Chile

Map of Chile

Country	Republic of Chile
Government type	republic
Capital	Santiago
Independence	18 September 1810 (from Spain)
National holiday	Independence Day, 18 September (1810)
Population	17,216,945 (July 2013 est.)
Sex ratio	1.04 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-24 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 25-54 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 55-64 years: 0.88 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2013 est.)
Nationality	Chilean
Religions	Roman Catholic 70%, Evangelical 15.1%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.1%, other Christian 1%, other 4.6%, none 8.3% (2002 census)
Languages	Spanish (official), Mapudungun, German, English
Literacy	age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98.6% male: 98.6% female: 98.5% (2009 est.)
Location	Southern South America, bordering the South Pacific Ocean, between Argentina and Peru
Geographic coordinates	30 00 S, 71 00 W
Map references	South America
Area	total: 756,102 sq km land: 743,812 sq km water: 12,290 sq km note: includes Easter Island (Isla de Pascua) and Isla Sala y Gomez
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than twice the size of Montana
Land boundaries	total: 6,339 km border countries: Argentina 5,308 km, Bolivia 860 km, Peru 171 km
Coastline	6,435 km
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200/350 nm
Climate	temperate; desert in north; Mediterranean in central region; cool and damp in south
Terrain	low coastal mountains; fertile central valley; rugged Andes in east
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Nevado Ojos del Salado 6,880 m
Natural resources	copper, timber, iron ore, nitrates, precious metals, molybdenum, hydropower
Exports - commodities	Copper, fruit, fish products, paper and pulp, chemicals, wine
Imports - commodities	Petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, electrical and telecommunications equipment, industrial machinery, vehicles, natural gas
Land use	arable land: 2.62% permanent crops: 0.43% other: 96.95% (2005)
Irrigated land	19,000 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources	922 cu km (2000)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)	total: 12.55 cu km/yr (11%/25%/64%) per capita: 770 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards	severe earthquakes; active volcanism; tsunamis volcanism: significant volcanic activity due to more than three-dozen active volcanoes along the Andes Mountains; Lascar (elev. 5,592 m), which last erupted in 2007, is the most active volcano in the northern Chilean Andes; Llaima (elev. 3,125 m) in central Chile, which last erupted in 2009, is another of the country's most active; Chaiten's 2008 eruption forced major evacuations; other notable historically active volcanoes include Cerro Hudson, Copahue, Guallatiri, Llullaillaco, Nevados de Chillan, Puyehue, San Pedro, and Villarrica
Environment - current issues	widespread deforestation and mining threaten natural resources; air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution from raw sewage
Environment - international agreements	party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note	the longest north-south trending country in the world, extending across 38 degrees of latitude; strategic location relative to sea lanes between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); Atacama Desert - the driest desert in the world - spreads across the northern part of the country; the crater lake of Ojos del Salado is the world's highest lake (at 6,390 m)