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Portugal

1070 S. Cochran Ave, Los Angeles

practical information

practical information

Portugal

• Location:
  
Southwestern Europe, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Spain


• Map references:
  
Europe


• Area:
  


total area: 92,080 sq km


land area: 91,640 sq km


comparative area: slightly smaller than Indiana


note: includes Azores and Madeira Islands


• Land boundaries:
  
total 1,214 km, Spain 1,214 km


• Coastline:
  
1,793 km


• Maritime claims:
  


continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


territorial sea: 12 nm


• International disputes:
  
sovereignty over Timor Timur (East Timor Province) disputed with Indonesia


• Climate:
  
maritime temperate; cool and rainy in north, warmer and drier in south


• Terrain:
  
mountainous north of the Tagus, rolling plains in south


• Natural resources:
  
fish, forests (cork), tungsten, iron ore, uranium ore, marble


• Land use:
  


arable land: 32%


permanent crops: 6%


meadows and pastures: 6%


forest and woodland: 40%


other: 16%


• Irrigated land:
  
6,340 sq km (1989 est.)


• Environment:
  


current issues: soil erosion; air pollution caused by industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution, especially in coastal areas


natural hazards: Azores subject to severe earthquakes


international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban


• Note:
  
Azores and Madeira Islands occupy strategic locations along western sea approaches to Strait of Gibraltar