industrial pollution, especially along the Caribbean coast
natural hazards: subject to floods, rockslides, mudslides; periodic
droughts
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Endangered Species, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone
Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not
ratified - Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping
Note: on major sea and air routes linking North and South America
@Venezuela:People
Population: 21,004,773 (July 1995 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 35% (female 3,650,705; male 3,795,032)
15-64 years: 60% (female 6,350,466; male 6,313,887)
65 years and over: 5% (female 486,020; male 408,663) (July 1995 est.)