Greece vs. Bulgaria
Geography
| Greece | Bulgaria | |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Southern Europe, bordering the Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea, between Albania and Turkey | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey |
| Geographic coordinates | 39 00 N, 22 00 E | 43 00 N, 25 00 E |
| Map references | Europe | Europe |
| Area | total: 131,957 sq km land: 130,647 sq km water: 1,310 sq km | total: 110,879 sq km land: 108,489 sq km water: 2,390 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Alabama | almost identical in size to Virginia; slightly larger than Tennessee |
| Land boundaries | total: 1,110 km border countries (4): Albania 212 km, Bulgaria 472 km, Macedonia 234 km, Turkey 192 km | total: 1,806 km border countries (5): Greece 472 km, Macedonia 162 km, Romania 605 km, Serbia 344 km, Turkey 223 km |
| Coastline | 13,676 km | 354 km |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 6 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation | territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
| Climate | temperate; mild, wet winters; hot, dry summers | temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers |
| Terrain | mountainous with ranges extending into the sea as peninsulas or chains of islands | mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast |
| Elevation extremes | highest point: Mount Olympus 2,917 lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m mean elevation: 498 m note: Mount Olympus actually has 52 peaks but its highest point, Mytikas (meaning "nose"), rises to 2,917 meters; in Greek mythology, Olympus' Mytikas peak was the home of the Greek gods | highest point: Musala 2,925 m lowest point: Black Sea 0 m mean elevation: 472 m |
| Natural resources | lignite, petroleum, iron ore, bauxite, lead, zinc, nickel, magnesite, marble, salt, hydropower potential | bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land |
| Land use | agricultural land: 63.4% (2018 est.) arable land: 19.7% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 8.9% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 34.8% (2018 est.) forest: 30.5% (2018 est.) other: 6.1% (2018 est.) | agricultural land: 46.9% (2018 est.) arable land: 29.9% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 1.5% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 15.5% (2018 est.) forest: 36.7% (2018 est.) other: 16.4% (2018 est.) |
| Irrigated land | 15,550 sq km (2012) | 1,020 sq km (2012) |
| Natural hazards | severe earthquakes volcanism: Santorini (367 m) has been deemed a Decade Volcano by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to its explosive history and close proximity to human populations; although there have been very few eruptions in recent centuries, Methana and Nisyros in the Aegean are classified as historically active | earthquakes; landslides |
| Environment - current issues | air pollution; air emissions from transport and electricity power stations; water pollution; degradation of coastal zones; loss of biodiversity in terrestrial and marine ecosystems; increasing municipal and industrial waste | air pollution from industrial emissions; rivers polluted from raw sewage, heavy metals, detergents; deforestation; forest damage from air pollution and resulting acid rain; soil contamination from heavy metals from metallurgical plants and industrial wastes |
| Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protection, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 2006, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Heavy Metals, Air Pollution-Multi-effect Protocol, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Heavy Metals, Air Pollution-Multi-effect Protocol, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protection, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Marine Dumping-London Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 2006, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| 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 | strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia |
| Total renewable water resources | 68.4 billion cubic meters (2017 est.) | 21.3 billion cubic meters (2017 est.) |
| Population distribution | one-third of the population lives in and around metropolitan Athens; the remainder of the country has moderate population density mixed with sizeable urban clusters | a fairly even distribution throughout most of the country, with urban areas attracting larger populations |
Source: CIA Factbook
