Middle America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the
North Pacific Ocean, between Nicaragua and Panama

10 00 N, 84 00 W

Central America and the Caribbean

total: 51,100 sq km
land: 50,660 sq km
water: 440 sq km
note: includes Isla del Coco

slightly smaller than West Virginia

total: 639 km
border countries: Nicaragua 309 km, Panama 330 km

1,290 km

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

tropical and subtropical; dry season (December to April);
rainy season (May to November); cooler in highlands

coastal plains separated by rugged mountains

lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Cerro Chirripo 3,810 m

hydropower

arable land: 6%
permanent crops: 5%
permanent pastures: 46%
forests and woodland: 31%
other: 12% (1993 est.)

1,200 sq km (1993 est.)

occasional earthquakes, hurricanes along Atlantic
coast; frequent flooding of lowlands at onset of rainy season; active
volcanoes

deforestation, largely a result of the
clearing of land for cattle ranching; soil erosion; water pollution
(rivers); fisheries protection; solid waste management

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea,
Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands,
Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life
Conservation