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Kiribati Geography 2013
http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/kiribati/kiribati_geography.html
SOURCE: 2013 CIA WORLD FACTBOOK AND OTHER SOURCES
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Page last updated on February 5, 2013

Location:
Oceania, group of 33 coral atolls in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the Equator, as well as the International Date Line; the capital Tarawa is about half way between Hawaii and Australia

Geographic coordinates:
1 25 N, 173 00 E

Map references:
Oceania

Area:
total: 811 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 187
land: 811 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands

Area - comparative:
four times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:
0 km
[see also: Land boundaries country ranks ]

Coastline:
1,143 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate:
tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds

Terrain:
mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
[see also: Elevation extremes - lowest point country ranks ]
highest point: unnamed elevation on Banaba 81 m

Natural resources:
phosphate (production discontinued in 1979)

Land use:
arable land: 2.74%
[see also: Land use - arable land country ranks ]
permanent crops: 47.95%
other: 49.31% (2005)

Irrigated land:
NA
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Natural hazards:
typhoons can occur any time, but usually November to March; occasional tornadoes; low level of some of the islands make them sensitive to changes in sea level

Environment - current issues:
heavy pollution in lagoon of south Tarawa atoll due to heavy migration mixed with traditional practices such as lagoon latrines and open-pit dumping; ground water at risk

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
21 of the 33 islands are inhabited; Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Makatea in French Polynesia, and Nauru; Kiribati is the only country in the world to fall into all four hemispheres (northern, southern, eastern, and western)


NOTE: The information regarding Kiribati on this page is re-published from the 2013 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Kiribati Geography 2013 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Kiribati Geography 2013 should be addressed to the CIA.


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This page was last modified 22-Mar-13
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