Location:
Northern North America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean on the east, North Pacific Ocean on the west, and the Arctic Ocean on the north, north of the conterminous US

Geographic coordinates:
60 00 N, 95 00 W

Map references:
North America

Area:
total: 9,984,670 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
land: 9,093,507 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 891,163 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 2

Area - comparative:
slightly larger than the US

Land boundaries:
total: 8,893 km
border countries (1): US 8,893 km (includes 2,477 km with Alaska)
note: Canada is the world's largest country that borders only one country
[see also: Land boundaries country ranks ]

Coastline:
202,080 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

Climate:
varies from temperate in south to subarctic and arctic in north

Terrain:
mostly plains with mountains in west, lowlands in southeast

Elevation:
mean elevation:
[see also: Mean Elevation country ranks ]
elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Logan 5,959 m

Natural resources:
iron ore, nickel, zinc, copper, gold, lead, rare earth elements, molybdenum, potash, diamonds, silver, fish, timber, wildlife, coal, petroleum, natural gas, hydropower

Land use:
agricultural land: 6.8% arable land 4.7%; permanent crops 0.5%; permanent pasture 1.6%
[see also: Land use - agricultural land country ranks ]
forest: 34.1%
[see also: Land use - forest country ranks ]
other: 59.1% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
8,700 sq km (2012)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Total renewable water resources:
2,902 cu km (2011)
[see also: Total renewable water resources country ranks ]

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 42.2 cu km/yr (20%/70%/10%)
per capita: 1,589 cu m/yr (2010)

Natural hazards:
continuous permafrost in north is a serious obstacle to development; cyclonic storms form east of the Rocky Mountains, a result of the mixing of air masses from the Arctic, Pacific, and North American interior, and produce most of the country's rain and snow east of the mountains
volcanism: the vast majority of volcanoes in Western Canada's Coast Mountains remain dormant

Environment - current issues:
metal smelting, coal-burning utilities, and vehicle emissions impacting on agricultural and forest productivity; air pollution and resulting acid rain severely affecting lakes and damaging forests; ocean waters becoming contaminated due to agricultural, industrial, mining, and forestry activities

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Marine Life Conservation

Geography - note:
second-largest country in world (after Russia) and largest in the Americas; strategic location between Russia and US via north polar route; approximately 90% of the population is concentrated within 160 km (100 mi) of the US border; Canada has more fresh water than any other country and almost 9% of Canadian territory is water; Canada has at least 2 million and possibly over 3 million lakes - that is more than all other countries combined