Albania Geography - 2005

Location:
Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea, between Greece and Serbia and Montenegro

Geographic coordinates:
41 00 N, 20 00 E

Map references:
Europe

Area:
total: 28,748 sq km
land: 27,398 sq km
water: 1,350 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Maryland

Land boundaries:
total: 720 km
border countries: Greece 282 km, Macedonia 151 km, Serbia and Montenegro 287 km

Coastline:
362 km

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

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 (Golem Korab) 2,764 m

Natural resources:
petroleum, natural gas, coal, bauxite, chromite, copper, iron ore, nickel, salt, timber, hydropower

Land use:
arable land: 21.09%
permanent crops: 4.42%
other: 74.49% (2001)

Irrigated land:
3,400 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
destructive earthquakes; tsunamis occur along southwestern coast; floods; drought

Environment - current issues:
deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution from industrial and domestic effluents

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements