Guatemala

Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Guatemala
conventional short form: Guatemala
local long form: Republica de Guatemala
local short form: Guatemala

Government type: constitutional democratic republic

Capital:: Guatemala City
geographic coordinates: 14 37 N, 90 31 W
time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Location	Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between El Salvador and Mexico, and bordering the Gulf of Honduras (Caribbean Sea) between Honduras and Belize
Geographic coordinates	15 30 N, 90 15 W
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean
Area	total: 108,889 sq km land: 107,159 sq km water: 1,730 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Tennessee
Land boundaries	total: 1,687 km border countries: Belize 266 km, El Salvador 203 km, Honduras 256 km, Mexico 962 km
Coastline	400 km
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate	tropical; hot, humid in lowlands; cooler in highlands
Terrain	mostly mountains with narrow coastal plains and rolling limestone plateau
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Volcan Tajumulco 4,211 m note: highest point in Central America
Natural resources	petroleum, nickel, rare woods, fish, chicle, hydropower
Land use	arable land: 13.22% permanent crops: 5.6% other: 81.18% (2005)
Irrigated land	2,000 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources	111.3 cu km (2000)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)	total: 2.01 cu km/yr (6%/13%/80%) per capita: 160 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards	numerous volcanoes in mountains, with occasional violent earthquakes; Caribbean coast extremely susceptible to hurricanes and other tropical storms volcanism: significant volcanic activity in the Sierra Madre range; Santa Maria (elev. 3,772 m) has been deemed a "Decade Volcano" by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to its explosive history and close proximity to human populations; Pacaya (elev. 2,552 m), which erupted in May 2010 causing an ashfall on Guatemala City and prompting evacuations, is one of the country's most active volcanoes with frequent eruptions since 1965; other historically active volcanoes include Acatenango, Almolonga, Atitlan, Fuego, and Tacana
Environment - current issues	deforestation in the Peten rainforest; soil erosion; water pollution
Environment - international agreements	party to: 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	no natural harbors on west coast