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Mexico vs. Belize

Geography

MexicoBelize
LocationNorth America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, between Belize and the United States and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and the United StatesCentral America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Mexico
Geographic coordinates23 00 N, 102 00 W17 15 N, 88 45 W
Map referencesNorth AmericaCentral America and the Caribbean
Areatotal: 1,964,375 sq km

land: 1,943,945 sq km

water: 20,430 sq km
total: 22,966 sq km

land: 22,806 sq km

water: 160 sq km
Area - comparativeslightly less than three times the size of Texasslightly smaller than Massachusetts
Land boundariestotal: 4,389 km

border countries (3): Belize 276 km, Guatemala 958 km, US 3155 km
total: 542 km

border countries (2): Guatemala 266 km, Mexico 276 km
Coastline9,330 km386 km
Maritime claimsterritorial sea: 12 nm

contiguous zone: 24 nm

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
territorial sea: 12 nm in the north, 3 nm in the south; note - from the mouth of the Sarstoon River to Ranguana Cay, Belize's territorial sea is 3 nm; according to Belize's Maritime Areas Act, 1992, the purpose of this limitation is to provide a framework for negotiating a definitive agreement on territorial differences with Guatemala

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Climatevaries from tropical to deserttropical; very hot and humid; rainy season (May to November); dry season (February to May)
Terrainhigh, rugged mountains; low coastal plains; high plateaus; desertflat, swampy coastal plain; low mountains in south
Elevation extremeshighest point: Volcan Pico de Orizaba 5,636 m

lowest point: Laguna Salada -10 m

mean elevation: 1,111 m
highest point: Doyle's Delight 1,124 m

lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m

mean elevation: 173 m
Natural resourcespetroleum, silver, antimony, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, timberarable land potential, timber, fish, hydropower
Land useagricultural land: 54.9% (2018 est.)

arable land: 11.8% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 1.4% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 41.7% (2018 est.)

forest: 33.3% (2018 est.)

other: 11.8% (2018 est.)
agricultural land: 6.9% (2018 est.)

arable land: 3.3% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 1.4% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 2.2% (2018 est.)

forest: 60.6% (2018 est.)

other: 32.5% (2018 est.)
Irrigated land65,000 sq km (2012)35 sq km (2012)
Natural hazards

tsunamis along the Pacific coast, volcanoes and destructive earthquakes in the center and south, and hurricanes on the Pacific, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean coasts

volcanism: volcanic activity in the central-southern part of the country; the volcanoes in Baja California are mostly dormant; Colima (3,850 m), which erupted in 2010, is Mexico's most active volcano and is responsible for causing periodic evacuations of nearby villagers; it 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; Popocatepetl (5,426 m) poses a threat to Mexico City; other historically active volcanoes include Barcena, Ceboruco, El Chichon, Michoacan-Guanajuato, Pico de Orizaba, San Martin, Socorro, and Tacana; see note 2 under "Geography - note"

frequent, devastating hurricanes (June to November) and coastal flooding (especially in south)
Environment - current issuesscarcity of hazardous waste disposal facilities; rural to urban migration; natural freshwater resources scarce and polluted in north, inaccessible and poor quality in center and extreme southeast; raw sewage and industrial effluents polluting rivers in urban areas; deforestation; widespread erosion; desertification; deteriorating agricultural lands; serious air and water pollution in the national capital and urban centers along US-Mexico border; land subsidence in Valley of Mexico caused by groundwater depletion

note: the government considers the lack of clean water and deforestation national security issues
deforestation; water pollution, including pollution of Belize's Barrier Reef System, from sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff; inability to properly dispose of solid waste
Environment - international agreementsparty to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Marine Dumping-London Protocol, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 2006, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note

note 1: strategic location on southern border of the US; Mexico is one of the countries along the Ring of Fire, a belt of active volcanoes and earthquake epicenters bordering the Pacific Ocean; up to 90% of the world's earthquakes and some 75% of the world's volcanoes occur within the Ring of Fire

note 2: some of the world's most important food crops were first domesticated in Mexico; the "Three Sisters" companion plants - winter squash, maize (corn), and climbing beans - served as the main agricultural crops for various North American Indian groups; all three apparently originated in Mexico but then were widely disseminated through much of North America; avocado, amaranth, and chili peppers also emanate from Mexico, as does vanilla, the world's most popular aroma and flavor spice; although cherry tomatoes originated in Ecuador, their domestication in Mexico transformed them into the larger modern tomato

note 3: the Sac Actun cave system at 348 km (216 mi) is the longest underwater cave in the world and the second longest cave worldwide, after Mammoth Cave in the United States (see "Geography - note" under United States)

note 4: the prominent Yucatan Peninsula that divides the Gulf of Mexico from the Caribbean Sea is shared by Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize; just on the northern coast of Yucatan, near the town of Chicxulub (pronounce cheek-sha-loob), lie the remnants of a massive crater (some 150 km in diameter and extending well out into the Gulf of Mexico); formed by an asteroid or comet when it struck the earth 66 million years ago, the impact is now widely accepted as initiating a worldwide climate disruption that caused a mass extinction of 75% of all the earth's plant and animal species - including the non-avian dinosaurs

only country in Central America without a coastline on the North Pacific Ocean
Total renewable water resources461.888 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)21.734 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)
Population distributionmost of the population is found in the middle of the country between the states of Jalisco and Veracruz; approximately a quarter of the population lives in and around Mexico Cityapproximately 25% to 30% of the population lives in the former capital, Belize City; over half of the overall population is rural; population density is slightly higher in the north and east

Source: CIA Factbook