| Geography | Nicaragua |
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Location:
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Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras |
Geographic coordinates:
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13 00 N, 85 00 W |
Map references:
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Central America and the Caribbean |
Area:
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total: 130,370 sq km
land: 119,990 sq km
water: 10,380 sq km |
Area - comparative:
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slightly smaller than New York state |
Land boundaries:
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total: 1,231 km
border countries: Costa Rica 309 km, Honduras 922 km |
Coastline:
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910 km |
Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: natural prolongation |
Climate:
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tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands |
Terrain:
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extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes |
Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mogoton 2,438 m |
Natural resources:
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gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish |
Land use:
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arable land: 14.81%
permanent crops: 1.82%
other: 83.37% (2005) |
Irrigated land:
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610 sq km (2008) |
Total renewable water resources:
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196.7 cu km (2000) |
Total renewable water resources - per capita:
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34,715 cubic meters per capita |
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
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total: 1.3 cu km/yr (15%/2%/83%)
per capita: 237 cu m/yr (2000) |
Natural hazards:
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destructive earthquakes; volcanoes; landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes
volcanism: Nicaragua experiences significant volcanic activity; Cerro Negro (elev. 728 m), which last erupted in 1999, is one of Nicaragua's most active volcanoes; its lava flows and ash have been known to cause significant damage to farmland and buildings; other historically active volcanoes include Concepcion, Cosiguina, Las Pilas, Masaya, Momotombo, San Cristobal, and Telica |
Environment - current issues:
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deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution |
Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Geography - note:
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largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago de Nicaragua |
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