Cyprus Geography Profile 2009

Location

Middle East, island in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Turkey

Geographic coordinates

35 00 N, 33 00 E

Map references

Middle East

Area

total: 9,251 sq km (of which 3,355 sq km are in north Cyprus)
land: 9,241 sq km
water: 10 sq km

Area - comparative

about 0.6 times the size of Connecticut

Land boundaries

total: 150.4 km (approximately)
border sovereign base areas: Akrotiri 47.4 km, Dhekelia 103 km (approximately)

Coastline

648 km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate

temperate; Mediterranean with hot, dry summers and cool winters

Terrain

central plain with mountains to north and south; scattered but significant plains along southern coast

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Olympus 1,951 m

Natural resources

copper, pyrites, asbestos, gypsum, timber, salt, marble, clay earth pigment

Land use

arable land: 10.81%
permanent crops: 4.32%
other: 84.87% (2005)

Irrigated land

400 sq km (2003)

Total renewable water resources

0.4 cu km (2005)

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)

total: 0.21 cu km/yr (27%/1%/71%)
per capita: 250 cu m/yr (2000)

Natural hazards

moderate earthquake activity; droughts

Environment - current issues

water resource problems (no natural reservoir catchments, seasonal disparity in rainfall, sea water intrusion to island's largest aquifer, increased salination in the north); water pollution from sewage and industrial wastes; coastal degradation; loss of wildlife habitats from urbanization

Environment - international agreements

party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, 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
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note

the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea (after Sicily and Sardinia)