Geography of Antigua and Barbuda
Location:
Antigua and Barbuda are Caribbean islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east-southeast of Puerto Rico
Geographic coordinates:
17 03 N, 61 48 W
Map references:
Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
Area - comparative:
2.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
153 km
Maritime claims:
Climate:
tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation
Terrain:
mostly low-lying limestone and coral islands, with some higher volcanic areas
Elevation extremes:
Natural resources:
NEGL; pleasant climate fosters tourism
Land use:
Irrigated land:
NA sq km
Natural hazards:
hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October); periodic droughts
Environment - current issues:
water management - a major concern because of limited natural fresh water resources - is further hampered by the clearing of trees to increase crop production, causing rainfall to run off quickly
Environment - international agreements:
Much of the material in this article comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000 and the 2003 U.S. Department of State website.
total:
442 sq km (Antigua 281 sq km; Barbuda 161 sq km)
land:
442 sq km
water:
0 sq km
note:
includes Redonda
contiguous zone:
24 nm
continental shelf:
200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point:
Boggy Peak 402 m
arable land:
18%
permanent crops:
0%
permanent pastures:
9%
forests and woodland:
11%
other:
62% (1993 est.)
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
Reference