Geography of Thailand
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Location: Southeast Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand, southeast of Myanmar.
Thailand_map_CIA.png
Image:Thailand map CIA.png
Geographic coordinates: Template:Coor dm
Map references: Southeast Asia
Area:
total:
514,000 km²
land:
511,770 km²
water:
2,230 km²
Note: Thailand uses a unit of land area called the rai, which is 1,600 m².
Land boundaries:
total:
4,863 km
border countries:
Myanmar or Burma 1,800 km, Cambodia 803 km, Laos 1,754 km, Malaysia 506 km
Coastline: 3,219 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone:
200 nautical miles
territorial sea:
12 nautical miles
Climate: tropical; rainy, warm, cloudy southwest monsoon (mid-May to September); dry, cool northeast monsoon (November to mid-March); southern isthmus always hot and humid
Terrain: central plain; Khorat Plateau in the east; mountains elsewhere
Elevation extremes:
lowest point:
Gulf of Thailand 0 m
highest point:
Doi Inthanon 2,576 m
Natural resources: tin, rubber, natural gas, tungsten, tantalum, timber, lead, fish, gypsum, lignite, fluorite, arable land
Land use:
arable land:
34%
permanent crops:
6%
permanent pastures:
2%
forests and woodland:
26%
other:
32% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 44,000 km² (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: land subsidence in Bangkok area resulting from the depletion of the water table; droughts
Environment - current issues: air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from organic and factory wastes; deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by illegal hunting
Environment - international agreements:
party to:
Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone layer protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified:
Biodiversity, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea
Geography - note: controls only land route from Asia to Malaysia and Singapore