Page last updated on January 28, 2014

Location:
Caribbean, western one-third of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of the Dominican Republic

Geographic coordinates:
19 00 N, 72 25 W

Map references:
Central America and the Caribbean

Area:
total: 27,750 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 148
land: 27,560 sq km
water: 190 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Maryland

Land boundaries:
total: 360 km
border countries: Dominican Republic 360 km
[see also: Land boundaries country ranks ]

Coastline:
1,771 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: to depth of exploitation

Climate:
tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut off trade winds
More Climate Details

Terrain:
mostly rough and mountainous

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
[see also: Elevation extremes - lowest point country ranks ]
highest point: Chaine de la Selle 2,680 m

Natural resources:
bauxite, copper, calcium carbonate, gold, marble, hydropower

Land use:
arable land: 36.04%
[see also: Land use - arable land country ranks ]
permanent crops: 10.09%
other: 53.87% (2011)

Irrigated land:
970 sq km (2009)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

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

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 1.2 cu km/yr (17%/3%/80%)
[see also: Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural) - total country ranks ]
per capita: 134.3 cu m/yr (2009)

Natural hazards:
lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding and earthquakes; periodic droughts

Environment - current issues:
extensive deforestation (much of the remaining forested land is being cleared for agriculture and used as fuel); soil erosion; inadequate supplies of potable water

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Hazardous Wastes

Geography - note:
shares island of Hispaniola with Dominican Republic (western one-third is Haiti, eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic)