Geography of Haiti
Location:
Caribbean, western one-third of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of the Dominican Republic
Geographic coordinates:
19 00 N, 72 25 W
Map references:
Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Maryland
Land boundaries:
Coastline:
1,771 km
Maritime claims:
Climate:
tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut off trade winds
Terrain:
mostly rough and mountainous
Elevation extremes:
Natural resources:
bauxite, copper, calcium carbonate, gold, marble, hydropower
Land use:
Irrigated land:
750 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards:
lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding and earthquakes; periodic droughts
Environment - current issues:
extensive deforestation (much of the remaining forested land is being cleared for agriculture and used as fuel); soil erosion; inadequate supplies of potable water
Environment - international agreements:
Geography - note:
shares island of Hispaniola with Dominican Republic (western one-third is Haiti, eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic)
total:
27,750 sq km
land:
27,560 sq km
water:
190 sq km
total:
275 km
border countries:
Dominican Republic 275 km
contiguous zone:
24 nm
continental shelf:
to depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point:
Chaine de la Selle 2,680 m
arable land:
20%
permanent crops:
13%
permanent pastures:
18%
forests and woodland:
5%
other:
44% (1993 est.)
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation
signed, but not ratified:
Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban