Irrigated land:
NA sq km
Natural hazards:
continuous permafrost over northern two-thirds of the island
Environment - current issues:
protection of the arctic environment; preservation of the Inuit
traditional way of life, including whaling and seal hunting
Geography - note:
dominates North Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe;
sparse population confined to small settlements along coast, but
close to one-quarter of the population lives in the capital, Nuuk;
world's second largest ice cap
People Greenland
Population:
56,375 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 25% (male 7,216/female 6,888)
15-64 years: 68.7% (male 20,897/female 17,823)
65 years and over: 6.3% (male 1,672/female 1,879) (2005 est.)
Median age:
total: 33.83 years
male: 35.15 years
female: 32.14 years (2005 est.)
Population growth rate:
-0.02% (2005 est.)
Birth rate:
15.93 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)