Tuvalu Geography 1997

Location Oceania, island group consisting of nine coral atolls in the South PacificOcean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia

Geographic coordinates 8 00 S, 178 00 E

Map references Oceania

Area
total : 26 sq km
land: 26 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries 0 km

Coastline 24 km

Maritime claims
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea : 12 nm

Climate tropical; moderated by easterly trade winds (March to November); westerlygales and heavy rain (November to March)

Terrain very low-lying and narrow coral atolls

Elevation extremes
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m

Natural resources fish

Land use
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 0%
other : 100% (1993 est.)
note: Tuvalu's nine coral atolls have enough soil to grow coconuts and supportsubsistence agriculture

Irrigated land NA sq km

Natural hazards severe tropical storms are rare

Environment - current issues since there are no streams or rivers and groundwater is not potable,all water needs must be met by catchment systems with storage facilities; beachhead erosion because of the use of sand for building materials; excessiveclearance of forest undergrowth for use as fuel; damage to coral reefs fromthe spread of the crown of thorns starfish

Environment - international agreements
party to: Climate Change, Endangered Species, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection,Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity, Law of the Sea

NOTE: The information regarding Tuvalu on this page is re-published from the 1997 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Tuvalu Geography 1997 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Tuvalu Geography 1997 should be addressed to the CIA.