Short facts about the geography of Bulgaria

Location:

Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey

Geographic coordinates:

43 00 N, 25 00 E

Map references:

Europe

Area:

total:  110,910 sq km land:  110,550 sq km water:  360 sq km

Area - comparative:

slightly larger than Tennessee

Land boundaries:

total:  1,808 km border countries:  Greece 494 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 148 km, Romania 608 km, Yugoslavia 318 km, Turkey 240 km

Coastline:

354 km

Maritime claims:

contiguous zone:  24 NM exclusive economic zone:  200 NM territorial sea:  12 NM

Climate:

temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers

Terrain:

mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast

Elevation extremes:

lowest point:  Black Sea 0 m highest point:  Musala 2,925 m

Natural resources:

bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land

Land use:

arable land:  43% permanent crops:  2% permanent pastures:  14% forests and woodland:  38% other:  3% (1999 est.)

Irrigated land:

12,370 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards:

earthquakes, landslides

Environment - current issues:

air pollution from industrial emissions; rivers polluted from raw sewage, heavy metals, detergents; deforestation; forest damage from air pollution and resulting acid rain; soil contamination from heavy metals from metallurgical plants and industrial wastes

Environment - international agreements:

party to:  Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified:  Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

Geography - note:

strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia

Source: World Factbook