Turkey Geography Profile 2008

Location

Southeastern Europe and Southwestern Asia (that portion of Turkey west of the Bosporus is geographically part of Europe), bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Georgia, and bordering the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Syria

Geographic coordinates

39 00 N, 35 00 E

Map references

Middle East

Area

total: 780,580 sq km
land: 770,760 sq km
water: 9,820 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly larger than Texas

Land boundaries

total: 2,648 km
border countries: Armenia 268 km, Azerbaijan 9 km, Bulgaria 240 km, Georgia 252 km, Greece 206 km, Iran 499 km, Iraq 352 km, Syria 822 km

Coastline

7,200 km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 6 nm in the Aegean Sea; 12 nm in Black Sea and in Mediterranean Sea
exclusive economic zone: in Black Sea only: to the maritime boundary agreed upon with the former USSR

Climate

temperate; hot, dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsher in interior

Terrain

high central plateau (Anatolia); narrow coastal plain; several mountain ranges

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Ararat 5,166 m

Natural resources

coal, iron ore, copper, chromium, antimony, mercury, gold, barite, borate, celestite (strontium), emery, feldspar, limestone, magnesite, marble, perlite, pumice, pyrites (sulfur), clay, arable land, hydropower

Land use

arable land: 29.81%
permanent crops: 3.39%
other: 66.8% (2005)

Irrigated land

52,150 sq km (2003)

Total renewable water resources

234 cu km (2003)

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)

total: 39.78 cu km/yr (15%/11%/74%)
per capita: 544 cu m/yr (2001)

Natural hazards

severe earthquakes, especially in northern Turkey, along an arc extending from the Sea of Marmara to Lake Van

Environment - current issues

water pollution from dumping of chemicals and detergents; air pollution, particularly in urban areas; deforestation; concern for oil spills from increasing Bosporus ship traffic

Environment - international agreements

party to: Air Pollution, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification

Geography - note

strategic location controlling the Turkish Straits (Bosporus, Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles) that link Black and Aegean Seas; Mount Ararat, the legendary landing place of Noah's ark, is in the far eastern portion of the country