Elevation extremes: lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point : Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m

Natural resources: bauxite, gypsum, limestone

Land use: arable land : 14% permanent crops: 6% permanent pastures: 24% forests and woodland: 17% other: 39% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 350 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: hurricanes (especially July to November)

Environment - current issues: deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions

Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling signed, but not ratified : none of the selected agreements

Geography - note: strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica
Channel, the main sea lanes for Panama Canal

@Jamaica:People

Population: 2,615,582 (July 1997 est.)