995,450 sq km
water: 6,000 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly more than three times the size of New Mexico
Land boundaries:
total: 2,665 km
border countries: Gaza Strip 11 km, Israel 266 km, Libya 1,115 km,
Sudan 1,273 km
Coastline:
2,450 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate:
desert; hot, dry summers with moderate winters
Terrain:
vast desert plateau interrupted by Nile valley and delta
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Qattara Depression -133 m
highest point: Mount Catherine 2,629 m
Natural resources:
petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, manganese, limestone,
gypsum, talc, asbestos, lead, zinc
Land use:
arable land: 2.92%
permanent crops: 0.5%
other: 96.58% (2005)
Irrigated land:
34,220 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
periodic droughts; frequent earthquakes, flash floods, landslides;
hot, driving windstorm called khamsin occurs in spring; dust storms,
sandstorms
Environment - current issues:
agricultural land being lost to urbanization and windblown sands;
increasing soil salination below Aswan High Dam; desertification;
oil pollution threatening coral reefs, beaches, and marine habitats;
other water pollution from agricultural pesticides, raw sewage, and
industrial effluents; very limited natural fresh water resources
away from the Nile, which is the only perennial water source; rapid
growth in population overstraining the Nile and natural resources
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping,
Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical
Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
controls Sinai Peninsula, only land bridge between Africa and
remainder of Eastern Hemisphere; controls Suez Canal, a sea link
between Indian Ocean and Mediterranean Sea; size, and juxtaposition
to Israel, establish its major role in Middle Eastern geopolitics;
dependence on upstream neighbors; dominance of Nile basin issues;
prone to influxes of refugees
People Egypt
Population:
78,887,007 (July 2006 est.)
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