Brazil: Geography
The World Factbook 1993: Brazil Geography

Location: Eastern South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean

Area: total area: 8,511,965 km2 land area: 8,456,510 km2 comparative area: slightly smaller than the US

note: includes Arquipelago de Fernando de Noronha, Atol das Rocas, Ilha da Trindade, Ilhas Martin Vaz, and Penedos de Sao Pedro e Sao Paulo

Land boundaries: total 14,691 km, Argentina 1,224 km, Bolivia 3,400 km, Colombia 1,643 km, French Guiana 673 km, Guyana 1,119 km, Paraguay 1,290 km, Peru 1,560 km, Suriname 597 km, Uruguay 985 km, Venezuela 2,200 km

Coastline: 7,491 km

Maritime claims: contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: 200 m depth or to depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm

International disputes: short section of the boundary with Paraguay (just west of Guaira Falls on the Rio Parana) is in dispute; two short sections of boundary with Uruguay are in dispute - Arrio Invernada (Arroyo de la Invernada) area of the Rio Quarai (Rio Cuareim) and the islands at the confluence of the Rio Quarai (Rio Cuareim) and the Uruguay

Climate: mostly tropical, but temperate in south

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

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

Land use: arable land: 7% permanent crops: 1% meadows and pastures: 19% forest and woodland: 67% other: 6%

Irrigated land: 27,000 km2 (1989 est.)

Environment: recurrent droughts in northeast; floods and frost in south; deforestation in Amazon basin; air and water pollution in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, and several other large cities

Note: largest country in South America; shares common boundaries with every South American country except Chile and Ecuador