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GEOGRAPHY
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Location:
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Oceania,
continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean
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Geographic
Coordinates:
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27
00 S, 133 00 E |
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Map
References:
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Oceania |
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Area:
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total:
7,686,850 sq km
land: 7,617,930 sq km
water: 68,920 sq km
note: includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island |
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Area
- Comparative:
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slightly
smaller than the US |
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Land
Boundaries:
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0
km |
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Coastline:
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25,760
km |
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Maritime
Claims:
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contiguous
zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental
margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm |
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Climate:
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generally
arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north
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Terrain:
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mostly
low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast |
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Land
Use:
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arable
land: 6%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 54%
forests and woodland: 19%
other: 21% (1993 est.) |
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Irrigated
Land :
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21,070
sq km (1993 est.) |
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Natural
Hazards:
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cyclones
along the coast; severe droughts |
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Environment
- Current Issues:
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soil erosion from overgrazing, industrial development, urbanization,
and poor farming practices; soil salinity rising due to the use
of poor quality water; desertification; clearing for agricultural
purposes threatens the natural habitat of many unique animal and
plant species; the Great Barrier Reef off the northeast coast,
the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by increased
shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; limited natural
fresh water resources |
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Environment
- International Agreements:
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party
to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life
Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution,
Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed,
but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification
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