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Argentina vs. Uruguay

Geography

ArgentinaUruguay
LocationSouthern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Chile and UruguaySouthern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Argentina and Brazil
Geographic coordinates34 00 S, 64 00 W33 00 S, 56 00 W
Map referencesSouth AmericaSouth America
Areatotal: 2,780,400 sq km

land: 2,736,690 sq km

water: 43,710 sq km
total: 176,215 sq km

land: 175,015 sq km

water: 1,200 sq km
Area - comparativeslightly less than three-tenths the size of the USabout the size of Virginia and West Virginia combined; slightly smaller than the state of Washington
Land boundariestotal: 11,968 km

border countries (5): Bolivia 942 km, Brazil 1263 km, Chile 6691 km, Paraguay 2531 km, Uruguay 541 km
total: 1,591 km

border countries (2): Argentina 541 km, Brazil 1050 km
Coastline4,989 km660 km
Maritime claimsterritorial sea: 12 nm

contiguous zone: 24 nm

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
territorial sea: 12 nm

contiguous zone: 24 nm

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

continental shelf: 200 nm or the edge of continental margin
Climatemostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in southwestwarm temperate; freezing temperatures almost unknown
Terrainrich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to rolling plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western bordermostly rolling plains and low hills; fertile coastal lowland
Elevation extremeshighest point: Cerro Aconcagua (located in the northwestern corner of the province of Mendoza; highest point in South America) 6,962 m

lowest point: Laguna del Carbon (located between Puerto San Julian and Comandante Luis Piedra Buena in the province of Santa Cruz) -105 m

mean elevation: 595 m
highest point: Cerro Catedral 514 m

lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m

mean elevation: 109 m
Natural resourcesfertile plains of the pampas, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium, arable landarable land, hydropower, minor minerals, fish
Land useagricultural land: 53.9% (2018 est.)

arable land: 13.9% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0.4% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 39.6% (2018 est.)

forest: 10.7% (2018 est.)

other: 35.4% (2018 est.)
agricultural land: 87.2% (2018 est.)

arable land: 10.1% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0.2% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 76.9% (2018 est.)

forest: 10.2% (2018 est.)

other: 2.6% (2018 est.)
Irrigated land23,600 sq km (2012)2,380 sq km (2012)
Natural hazards

San Miguel de Tucuman and Mendoza areas in the Andes subject to earthquakes; pamperos are violent windstorms that can strike the pampas and northeast; heavy flooding in some areas

volcanism: volcanic activity in the Andes Mountains along the Chilean border; Copahue (2,997 m) last erupted in 2000; other historically active volcanoes include Llullaillaco, Maipo, Planchon-Peteroa, San Jose, Tromen, Tupungatito, and Viedma

seasonally high winds (the pampero is a chilly and occasional violent wind that blows north from the Argentine pampas), droughts, floods; because of the absence of mountains, which act as weather barriers, all locations are particularly vulnerable to rapid changes from weather fronts
Environment - current issuesenvironmental problems (urban and rural) typical of an industrializing economy such as deforestation, soil degradation (erosion, salinization), desertification, air pollution, and water pollutionwater pollution from meat packing/tannery industry; heavy metal pollution; inadequate solid/hazardous waste disposal; deforestation
Environment - international agreementsparty to: Antarctic-Environmental Protection, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping-London Protocol, Marine Life Conservation
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protection, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping-London Convention, Marine Life Conservation
Geography - notenote 1: second-largest country in South America (after Brazil); strategic location relative to sea lanes between the South Atlantic and the South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); diverse geophysical landscapes range from tropical climates in the north to tundra in the far south; Cerro Aconcagua is the Western Hemisphere's tallest mountain, while Laguna del Carbon is the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere; shares Iguazu Falls, the world's largest waterfalls system, with Brazil

note 2: southeast Bolivia and northwest Argentina seem to be the original development site for peanuts
second-smallest South American country (after Suriname); most of the low-lying landscape (three-quarters of the country) is grassland, ideal for cattle and sheep raising
Total renewable water resources876.24 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)172.2 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)
Population distributionone-third of the population lives in Buenos Aires; pockets of agglomeration occur throughout the northern and central parts of the country; Patagonia to the south remains sparsely populatedmost of the country's population resides in the southern half of the country; approximately 80% of the populace is urban, living in towns or cities; nearly half of the population lives in and around the capital of Montevideo

Source: CIA Factbook