Bolivia Geography Profile 2003

Location

Central South America, southwest of Brazil

Geographic coordinates

17 00 S, 65 00 W

Map references

South America

Area

total: 1,098,580 sq km
land: 1,084,390 sq km
water: 14,190 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly less than three times the size of Montana

Land boundaries

total: 6,743 km
border countries: Argentina 832 km, Brazil 3,400 km, Chile 861 km, Paraguay 750 km, Peru 900 km

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims

none (landlocked)

Climate

varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid

Terrain

rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano), hills, lowland plains of the Amazon Basin

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Rio Paraguay 90 m
highest point: Nevado Sajama 6,542 m

Natural resources

tin, natural gas, petroleum, zinc, tungsten, antimony, silver, iron, lead, gold, timber, hydropower

Land use

arable land: 1.73%
permanent crops: 0.21%
other: 98.06% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land

1,280 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards

flooding in the northeast (March-April)

Environment - current issues

the clearing of land for agricultural purposes and the international demand for tropical timber are contributing to deforestation; soil erosion from overgrazing and poor cultivation methods (including slash-and-burn agriculture); desertification; loss of biodiversity; industrial pollution of water supplies used for drinking and irrigation

Environment - international agreements

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection

Geography - note

landlocked; shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake (elevation 3,805 m), with Peru