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 Vigie, Saint Lucia
Hewanorra International Airport, Saint
Lucia
Location: Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and
North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago
Geographic coordinates: 13 53 N, 60 68 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total: 620 sq km
land: 610 sq km
water: 10 sq km
Area - comparative: 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 158 km
Maritime claims: 200 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry
season from January to April, rainy season from May to August
Terrain: volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile
valleys
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Gimie 950 m
Natural resources: forests, sandy beaches, minerals (pumice),
mineral springs, geothermal potential
Land use:
arable land: 8%
permanent crops: 21%
permanent pastures: 5%
forests and woodland: 13%
other: 53% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 10 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: hurricanes and volcanic activity
Environment - current issues: deforestation; soil erosion,
particularly in the northern region
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification,
Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes,
Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Geography
One of the more mountainous of the Windward islands, Saint Lucia
is 238 square miles and is shaped like a mango - about 27 miles
long and 14 miles at its widest.
The island is blessed with fertile volcanic soil
and grows a vast supply of fruits and vegetables.
Saint Lucia is one of the leading banana exporters in the Caribbean
(12 varieties of banana are grown on our verdant hillsides) and
has a population of 140,000.
Saint Lucia's capital city of Castries is in the northwest; the
famed fishing village of Soufriθre is to the southwest; and Vieux
Fort, the island's second-largest port, is perched at the southern
tip.
Climate
Saint Lucia's climate is mild, with almost constant northeast trade
winds. The mean temperature is 79 degrees Fahrenheit. June to November
is the rainy season.
Saint Lucia is an independent island country in the eastern Caribbean
Sea. It lies between Martinique and Saint Vincent, about 386 kilometres
north of Venezuela.
St. Lucia is one of the Windward Islands, a chain within the larger
archipelago of the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies.
The island, with its fine natural harbor at Castries, was contested
between England and France throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries
(changing possession 14 times); it was finally ceded to the UK in
1814.
Self government was granted in 1967 and independence in 1979.
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