Trinidad and Tobago Geography:
Location:
Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela
Geographic coordinates:
11 00 N, 61 00 W
Map references:
Area:
total:
5,128 sq km
land:
5,128 sq km
water:
0 sq km
Area - comparative:
Slightly smaller than Delaware
Land boundaries:
total: 0 km
border countries: NA
Coastline:
362 km
Maritime claims:
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the outer edge of the continental margin
territorial sea: 12 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Climate:
Tropical; rainy season (June to December)
Terrain:
Mostly plains with some hills and low mountains
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: El Cerro del Aripo 940 m
Natural resources:
Petroleum, natural gas, asphalt
Land use:
arable land: 14.62%
permanent crops: 9.16%
other: 76.22%
(2001)
Irrigated land:
30 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
Outside usual path of hurricanes and other tropical storms
Environment - current issues:
Water pollution from agricultural chemicals, industrial wastes, and raw sewage; oil pollution of beaches; deforestation; soil erosion
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements (not ratified)
Geography - Note:
Pitch Lake, on Trinidad's southwestern coast, is the world's largest natural reservoir of asphalt |
