Malaysia Geography - 2005

Location:
Southeastern Asia, peninsula bordering Thailand and northern one-third of the island of Borneo, bordering Indonesia, Brunei, and the South China Sea, south of Vietnam

Geographic coordinates:
2 30 N, 112 30 E

Map references:
Southeast Asia

Area:
total: 329,750 sq km
land: 328,550 sq km
water: 1,200 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly larger than New Mexico

Land boundaries:
total: 2,669 km
border countries: Brunei 381 km, Indonesia 1,782 km, Thailand 506 km

Coastline:
4,675 km (Peninsular Malaysia 2,068 km, East Malaysia 2,607 km)

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation; specified boundary in the South China Sea

Climate:
tropical; annual southwest (April to October) and northeast (October to February) monsoons

Terrain:
coastal plains rising to hills and mountains

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Gunung Kinabalu 4,100 m

Natural resources:
tin, petroleum, timber, copper, iron ore, natural gas, bauxite

Land use:
arable land: 5.48%
permanent crops: 17.61%
other: 76.91% (2001)

Irrigated land:
3,650 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
flooding, landslides, forest fires

Environment - current issues:
air pollution from industrial and vehicular emissions; water pollution from raw sewage; deforestation; smoke/haze from Indonesian forest fires

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands