Land use: arable land: 9% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 46% forests and woodland: 3% other: 41% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 40,000 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: NA
Environment-current issues: drying up of the Aral Sea is resulting in growing concentrations of chemical pesticides and natural salts; these substances are then blown from the increasingly exposed lake bed and contribute to desertification; water pollution from industrial wastes and the heavy use of fertilizers and pesticides is the cause of many human health disorders; increasing soil salinization; soil contamination from agricultural chemicals, including DDT
Environment-international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography-note: along with Liechtenstein, one of the only two doubly landlocked countries in the world
@Uzbekistan:People
Population: 23,784,321 (July 1998 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 38% (male 4,591,140; female 4,451,246) 15-64 years: 57% (male 6,755,371; female 6,874,483) 65 years and over: 5% (male 435,036; female 677,045) (July 1998 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.33% (1998 est.)