Kiribati Geography Profile 2009

Location

Oceania, group of 33 coral atolls in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the Equator; the capital Tarawa is about half way between Hawaii and Australia; note - on 1 January 1995, Kiribati proclaimed that all of its territory was in the same time zone as its Gilbert Islands group (UTC +12) even though the Phoenix Islands and the Line Islands under its jurisdiction were on the other side of the International Date Line

Geographic coordinates

1 25 N, 173 00 E

Map references

Oceania

Area

total: 811 sq km
land: 811 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands

Area - comparative

four times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries

0 km

Coastline

1,143 km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate

tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds

Terrain

mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m

Natural resources

phosphate (production discontinued in 1979)

Land use

arable land: 2.74%
permanent crops: 47.95%
other: 49.31% (2005)

Irrigated land

NA

Natural hazards

typhoons can occur any time, but usually November to March; occasional tornadoes; low level of some of the islands make them sensitive to changes in sea level

Environment - current issues

heavy pollution in lagoon of south Tarawa atoll due to heavy migration mixed with traditional practices such as lagoon latrines and open-pit dumping; ground water at risk

Environment - international agreements

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note

21 of the 33 islands are inhabited; Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Makatea in French Polynesia, and Nauru