| Location: |
Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula
|
| Geographic coordinates: |
36 00 N, 138 00 E
|
| Area: |
total:
377,835 sq km
land:
374,744 sq km
water:
3,091 sq km
note:
includes Bonin Islands (Ogasawara-gunto), Daito-shoto, Minami-jima, Okino-tori-shima, Ryukyu Islands (Nansei-shoto), and Volcano Islands (Kazan-retto)
|
| Area - comparative: |
slightly smaller than California
|
| Maritime claims: |
contiguous zone:
24 NM
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM
territorial sea:
12 NM; between 3 NM and 12 NM in the international straits - La Perouse or Soya, Tsugaru, Osumi, and Eastern and Western Channels of the Korea or Tsushima Strait
|
| Climate: |
varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north
|
| Terrain: |
mostly rugged and mountainous
|
| Elevation extremes: |
lowest point:
Hachiro-gata -4 m
highest point:
Fujiyama 3,776 m
|
| Natural resources: |
negligible mineral resources, fish
|
| Land use: |
arable land:
11%
permanent crops:
1%
permanent pastures:
2%
forests and woodland:
67%
other:
19% (1993 est.)
|
| Irrigated land: |
27,820 sq km (1993 est.)
|
| Natural hazards: |
many dormant and some active volcanoes; about 1,500 seismic occurrences (mostly tremors) every year; tsunamis; typhoons
|
| Environment - current issues: |
air pollution from power plant emissions results in acid rain; acidification of lakes and reservoirs degrading water quality and threatening aquatic life; Japan is one of the largest consumers of fish and tropical timber, contributing to the depletion of these resources in Asia and elsewhere
|
| Environment - international agreements: |
party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified:
Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
|
| Geography - note: |
strategic location in northeast Asia
|
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