Colombia has more physical diversity packed into its borders than any other area of comparable size in Latin America. The country is part of the Pacific "Ring of Fire", a region of the world characterized by frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
Colombian surface features form complicated patterns. The western third of the country is the most complex. Starting at the shore of the Pacific Ocean in the west and moving eastward at a latitude of 5 degrees north, a diverse sequence of features is encountered. In the extreme west are the very narrow and discontinuous Pacific coastal lowlands, which are backed by the Serranía de Baudó, the lowest and narrowest of Colombia's mountain ranges. Next is the broad region of the Río Atrato/Río San Juan lowland, which has been proposed as a possible alternate to the Panama Canal as a human-made route between the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans.
Location: |
Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Panama and Venezuela, and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Ecuador and Panama |
Geographic coordinates: |
4 00 N, 72 00 W |
Map references: |
South America |
Area: |
total: 1,138,910 sq km land: 1,038,700 sq km water: 100,210 sq km note: includes Isla de Malpelo, Roncador Cay, and Serrana Bank |
Area - comparative: |
slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
Land boundaries: |
total: 6,309 km border countries: Brazil 1,644 km, Ecuador 590 km, Panama 225 km, Peru 1,800 km, Venezuela 2,050 km |
Coastline: |
3,208 km (Caribbean Sea 1,760 km, North Pacific Ocean 1,448 km) |
Maritime claims: |
territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Climate: |
tropical along coast and eastern plains; cooler in highlands |
Terrain: |
flat coastal lowlands, central highlands, high Andes Mountains, eastern lowland plains |
Elevation extremes: |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico Cristobal Colon 5,775 m note: nearby Pico Simon Bolivar also has the same elevation |
Natural resources: |
petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, nickel, gold, copper, emeralds, hydropower |
Land use: |
arable land: 2.01% permanent crops: 1.37% other: 96.62% (2005) |
Irrigated land: |
9,000 sq km (2003) |
Natural hazards: |
highlands subject to volcanic eruptions; occasional earthquakes; periodic droughts |
Environment - current issues: |
deforestation; soil and water quality damage from overuse of pesticides; air pollution, especially in Bogota, from vehicle emissions |
Environment - international agreements: |
party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Geography - note: |
only South American country with coastlines on both the North Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea |
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