| Location: |
Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia and Russia
|
| Geographic coordinates: |
59 00 N, 26 00 E
|
| Area: |
total:
45,226 sq km
land:
43,211 sq km
water:
2,015 sq km
note:
includes 1,520 islands in the Baltic Sea
|
| Area - comparative: |
slightly smaller than New Hampshire and Vermont combined
|
| Land boundaries: |
total:
633 km
border countries:
Latvia 339 km, Russia 294 km
|
| Maritime claims: |
exclusive economic zone:
limits fixed in coordination with neighboring states
territorial sea:
12 NM
|
| Climate: |
maritime, wet, moderate winters, cool summers
|
| Terrain: |
marshy, lowlands
|
| Elevation extremes: |
lowest point:
Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point:
Suur Munamagi 318 m
|
| Natural resources: |
shale oil (kukersite), peat, phosphorite, amber, cambrian blue clay, limestone, dolomite, arable land
|
| Land use: |
arable land:
25%
permanent crops:
0%
permanent pastures:
11%
forests and woodland:
44%
other:
20% (1996 est.)
|
| Irrigated land: |
110 sq km (1996 est.)
|
| Natural hazards: |
flooding occurs frequently in the spring
|
| Environment - current issues: |
air heavily polluted with sulfur dioxide from oil-shale burning power plants in northeast; contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products, chemicals at former Soviet military bases; Estonia has more than 1,400 natural and manmade lakes, the smaller of which in agricultural areas are heavily affected by organic waste; coastal sea water is polluted in many locations
|
| Environment - international agreements: |
party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ship Pollution, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified:
Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
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