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Kiribati

Kiribati Geography Stats

Definitions

  • Agricultural land > % of land area: Agricultural land refers to the share of land area that is arable, under permanent crops, and under permanent pastures. Arable land includes land defined by the FAO as land under temporary crops (double-cropped areas are counted once), temporary meadows for mowing or for pasture, land under market or kitchen gardens, and land temporarily fallow. Land abandoned as a result of shifting cultivation is excluded. Land under permanent crops is land cultivated with crops that occupy the land for long periods and need not be replanted after each harvest, such as cocoa, coffee, and rubber. This category includes land under flowering shrubs, fruit trees, nut trees, and vines, but excludes land under trees grown for wood or timber. Permanent pasture is land used for five or more years for forage, including natural and cultivated crops.
  • Arable land > % of land area: Arable land (% of land area). Arable land includes land defined by the FAO as land under temporary crops (double-cropped areas are counted once), temporary meadows for mowing or for pasture, land under market or kitchen gardens, and land temporarily fallow. Land abandoned as a result of shifting cultivation is excluded.
  • Area > Comparative: The area of various small countries expressed in comparison to various areas within the United States of America.
  • Area > Comparative to US places: This entry provides an area comparison based on total area equivalents. Most entities are compared with the entire US or one of the 50 states based on area measurements (1990 revised) provided by the US Bureau of the Census. The smaller entities are compared with Washington, DC (178 sq km, 69 sq mi) or The Mall in Washington, DC (0.59 sq km, 0.23 sq mi, 146 acres).
  • Area > Land: Total land area in square kilometres
  • Area > Land > Per capita: Total land area in square kilometres Per capita figures expressed per 1,000 population.
  • Area > Land per 1000: Total land area in square kilometres. Figures expressed per thousand population for the same year.
  • Area > Note: This entry includes three subfields. Total area is the sum of all land and water areas delimited by international boundaries and/or coastlines. Land area is the aggregate of all surfaces delimited by international boundaries and/or coastlines, excluding inland water bodies (lakes, reservoirs, rivers). Water area is the sum of the surfaces of all inland water bodies, such as lakes, reservoirs, or rivers, as delimited by international boundaries and/or coastlines.
  • Area > Total: Total area in square kilometers
  • Area > Total > Per capita: Total area in square kilometers Per capita figures expressed per 1,000 population.
  • Area > Total per 1000: Total area in square kilometers. Figures expressed per thousand population for the same year.
  • Area > Water: Total water area in square kilometers
  • Area > Water > Per capita: Total water area in square kilometers Per capita figures expressed per 1 million population.
  • Area > Water per 1000: Total water area in square kilometers. Figures expressed per thousand population for the same year.
  • Border to area ratio: The ratio of a country's land border to its surface area.
  • Capital: Country capital.
  • Capital city with population: Capital cities including most recent population (estimates included). Populations are figures only within the city limits, unless otherwise specified. All populations are from 2001 t0 2005 unless otherwise specified.
  • Climate: A brief description of typical weather regimes throughout the year.
  • Coastline: The total length of the boundary between the land area (including islands) and the sea.
  • Coastline per 1000: The total length of the boundary between the land area (including islands) and the sea. Figures expressed per thousand population for the same year.
  • Continent or sub continent: Within Continent / Subcontinent.

    No date was available from the Wikipedia article, so we used the date of retrieval.

  • Countries on other side of the world: Countries diametrically opposite of each other. For instance, if one were to draw a straight line though the center of the earth in Argentina it would end in China. These countries are considered antipodes.
  • Elevation extremes > Highest point: Highest point above sea level
  • Elevation extremes > Lowest point: This entry is derived from Geography > Elevation extremes, which includes both the highest point and the lowest point.
  • Environment > Current issues: This entry lists the most pressing and important environmental problems. The following terms and abbreviations are used throughout the entry:
    Acidification - the lowering of soil and water pH due to acid precipitation and deposition usually through precipitation; this process disrupts ecosystem nutrient flows and may kill freshwater fish and plants dependent on more neutral or alkaline conditions (see acid rain).
    Acid rain - characterized as containing harmful levels of sulfur dioxide or nitrogen oxide; acid rain is damaging and potentially deadly to the earth's fragile ecosystems; acidity is measured using the pH scale where 7 is neutral, values greater than 7 are considered alkaline, and values below 5.6 are considered acid precipitation; note - a pH of 2.4 (the acidity of vinegar) has been measured in rainfall in New England.
    Aerosol - a collection of airborne particles dispersed in a gas, smoke, or fog.
    Afforestation - converting a bare or agricultural space by planting trees and plants; reforestation involves replanting trees on areas that have been cut or destroyed by fire.
    Asbestos - a naturally occurring soft fibrous mineral commonly used in fireproofing materials and considered to be highly carcinogenic in particulate form.
    Biodiversity - also biological diversity; the relative number of species, diverse in form and function, at the genetic, organism, community, and ecosystem level; loss of biodiversity reduces an ecosystem's ability to recover from natural or man-induced disruption.
    Bio-indicators - a plant or animal species whose presence, abundance, and health reveal the general condition of its habitat.
    Biomass - the total weight or volume of living matter in a given area or volume.
    Carbon cycle - the term used to describe the exchange of carbon (in various forms, e.g., as carbon dioxide) between the atmosphere, ocean, terrestrial biosphere, and geological deposits.
    Catchments - assemblages used to capture and retain rainwater and runoff; an important water management technique in areas with limited freshwater resources, such as Gibraltar.
    DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloro-ethane) - a colorless, odorless insecticide that has toxic effects on most animals; the use of DDT was banned in the US in 1972.
    Defoliants - chemicals which cause plants to lose their leaves artificially; often used in agricultural practices for weed control, and may have detrimental impacts on human and ecosystem health.
    Deforestation - ...
    Full definition
  • Environment > International agreements > Party to: This entry is derived from Geography > Environment > International agreements, which separates country participation in international environmental agreements into two levels - party to and signed, but not ratified. Agreements are listed in alphabetical order by the abbreviated form of the full name.
  • Environment > International agreements > Signed, but not ratified: This entry is derived from Geography > Environment > International agreements, which separates country participation in international environmental agreements into two levels - party to and signed, but not ratified. Agreements are listed in alphabetical order by the abbreviated form of the full name.
  • Forest area > % of land area: Forest area is land under natural or planted stands of trees of at least 5 meters in situ, whether productive or not, and excludes tree stands in agricultural production systems (for example, in fruit plantations and agroforestry systems) and trees in urban parks and gardens."
  • Forest area > Sq. km: Forest area is land under natural or planted stands of trees of at least 5 meters in situ, whether productive or not, and excludes tree stands in agricultural production systems (for example, in fruit plantations and agroforestry systems) and trees in urban parks and gardens."
  • Forested Land: Forested land as a proportion of total land area, estimate by FAO
  • Geographic coordinates: This entry includes rounded latitude and longitude figures for the purpose of finding the approximate geographic center of an entity and is based on the Gazetteer of Conventional Names, Third Edition, August 1988, US Board on Geographic Names and on other sources.
  • Geographic location: Geographic location of island countries.
  • Note: This entry includes miscellaneous geographic information of significance not included elsewhere.
  • Geologic location: Geologic location of island countries.
  • Highest point: Name of country’s highest point.
  • Highest point elevation: Name of country’s highest point.
  • Highest town: Name of country’s highest permanent settlement, which is occupied year-round.
  • Land area > Sq. km: Land area is a country's total area, excluding area under inland water bodies, national claims to continental shelf, and exclusive economic zones. In most cases the definition of inland water bodies includes major rivers and lakes."
  • Land area > Sq. km > Per capita: Land area is a country's total area, excluding area under inland water bodies, national claims to continental shelf, and exclusive economic zones. In most cases the definition of inland water bodies includes major rivers and lakes." Per capita figures expressed per 1,000 population.
  • Land area > Square miles: Country land area.
  • Land use > Arable land: The percentage of used land that is arable. Arable land is land cultivated for crops that are replanted after each harvest like wheat, maize, and rice
  • Land use > Other: The percentage share of used land that is not arable or under permanent crops. This includes permanent meadows and pastures, forests and woodlands, built-on areas, roads, barren land, etc.
  • Land use > Permanent crops: The percentage share of used land on which permanent crops are grown. This is land cultivated for crops that are not replanted after each harvest like citrus, coffee, and rubber. It includes land under flowering shrubs, fruit trees, nut trees, and vines, but excludes land under trees grown for wood or timber.
  • Largest city with population: Largest cities including most recent population (estimates included). Populations are figures only within the city limits, unless otherwise specified. All populations are from 2001 t0 2005 unless otherwise specified.
  • Location: The country's regional location, neighboring countries, and adjacent bodies of water.
  • Low-lying areas > Elevation under 5 metres > % of land area: Land area where elevation is below 5 meters (% of total land area). Land area below 5m is the percentage of total land where the elevation is 5 meters or less.
  • Map references: The name of the CIA World Factbook reference map on which a country may be found. The entry on Geographic coordinates may be helpful in finding some smaller countries.
  • Marine Coastline: Length of each country's coastline in kilometers.
  • Maritime claims > Exclusive economic zone: Exclusive economic zone (EEZ) - the LOS Convention (Part V) defines the EEZ as a zone beyond and adjacent to the territorial sea in which a coastal State has: sovereign rights for the purpose of exploring and exploiting, conserving and managing the natura
  • Maritime claims > Territorial sea: territorial sea - the sovereignty of a coastal State extends beyond its land territory and internal waters to an adjacent belt of sea, described as the territorial sea in the LOS Convention (Part II); this sovereignty extends to the air space over the territorial sea as well as its underlying seabed and subsoil; every State has the right to establish the breadth of its territorial sea up to a limit not exceeding 12 nautical miles. A full and definitive definition can be found in the Law of the Sea (LOS) Convention.
  • Natural hazards: Potential natural disasters.
  • Natural resources: A country's mineral, petroleum, hydropower, and other resources of commercial importance.
  • Population density: People per square kilometre, in 1999. At this time the world average was 14.42.
  • Population density > People per sq. km: Population density is midyear population divided by land area in square kilometers. Population is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship--except for refugees not permanently settled in the country of asylum, who are generally considered part of the population of their country of origin. Land area is a country's total area, excluding area under inland water bodies, national claims to continental shelf, and exclusive economic zones. In most cases the definition of inland water bodies includes major rivers and lakes.
  • Road density > Km of road per 100 sq. km of land area: Road density (km of road per 100 sq. km of land area). Road density is the ratio of the length of the country's total road network to the country's land area. The road network includes all roads in the country: motorways, highways, main or national roads, secondary or regional roads, and other urban and rural roads.
  • Rural population density > Rural population per sq. km of arable land: Rural population density is the rural population divided by the arable land area. Rural population is calculated as the difference between the total population and the urban population. Arable land includes land defined by the FAO as land under temporary crops (double-cropped areas are counted once), temporary meadows for mowing or for pasture, land under market or kitchen gardens, and land temporarily fallow. Land abandoned as a result of shifting cultivation is excluded.
  • Surface area > Sq. km: Surface area is a country's total area, including areas under inland bodies of water and some coastal waterways.
  • Surface area > Sq. km > Per capita: Surface area is a country's total area, including areas under inland bodies of water and some coastal waterways. Per capita figures expressed per 1,000 population.
  • Surface area > Sq. km per 1000: Surface area is a country's total area, including areas under inland bodies of water and some coastal waterways. Figures expressed per thousand population for the same year.
  • Terrain: A brief description of the topography
  • Terrestrial and marine protected areas > % of total territorial area: Terrestrial and marine protected areas (% of total territorial area). Terrestrial protected areas are totally or partially protected areas of at least 1,000 hectares that are designated by national authorities as scientific reserves with limited public access, national parks, natural monuments, nature reserves or wildlife sanctuaries, protected landscapes, and areas managed mainly for sustainable use. Marine protected areas are areas of intertidal or subtidal terrain--and overlying water and associated flora and fauna and historical and cultural features--that have been reserved by law or other effective means to protect part or all of the enclosed environment. Sites protected under local or provincial law are excluded.
  • Terrestrial protected areas > % of total land area: Terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area). Terrestrial protected areas are totally or partially protected areas of at least 1,000 hectares that are designated by national authorities as scientific reserves with limited public access, national parks, natural monuments, nature reserves or wildlife sanctuaries, protected landscapes, and areas managed mainly for sustainable use. Marine areas, unclassified areas, littoral (intertidal) areas, and sites protected under local or provincial law are excluded.
  • Total area > Sq. km: Surface area is a country's total area, including areas under inland bodies of water and some coastal waterways."
STAT AMOUNT DATE RANK HISTORY
Agricultural land > % of land area 45.68% 2007 77th out of 197
Arable land > % of land area 2.47% 2011 165th out of 204
Area > A note includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands 2003
Area > Comparative four times the size of Washington, DC 2013
Area > Comparative to US places four times the size of Washington, DC 2008
Area > Land 811 sq km 2008 178th out of 235
Area > Land > Per capita 7.35 sq km per 1,000 people 2008 146th out of 224
Area > Land per 1000 8.55 sq km 2008 125th out of 196
Area > Note includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands 2008
Area > Total 811 sq km 2013 187th out of 251
Area > Total > Per capita 7.35 sq km per 1,000 people 2008 153th out of 228
Area > Total per 1000 8.55 sq km 2008 128th out of 199
Area > Water 0.0 2013 167th out of 246
Area > Water > Per capita 0.0 2005 156th out of 216
Area > Water per 1000 0.0 2005 154th out of 197
Border to area ratio 0.0 2014 167th out of 197
Capital Tarawa Atoll 2013
Capital city with population Tarawa - 25,154 2005
Climate tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds 2013
Coastline 1,143 km 2014 80th out of 242
Coastline per 1000 11.52 km 2011 7th out of 161
Continent or sub continent Oceania 2014
Countries on other side of the world Phoenix Islands (Orona): Nigeria ; Line Islands: DR Congo , Central African Republic , Sudan 2014
Elevation extremes > Highest point unnamed elevation on Banaba 81 m 2013
Elevation extremes > Lowest point Pacific Ocean 0 m 2013
Environment > Current issues heavy pollution in lagoon of south Tarawa atoll due to heavy migration mixed with traditional practices such as lagoon latrines and open-pit dumping; ground water at risk 2013
Environment > International agreements > Party to Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling 2013
Environment > International agreements > Signed, but not ratified none of the selected agreements 2013
Forest area > % of land area 2.72% 2007 171st out of 195
Forest area > Sq. km 22 2007 183th out of 195
Forested Land 38.4% 2000 60th out of 193
Geographic coordinates 1 25 N, 173 00 E 2013
Geographic location Pacific Ocean , Micronesia 2014
Note 21 2013
Geologic location Oceanic 2014
Highest point unnamed location on Banaba 2014
Highest point elevation None 2014
Highest town None 2014
Land area > Sq. km 810 sq km 2008 170th out of 199
Land area > Sq. km > Per capita 7.34 per 1,000 people 2008 137th out of 198
Land area > Square miles 313 square miles 2013 82nd out of 98
Land boundaries 0 2005
Land use > Arable land 2.47% 2013 175th out of 246
Land use > Other 58.02% 2011 226th out of 245
Land use > Permanent crops 39.51% 2013 5th out of 247
Largest city with population Tarawa - 25,154 2005
Location Oceania, group of 33 coral atolls in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the Equator; the capital Tarawa is about half way between Hawaii and Australia 2013
Low-lying areas > Elevation under 5 metres > % of land area 96.67% 2000 5th out of 206
Map references Oceania 2013
Marine Coastline 1,143 km 2014 80th out of 242
Maritime claims > Exclusive economic zone 200 nautical mile 2013 23th out of 128
Maritime claims > Territorial sea 12 nautical mile 2013 39th out of 198
Natural hazards typhoons can occur any time, but usually November to March; occasional tornadoes; low level of some of the islands make them sensitive to changes in sea level 2011
Natural resources phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) 2013
Population density 119.25 people per sqkm 1999 84th out of 255
Population density > People per sq. km 135.62 people/m² 2005 65th out of 202
Road density > Km of road per 100 sq. km of land area 92 sq. km 2001 4th out of 47
Rural population density > Rural population per sq. km of arable land 2,619.53 people/km² of arable lan 2003 7th out of 186
Surface area > Sq. km 730 km² 2005 177th out of 204
Surface area > Sq. km > Per capita 7.37 km² per 1,000 people 2005 143th out of 204
Surface area > Sq. km per 1000 8.07 km² 2005 135th out of 198
Terrain mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs 2013
Terrestrial and marine protected areas > % of total territorial area 20.22% 2012 54th out of 202
Terrestrial protected areas > % of total land area 22.01% 2012 51st out of 200
Total area > Sq. km 810 2008 170th out of 199

SOURCES: Food and Agriculture Organization, electronic files and web site.; Food and Agriculture Organization; CIA World Factbook, December 2003; CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 28 March 2011; All CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 18 December 2008; CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 28 March 2011. Population figures from World Bank: (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects, (2) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Report (various years), (3) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (4) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (5) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme, and (6) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database.; Wikipedia: List of countries and territories by border/area ratio (Border/area ratio); British Broadcasting Corporation 2014; United Nations World Statistics Pocketbook and Statistical Yearbook, City Population, CIA World Factbook, World Gazetteer, Official government websites.; Wikipedia: List of political and geographic borders (Countries); Wikipedia: Antipodes (Countries); CIA World Factbooks 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013; Food and Agriculture Organisation, electronic files and web site.; FAO; Wikipedia: List of island countries (Sovereign states); Wikipedia: List of countries by highest point (Sovereign, fully recognized countries); Wikipedia: List of highest towns by country (Sovereign, fully recognized countries); Center for International Earth Science Information Network; CIA Factbook: List of countries by coastline size; Heal The World Foundation.; World Development Indicators database; International Road Federation, World Road Statistics and electronic files, except where noted.; World Development Indicators database. Population figures from World Bank: (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects, (2) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Report (various years), (3) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (4) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (5) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme, and (6) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database.; United Nations Environmental Program and the World Conservation Monitoring Centre

Citation

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Kiribati Geography Profiles (Subcategories)

Area 13 Land use 3
Environment 3 Surface area 3
Land area 3

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