Canada

Map of Canada

Country Name	Canada
Capital	Ottawa
Independence	1 July 1867 (union of British North American colonies); 11 December 1931 (recognized by UK per Statute of Westminster)
National holiday	Canada Day, 1 July (1867)
Population	34,300,083 (July 2012 est.)
Nationality	Canadian(s)
Religions	Roman Catholic 42.6%, Protestant 23.3% (United Church 9.5%, Anglican 6.8%, Baptist 2.4%, Lutheran 2%), other Christian 4.4%, Muslim 1.9%, other and unspecified 11.8%, none 16% (2001 census)
Languages	English (official) 58.8%, French (official) 21.6%, other 19.6% (2006 Census)
Literacy	Age 15 and over can read and write Total population: 99% Male: 99% Female: 99% (2003 est.)
	Sex ratio: at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2011 est.)
Location	Northern North America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean on the east, North Pacific Ocean on the west, and the Arctic Ocean on the north, north of the conterminous US
Geographic coordinates	60 00 N, 95 00 W
Map references	North America
Area	total: 9,984,670 sq km land: 9,093,507 sq km water: 891,163 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than the US
Land boundaries	total: 8,893 km border countries: US 8,893 km (includes 2,477 km with Alaska) note: Canada is the World's largest country that borders only one country
Coastline	202,080 km
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Climate	varies from temperate in south to subarctic and arctic in north
Terrain	mostly plains with mountains in west and lowlands in southeast
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Logan 5,959 m
Natural resources	iron ore, nickel, zinc, copper, gold, lead, rare earth elements, molybdenum, potash, diamonds, silver, fish, timber, wildlife, coal, petroleum, natural gas, hydropower
Exports - commodities	Motor vehicles and parts, industrial machinery, aircraft, telecommunications equipment; chemicals, plastics, fertilizers; wood pulp, timber, crude petroleum, natural gas, electricity, aluminum
Imports – commodities	Machinery and equipment, motor vehicles and parts, crude oil, chemicals, electricity, durable consumer goods
Land use	arable land: 4.57% permanent crops: 0.65% other: 94.78% (2005)
Irrigated land	8,550 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources	3,300 cu km (1985)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)	total: 44.72 cu km/yr (20%/69%/12%) per capita: 1,386 cu m/yr (1996)
Natural hazards	continuous permafrost in north is a serious obstacle to development; cyclonic storms form east of the Rocky Mountains, a result of the mixing of air masses from the Arctic, Pacific, and North American interior, and produce most of the country's rain and snow east of the mountains volcanism: the vast majority of volcanoes in Western Canada's Coast Mountains remain dormant
Environment - current issues	air pollution and resulting acid rain severely affecting lakes and damaging forests; metal smelting, coal-burning utilities, and vehicle emissions impacting on agricultural and forest productivity; ocean waters becoming contaminated due to agricultural, industrial, mining, and forestry activities
Environment - international agreements	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Marine Life Conservation
Geography - note	second-largest country in world (after Russia); strategic location between Russia and US via north polar route; approximately 90% of the population is concentrated within 160 km of the US border; Canada has more fresh water than any other country and almost 9% of Canadian territory is water; Canada has at least 2 million and possibly over 3 million lakes - that is more than all other countries combined