Short facts about the geography of Macedonia

Location:

Southeastern Europe, north of Greece

Geographic coordinates:

41 50 N, 22 00 E

Map references:

Europe

Area:

total:  25,333 sq km land:  24,856 sq km water:  477 sq km

Area - comparative:

slightly larger than Vermont

Land boundaries:

total:  748 km border countries:  Albania 151 km, Bulgaria 148 km, Greece 228 km, Yugoslavia 221 km

Coastline:

0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims:

none (landlocked)

Climate:

warm, dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall

Terrain:

mountainous territory covered with deep basins and valleys; three large lakes, each divided by a frontier line; country bisected by the Vardar River

Elevation extremes:

lowest point:  Vardar River 50 m highest point:  Golem Korab (Maja e Korabit) 2,753 m

Natural resources:

chromium, lead, zinc, manganese, tungsten, nickel, low-grade iron ore, asbestos, sulfur, timber, arable land

Land use:

arable land:  24% permanent crops:  2% permanent pastures:  25% forests and woodland:  39% other:  10% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land:

830 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards:

high seismic risks

Environment - current issues:

air pollution from metallurgical plants

Environment - international agreements:

party to:  Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified:  none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:

landlocked; major transportation corridor from Western and Central Europe to Aegean Sea and Southern Europe to Western Europe

Source: World Factbook