Location:
Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia and Russia
Geographic coordinates:
59 00 N, 26 00 E
Map references:
Europe
Area:
total: 45,228 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
land: 42,388 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 2,840 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]
note: includes 1,520 islands in the Baltic Sea
country comparison to the world: 133
Area - comparative:
about twice the size of New Jersey
Area comparison map:
Land boundaries:
total: 657 km
border countries (2): Latvia 333 km, Russia 324 km
[see also: Land boundaries country ranks ]
Coastline:
3,794 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: limits as agreed to by Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Sweden, and Russia
Climate:
maritime; wet, moderate winters, cool summers
Terrain:
marshy, lowlands; flat in the north, hilly in the south
Elevation:
mean elevation:
[see also: Mean Elevation country ranks ]
elevation extremes:
lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Suur Munamagi 318 m
Natural resources:
oil shale, peat, rare earth elements, phosphorite, clay, limestone, sand, dolomite, arable land, sea mud
Land use:
agricultural land: 22.2%
arable land 14.9%; permanent crops 0.1%; permanent pasture 7.2%
[see also: Land use - agricultural land country ranks ]
forest: 52.1%
[see also: Land use - forest country ranks ]
other: 25.7% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]
Irrigated land:
40 sq km (2012)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]
Total renewable water resources:
12.81 cu km (2011)
[see also: Total renewable water resources country ranks ]
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 1.8 cu km/yr (3%/97%/0%)
per capita: 1,337 cu m/yr (2009)
Natural hazards:
sometimes flooding occurs in the spring
Environment - current issues:
air polluted with sulfur dioxide from oil-shale burning power plants in northeast; however, the amounts of pollutants emitted to the air have fallen dramatically; the pollution load of wastewater at purification plants has decreased substantially; Estonia has more than 1,400 natural and manmade lakes, the smaller of which in agricultural areas need to be monitored; coastal seawater is polluted in certain locations
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
the mainland terrain is flat, boggy, and partly wooded; offshore lie more than 1,500 islands