Geography of the Czech Republic
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Location: Central Europe, southeast of Germany
Ez-map.png
Map of the Czech Republic
Geographic coordinates: Template:Coor dm
Map references: Europe
Area:
total:
78,866 km²
land:
77,276 km²
water:
1,590 km²
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than South Carolina
Land boundaries:
total:
1,881 km
border countries:
Austria 362 km, Germany 646 km, Poland 658 km, Slovakia 215 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: temperate; hot summers; cold, cloudy, white winters
Terrain: Bohemia in the west consists of rolling plains, hills, and plateaus surrounded by low mountains; Moravia in the east consists of very hilly country
Elevation extremes:
lowest point:
Elbe River 115 m
highest point:
Snezka 1602 m
Natural resources: hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite, timber
Land use:
arable land:
41%
permanent crops:
2%
permanent pastures:
11%
forests and woodland:
34%
other:
12% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 240 km² (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: flooding
Environment - current issues: air and water pollution in areas of northwest Bohemia and in northern Moravia around Ostrava present health risks; acid rain damaging forests
Environment - international agreements:
party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified:
Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol
Geography - note:
landlocked; strategically located astride some of oldest and most significant land routes in Europe; Moravian Gate is a traditional military corridor between the North European Plain and the Danube in central Europe