Terrain:
most of Ukraine consists of fertile plains (steppes) and plateaus,
mountains being found only in the west (the Carpathians), and in the
Crimean Peninsula in the extreme south
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Hora Hoverla 2,061 m
Natural resources:
iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil, salt, sulfur,
graphite, titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel, mercury, timber,
arable land
Land use:
arable land: 56.21%
permanent crops: 1.61%
other: 42.18% (2001)
Irrigated land:
24,540 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
NA
Environment - current issues:
inadequate supplies of potable water; air and water pollution;
deforestation; radiation contamination in the northeast from 1986
accident at Chornobyl' Nuclear Power Plant
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Sulfur 85, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol,
Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine
Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic
Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic
Compounds
Geography - note:
strategic position at the crossroads between Europe and Asia;
second-largest country in Europe
People Ukraine