Greece

Greece Geography

Location
Southern Europe, bordering the Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea, between Albania and Turkey

Geographic coordinates
39 00 N, 22 00 E

Area
total: 131,940 sq km
land: 130,800 sq km
water: 1,140 sq km

Area - comparative
slightly smaller than Alabama

Land boundaries
total: 1,228 km
border countries: Albania 282 km, Bulgaria 494 km, Turkey 206 km, Macedonia 246 km

Coastline
13,676 km

Maritime claims
territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate
temperate; mild, wet winters; hot, dry summers

Terrain
mostly mountains with ranges extending into the sea as peninsulas or chains of islands

Elevation extremes
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Olympus 2,917 m

Natural resources
lignite, petroleum, iron ore, bauxite, lead, zinc, nickel, magnesite, marble, salt, hydropower potential

Land use
arable land: 21.1%
permanent crops: 8.78%
other: 70.12% (2001)

Irrigated land
14,220 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards
severe earthquakes

Environment - current issues
air pollution; water pollution

Environment - international agreements
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds

Geography - note
strategic location dominating the Aegean Sea and southern approach to Turkish Straits; a peninsular country, possessing an archipelago of about 2,000 islands



- Info Provided by the CIA World Factbook -