Location:
Central Europe, southeast of Germany
Geographic coordinates:
49 45 N, 15 30 E
Map references:
Europe
Area:
total: 78,866 sq km
water: 1,590 sq km
land: 77,276 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than South Carolina
Land boundaries:
total: 1,881 km
border countries: Austria 362 km, Germany 646 km, Poland 658 km,
Slovakia 215 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none (landlocked)
Climate:
temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters
Terrain:
Bohemia in the west consists of rolling plains, hills, and plateaus
surrounded by low mountains; Moravia in the east consists of very
hilly country
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Elbe River 115 m
highest point: Snezka 1,602 m
Natural resources:
hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite, timber
Land use:
arable land: 40%
permanent crops: 3.04%
other: 56.96% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land:
240 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
flooding
Environment - current issues:
air and water pollution in areas of northwest Bohemia and in
northern Moravia around Ostrava present health risks; acid rain
damaging forests; efforts to bring industry up to EU code should
improve domestic pollution
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air
Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty,
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic
Pollutants, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol
Geography - note:
landlocked; strategically located astride some of oldest and most
significant land routes in Europe; Moravian Gate is a traditional
military corridor between the North European Plain and the Danube in
central Europe