Chile Geography Profile 2009

Location

Southern South America, bordering the South Pacific Ocean, between Argentina and Peru

Geographic coordinates

30 00 S, 71 00 W

Map references

South America

Area

total: 756,102 sq km
land: 743,812 sq km
water: 12,290 sq km
note: includes Easter Island (Isla de Pascua) and Isla Sala y Gomez

Area - comparative

slightly smaller than twice the size of Montana

Land boundaries

total: 6,339 km
border countries: Argentina 5,308 km, Bolivia 860 km, Peru 171 km

Coastline

6,435 km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200/350 nm

Climate

temperate; desert in north; Mediterranean in central region; cool and damp in south

Terrain

low coastal mountains; fertile central valley; rugged Andes in east

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Nevado Ojos del Salado 6,880 m

Natural resources

copper, timber, iron ore, nitrates, precious metals, molybdenum, hydropower

Land use

arable land: 2.62%
permanent crops: 0.43%
other: 96.95% (2005)

Irrigated land

19,000 sq km (2003)

Total renewable water resources

922 cu km (2000)

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)

total: 12.55 cu km/yr (11%/25%/64%)
per capita: 770 cu m/yr (2000)

Natural hazards

severe earthquakes; active volcanism; tsunamis

Environment - current issues

widespread deforestation and mining threaten natural resources; air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution from raw sewage

Environment - international agreements

party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, 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, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note

strategic location relative to sea lanes between Atlantic and Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); Atacama Desert is one of world's driest regions