Irrigated land: 800 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: dust storms can occur in the spring; grassland fires
Environment - current issues: limited natural fresh water resources; policies of the former communist regime promoting rapid urbanization and industrial growth have raised concerns about their negative effects on the environment; the burning of soft coal and the concentration of factories in Ulaanbaatar have severely polluted the air; deforestation, overgrazing, the converting of virgin land to agricultural production have increased soil erosion from wind and rain; desertification
Environment - international agreements: party to : Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: landlocked; strategic location between China and
Russia
@Mongolia:People
Population: 2,538,211 (July 1997 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 38% (male 485,760; female 471,005) 15-64 years: 58% (male 743,194; female 743,529) 65 years and over : 4% (male 40,621; female 54,102) (July 1997 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.62% (1997 est.)
Birth rate: 24.57 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)