| Geography | Kazakhstan |  = Fields  = World Records  = Dictionary  = Bar graph  = Distribution map  = Fields History  = Definitions |
| | | | |
Location:
|
Central Asia, northwest of China; a small portion west of the Ural (Zhayyq) River in eastern-most Europe |
Geographic coordinates:
|
48 00 N, 68 00 E |
Map references:
|
Asia |
Area:
|
total: 2,724,900 sq km
land: 2,699,700 sq km
water: 25,200 sq km |
Area - comparative:
|
slightly less than four times the size of Texas |
Land boundaries:
|
total: 12,185 km
border countries: China 1,533 km, Kyrgyzstan 1,224 km, Russia 6,846 km, Turkmenistan 379 km, Uzbekistan 2,203 km |
Coastline:
|
0 km (landlocked); note - Kazakhstan borders the Aral Sea, now split into two bodies of water (1,070 km), and the Caspian Sea (1,894 km) |
Maritime claims:
|
none (landlocked) |
Climate:
|
continental, cold winters and hot summers, arid and semiarid |
Terrain:
|
vast flat steppe extending from the Volga in the west to the Altai Mountains in the east and from the plains of western Siberia in the north to oases and deserts of Central Asia in the south |
Elevation extremes:
|
lowest point: Vpadina Kaundy -132 m
highest point: Khan Tangiri Shyngy (Pik Khan-Tengri) 6,995 m |
Natural resources:
|
major deposits of petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, manganese, chrome ore, nickel, cobalt, copper, molybdenum, lead, zinc, bauxite, gold, uranium |
Land use:
|
arable land: 8.28%
permanent crops: 0.05%
other: 91.67% (2005) |
Irrigated land:
|
35,560 sq km (2008) |
Total renewable water resources:
|
109.6 cu km (1997) |
Total renewable water resources - per capita:
|
7,061 cubic meters per capita |
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
|
total: 35 cu km/yr (2%/17%/82%)
per capita: 2,360 cu m/yr (2000) |
Natural hazards:
|
earthquakes in the south; mudslides around Almaty |
Environment - current issues:
|
radioactive or toxic chemical sites associated with former defense industries and test ranges scattered throughout the country pose health risks for humans and animals; industrial pollution is severe in some cities; because the two main rivers that flowed into the Aral Sea have been diverted for irrigation, it is drying up and leaving behind a harmful layer of chemical pesticides and natural salts; these substances are then picked up by the wind and blown into noxious dust storms; pollution in the Caspian Sea; soil pollution from overuse of agricultural chemicals and salination from poor infrastructure and wasteful irrigation practices |
Environment - international agreements:
|
party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Geography - note:
|
landlocked; Russia leases approximately 6,000 sq km of territory enclosing the Baykonur Cosmodrome; in January 2004, Kazakhstan and Russia extended the lease to 2050 |
| = Fields = World Records = Dictionary = Bar graph = Distribution map = Fields History = Definitions | |
|
|
|
This page was last updated on 3 February, 2012 |
|
|
Home 
Geographic Names
Chiefs of State
Intl. Organizations
Intl. Environmental Agree.
Other References
