Brazil Geography

Location: Eastern South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean

Map references: South America

Geographic Coordinates: 10 00 S, 55 00 W

Area: total: 8,511,965 sq km land: 8,456,510 sq km water: 55,455 sq km

Area- Comparative: slightly smaller than the U.S.

Coastline: 7,491 km

Land boundaries: total: 14,691 km

Border countries: Argentina 1,224 km, Bolivia 3,400 km, Colombia 1,643 km, French Guiana 673 km, Guyana 11,119 km, Paraguay 1,290 km, Peru 1,560 km, Suriname 597 km, Uruguay 985 km, Venezuela 2,200 km

Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous sea: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin

Terrain: mostly flat to rolling lowlands in north; some plains, hills, mountains, and narrow coastal belt.

Climate: mostly tropical, but temperate in south

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico da Neblina 3,014 m

Natural resources: bauxite, gold, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, platinum, tin, uranium, petroleum, hydropower, timber

Land use: arable land: 6.96% permanent crops: 0.9% other: 92.15%

Irrigated land: 26,560 sq km

Natural hazards: recurring droughts in northeast; floods and occasional frost in south.

Environmental issues: deforestation in Amazon Basin destroys the habitat and endangers a multitude of plant and animal species indigenous to the area; there is a lucrative illegal wildlife trade; air and water pollution in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, and several other large cities; land degradation and water pollution caused by improper mining activities; wetland degradation; severe oil spills.