Geography of Belize
Location:
Belize is in Central America or Middle America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, Guatemala, and Mexico. Geographic coordinates:
17 15 N, 88 45 W
Area:
Land boundaries:
Coastline:
386 km
Maritime claims:
Cities and Towns
Climate:
tropical; very hot and humid; rainy season (May to February)
Terrain:
flat, swampy coastal plain; low mountains in south
Elevation extremes:
Natural resources:
arable land potential, timber, fish, hydropower
Land use:
Irrigated land:
20 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards:
frequent, devastating hurricanes (September to December) and coastal flooding (especially in south)
Environment - current issues:
deforestation; water pollution from sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff; solid waste disposal
Environment - international agreements:
Geography - note:
only country in Central America without a coastline on the North Pacific Ocean.
Some of the material in this article comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000.
Maps at Belize.Net (http://www.belize.net/html/maps.shtml)
total:
22,960 sq km
land:
22,800 sq km
water:
160 sq km
total:
516 km
border countries:
Guatemala 266 km, Mexico 250 km
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm in the north, 3 nm in the south; note - from the mouth of the Sarstoon River to Ranguana Cay, Belize's territorial sea is 3 nm; according to Belize's Maritime Areas Act, 1992, the purpose of this limitation is to provide a framework for the negotiation of a definitive agreement on territorial differences with Guatemala
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point:
Victoria Peak 1,160 m
arable land:
2%
permanent crops:
1%
permanent pastures:
2%
forests and woodland:
92%
other:
3% (1993 est.)
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Marine Dumping, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
Reference
External Link