imate:
temperate; moderated by North Atlantic Current; mild, windy
winters; damp, cool summers

Terrain:
mostly plateau interspersed with mountain peaks, icefields; coast
deeply indented by bays and fiords

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Hvannadalshnukur 2,119 m (at Vatnajokull glacier)

Natural resources:
fish, hydropower, geothermal power, diatomite

Land use:
arable land: 0.07%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 99.93% (2001)

Irrigated land:
NA sq km

Natural hazards:
earthquakes and volcanic activity

Environment - current issues:
water pollution from fertilizer runoff; inadequate wastewater
treatment

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate
Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species,
Hazardous Wastes, Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping,
Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Transboundary Air Pollution,
Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic
Pollutants, Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation

Geography - note:
strategic location between Greenland and Europe; westernmost
European country; Reykjavik is the northernmost national capital in
the world; more land covered by glaciers than in all of continental
Europe

People Iceland

Population:
293,966 (July 2004 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 22.5% (male 33,522; female 32,489)
15-64 years: 65.8% (male 98,091; female 95,450)
65 years and over: 11.7% (male 15,552; female 18,862) (2004 est.)

Median age:
total: 33.8 years
male: 33.3 years
female: 34.3 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate:
0.97% (2004 est.)

Birth rate:
13.83 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate:
6.57 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate:
2.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 3.31 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 3.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 3.44 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 80.18 years
male: 78.18 years
female: 82.27 years (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate:
1.93 childre