6,995 m

Natural resources: major deposits of petroleum, natural gas, coal,
iron ore, manganese, chrome ore, nickel, cobalt, copper, molybdenum,
lead, zinc, bauxite, gold, uranium

Land use: arable land: 12%

permanent crops: 11%

permanent pastures: 57%

forests and woodland: 4%

other: 16% (1996 est.)

Irrigated land: 22,000 sq km (1996 est.)

Natural hazards: earthquakes in the south, mudslides around Almaty

Environment - current issues: radioactive or toxic chemical sites
associated with its former defense industries and test ranges are
found throughout the country and pose health risks for humans and
animals; industrial pollution is severe in some cities; because the
two main rivers which flowed into the Aral Sea have been diverted
for irrigation, it is drying up and leaving behind a harmful layer
of chemical pesticides and natural salts; these substances are then
picked up by the wind and blown into noxious dust storms; pollution
in the Caspian Sea; soil pollution from overuse of agricultural
chemicals and salination from poor infrastructure and wasteful
irrigation practices

Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution,
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species,
Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution

signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

Geography - note: landlocked; Russia leases approximately 6,000 sq
km of territory enclosing the Baykonur Cosmodrome

Kazakhstan People

Population: 16,731,303 (July 2001 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 26.73% (male 2,271,866; female 2,200,078)

15-64 years: 66.03% (male 5,358,535; female 5,688,550)

65 years and over: 7.24% (male 412,761; female 799,513) (2001 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.03% (2001 est.)

Birth rate: 17.3 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Death rate: 10.61 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Net migration rate: -6.43 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.52 male(s)/female

total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 59.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 63.29 years

male: 57.87 years

female: 68.97 years (2001 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.07 children born/woman (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0