Lebanon Geography:
Location:
Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Israel and Syria
Geographic coordinates:
33 50 N, 35 50 E
Map references:
Area:
total:
10,400 sq km
land:
10,230 sq km
water:
170 sq km
Area - comparative:
About 0.7 times the size of Connecticut
Land boundaries:
total: 454 km
border countries: Israel 79 km, Syria 375 km
Coastline:
225 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 NM
Climate:
Mediterranean; mild to cool, wet winters with hot, dry summers; Lebanon mountains experience heavy winter snows
Terrain:
Narrow coastal plain; El Beqaa (Bekaa Valley) separates Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon Mountains
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Qurnat as Sawda' 3,088 m
Natural resources:
Limestone, iron ore, salt, water-surplus state in a water-deficit region, arable land
Land use:
arable land: 16.62%
permanent crops: 13.98%
other: 69.4%
(2001)
Irrigated land:
1,200 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
Dust storms, sandstorms
Environment - current issues:
Deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; air pollution in Beirut from vehicular traffic and the burning of industrial wastes; pollution of coastal waters from raw sewage and oil spills
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation (not ratified)
Geography - Note:
Nahr el Litani only major river in Near East not crossing an international boundary; rugged terrain historically helped isolate, protect, and develop numerous factional groups based on religion, clan, and ethnicity |
