The 2008 CIA World Factbook. United States. Central Intelligence Agency

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СКАЧАТЬ Atlantic Ocean

      Economy - overview:

      The Atlantic Ocean provides some of the world's most heavily trafficked sea routes, between and within the Eastern and Western Hemispheres. Other economic activity includes the exploitation of natural resources, e.g., fishing, dredging of aragonite sands (The Bahamas), and production of crude oil and natural gas (Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and North Sea).

      Transportation

       Atlantic Ocean

      Ports and terminals:

      Alexandria (Egypt), Algiers (Algeria), Antwerp (Belgium), Barcelona

       (Spain), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Casablanca (Morocco), Colon

       (Panama), Copenhagen (Denmark), Dakar (Senegal), Gdansk (Poland),

       Hamburg (Germany), Helsinki (Finland), Las Palmas (Canary Islands,

       Spain), Le Havre (France), Lisbon (Portugal), London (UK), Marseille

       (France), Montevideo (Uruguay), Montreal (Canada), Naples (Italy),

       New Orleans (US), New York (US), Oran (Algeria), Oslo (Norway),

       Peiraiefs or Piraeus (Greece), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Rotterdam

       (Netherlands), Saint Petersburg (Russia), Stockholm (Sweden)

      Transportation - note:

      Kiel Canal and Saint Lawrence Seaway are two important waterways; significant domestic commercial and recreational use of Intracoastal Waterway on central and south Atlantic seaboard and Gulf of Mexico coast of US; the International Maritime Bureau reports the territorial waters of littoral states and offshore Atlantic waters as high risk for piracy and armed robbery against ships, particularly in the Gulf of Guinea off West Africa, the east coast of Brazil, and the Caribbean Sea; numerous commercial vessels have been attacked and hijacked both at anchor and while underway; hijacked vessels are often disguised and cargoes stolen; crews have been robbed and stores or cargoes stolen

      Transnational Issues

       Atlantic Ocean

      Disputes - international:

      some maritime disputes (see littoral states)

      This page was last updated on 18 December, 2008

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      @Australia

      Introduction

       Australia

      Background:

      Aboriginal settlers arrived on the continent from Southeast Asia about 40,000 years before the first Europeans began exploration in the 17th century. No formal territorial claims were made until 1770, when Capt. James COOK took possession in the name of Great Britain. Six colonies were created in the late 18th and 19th centuries; they federated and became the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901. The new country took advantage of its natural resources to rapidly develop agricultural and manufacturing industries and to make a major contribution to the British effort in World Wars I and II. In recent decades, Australia has transformed itself into an internationally competitive, advanced market economy. It boasted one of the OECD's fastest growing economies during the 1990s, a performance due in large part to economic reforms adopted in the 1980s. Long-term concerns include climate-change issues such as the depletion of the ozone layer and more frequent droughts, and management and conservation of coastal areas, especially the Great Barrier Reef.

      Geography

       Australia

      Location:

      Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific

       Ocean

      Geographic coordinates:

      27 00 S, 133 00 E

      Map references:

      Oceania

      Area:

      total: 7,686,850 sq km land: 7,617,930 sq km water: 68,920 sq km note: includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island

      Area - comparative:

      slightly smaller than the US contiguous 48 states

      Land boundaries:

      0 km

      Coastline:

      25,760 km

      Maritime claims:

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

      Climate:

      generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north

      Terrain:

      mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast

      Elevation extremes:

      lowest point: Lake Eyre −15 m highest point: Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m

      Natural resources:

      bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, gold, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum note: Australia is the world's largest net exporter of coal accounting for 29% of global coal exports

      Land use:

      arable land: 6.15% (includes about 27 million hectares of cultivated grassland) permanent crops: 0.04% other: 93.81% (2005)

      Irrigated land:

      25,450 sq km (2003)

      Total renewable water resources:

      398 cu km (1995)

      Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):

      total: 24.06 cu km/yr (15%/10%/75%) per capita: 1,193 cu m/yr (2000)

      Natural hazards:

      cyclones along the coast; severe droughts; forest fires

      Environment - current issues:

      soil erosion from overgrazing, industrial development, urbanization, and poor farming practices; soil salinity rising due to the use of poor quality water; desertification; clearing for agricultural purposes threatens the natural habitat of many unique animal and plant species; the Great Barrier Reef off the northeast coast, the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by increased shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; limited natural fresh water resources

      Environment СКАЧАТЬ