Geography of Suriname
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Location: Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between French Guiana and Guyana
Geographic coordinates: Template:Coor dm
Map references: South America
Area:
total:
163,270 sq km
land:
161,470 sq km
water:
1,800 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly larger than Georgia
Land boundaries:
total:
1,707 km
border countries:
Brazil 597 km, French Guiana 510 km, Guyana 600 km
Coastline: 386 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
Climate: tropical; moderated by trade winds
Terrain: mostly rolling hills; narrow coastal plain with swamps
Elevation extremes:
lowest point:
unnamed location in the coastal plain -2 m
highest point:
Wilhelmina Gebergte 1,286 m
Natural resources: timber, hydropower, fish, kaolin, shrimp, bauxite, gold, and small amounts of nickel, copper, platinum, iron ore
Land use:
arable land:
0%
permanent crops:
0%
permanent pastures:
0%
forests and woodland:
96%
other:
4% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 600 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: NA
Environment - current issues: deforestation as timber is cut for export; pollution of inland waterways by small-scale mining activities
Environment - international agreements:
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: mostly tropical rain forest; great diversity of flora and fauna that, for the most part, is increasingly threatened by new development; relatively small population, most of which lives along the coast
- See also : Suriname
Map (http://www.gazetteer.de/s/p_sr.htm)