Albania Geography 1997

Location Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea, betweenGreece and Serbia and Montenegro

Geographic coordinates 41 00 N, 20 00 E

Map references Europe

Area
total: 28,750 sq km
land: 27,400 sq km
water: 1,350 sq km

Area - comparative slightly smaller than Maryland

Land boundaries
total: 720 km
border countries: Greece 282 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 151 km, Serbiaand Montenegro 287 km (114 km with Serbia, 173 km with Montenegro)

Coastline 362 km

Maritime claims
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea : 12 nm

Climate mild temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters; hot, clear, dry summers;interior is cooler and wetter

Terrain mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coast

Elevation extremes
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point : Maja e Korabit 2,753 m

Natural resources petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, timber, nickel

Land use
arable land: 21%
permanent crops: 5%
permanent pastures: 15%
forests and woodland: 38%
other: 21% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land 3,410 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards destructive earthquakes; tsunamis occur along southwestern coast

Environment - current issues deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution from industrial and domesticeffluents

Environment - international agreements
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified : none of the selected agreements

Geography - note strategic location along Strait of Otranto (links Adriatic Sea to IonianSea and Mediterranean Sea)

NOTE: The information regarding Albania on this page is re-published from the 1997 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Albania Geography 1997 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Albania Geography 1997 should be addressed to the CIA.