Germany Geography 1997

Location Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, betweenthe Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark

Geographic coordinates 51 00 N, 9 00 E

Map references Europe

Area
total: 356,910 sq km
land : 349,520 sq km
water: 7,390 sq km
note: includes the formerly separate Federal Republic of Germany, the GermanDemocratic Republic, and Berlin, following formal unification on 3 October 1990

Area - comparative slightly smaller than Montana

Land boundaries
total: 3,621 km
border countries : Austria 784 km, Belgium 167 km, Czech Republic 646 km, Denmark 68 km,France 451 km, Luxembourg 138 km, Netherlands 577 km, Poland 456 km, Switzerland334 km

Coastline 2,389 km

Maritime claims
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone : 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasionalwarm, tropical foehn wind; high relative humidity

Terrain lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south

Elevation extremes
lowest point : Freepsum Lake -2 m
highest point: Zugspitze 2,962 m

Natural resources iron ore, coal, potash, timber, lignite, uranium, copper, natural gas,salt, nickel

Land use
arable land : 33%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 15%
forests and woodland: 31%
other : 20% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land 4,750 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards NA

Environment - current issues emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries and lead emissionsfrom vehicle exhausts (the result of continued use of leaded fuels) contributeto air pollution; acid rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damagingforests; heavy pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrialeffluents from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste disposal

Environment - international agreements
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol,Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, EndangeredSpecies, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, MarineDumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, TropicalTimber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified : Air Pollution-Sulphur 94

Geography - note strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance tothe Baltic Sea

NOTE: The information regarding Germany 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 Germany Geography 1997 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Germany Geography 1997 should be addressed to the CIA.