Geographic coordinates: 41 00 N, 64 00 E
Map references: Commonwealth of Independent States
Area:
total:
447,400 kmē
land:
425,400 kmē
water:
22,000 kmē
Area - comparative: slightly larger than California
Land boundaries:
total:
6,221 km
border countries:
Afghanistan 137 km, Kazakhstan 2,203 km, Kyrgyzstan 1,099 km, Tajikistan 1,161 km, Turkmenistan 1,621 km
Coastline:
0 km
note:
Uzbekistan includes the southern portion of the Aral Sea with a 420 km shoreline
Maritime claims: none (doubly landlocked)
Climate: mostly midlatitude desert, long, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid grassland in east
Terrain: mostly flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes; broad, flat intensely irrigated river valleys along course of Amu Darya, Sirdaryo (Syr Darya), and Zarafshon; Fergana Valley in east surrounded by mountainous Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan; shrinking Aral Sea in west
Elevation extremes:
lowest point:
Sariqarnish Kuli -12 m
highest point:
Adelunga Toghi 4,301 m
Natural resources: natural gas, petroleum, coal, gold, uranium, silver, copper, lead and zinc, tungsten, molybdenum
Land use:
arable land:
9%
permanent crops:
1%
permanent pastures:
46%
forests and woodland:
3%
other:
41% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 40,000 kmē (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: NA
Environment - current issues: drying up of the Aral Sea is resulting in growing concentrations of chemical pesticides and natural salts; these substances are then blown from the increasingly exposed lake bed and contribute to desertification; water pollution from industrial wastes and the heavy use of fertilizers and pesticides is the cause of many human health disorders; increasing soil salination; soil contamination from agricultural chemicals, including DDT
Environment - international agreements:
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: along with Liechtenstein, one of the only two doubly landlocked countries in the world