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Location
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Japan consists of several thousands of
islands, of which Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu
and Shikoku
are the four largest. Japan's closest neighbors are Korea, Russia and China.
The Sea of Japan separates the Asian continent from the Japanese archipelago.
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Area
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Japan's area is comparable to that of
Germany or California. Japan's northernmost islands are located on a similar
geographical latitude as Milan or Portland, while her southernmost islands
are on a similar latitude as the Bahamas. More than 50% of the country is mountainous
and covered by forests. Japan is politically structured into 8 regions
and 47 prefectures.
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Population
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The population of Japan is about
125,000,000, including approximately two million foreign residents. More than
half of the non Japanese population is of Korean descent.
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TOURISM
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Japan has a very large and well-developed tourist
industry, which generated $4.3 billion in 1997. It provides an insignificant
contribution to GDP, equal to 0.1 percent in 1997, no change from its share
in 1993. The country's mild temperatures and long coastlines, together with
its numerous historical sites, make the country an attractive destination.
Foreign tourists mostly visit Tokyo and Kyoto on the main island of Honshu,
while domestic tourists are also attracted to the northern island of Hokkaido
and the southern islands of Okinawa, Miyako, and Ishigaki. Still, only 4.2
million tourists visited Japan in 1997, a significant increase of 24 percent
from 1993, but still far below other Asia-Pacific tourist destinations, such
as the 9 million who visited Hong Kong in 1997, bringing $9 billion in revenues.
This is mainly due to the high cost of living in Japan, one of the highest
among the industrialized economies, and to its remote location. Events such
as the 2002 soccer World Cup, which will be co-hosted by Japan and South
Korea, will uplift the Japanese tourist industry. If successful, Japan's
efforts to host the 2008 Olympics in Osaka will be a major boost for its
tourist industry. In anticipation of an increase in tourism, many hotel
projects are underway all over the country, including a 780-room Marriott
hotel in Nagoya.
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Coastline
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29,751
km
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Maritime
claims
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territorial
sea: 12
nm; between 3 nm and 12 nm in the international straits - La Perouse or Soya,
Tsugaru, Osumi, and Eastern and Western Channels of the Korea or Tsushima
Strait
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
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Climate
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Due to the large North South extension of the
country, the climate varies strongly in different regions. The climate in
most of the major cities, including Tokyo, is temperate to subtropic and
consists of four seasons. The winter is mild and the summer is hot and humid.
There is a rainy
season in early summer, and typhoons hit
parts of the country every year during late summer. The climate of the
northern island of Hokkaido and the Sea of Japan coast is colder, and snow falls
in large amounts. In Okinawa, on the other hand, the mean temperature of
January is a warm 17 degrees Celsius.
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Earthquakes
and Volcano’s
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Because Japan is located in a region, where
several continental plates meet, the country experiences frequent
earthquakes. Please visit the special page about earthquakes.
For the same reason, there are many volcanos in Japan. Japan's most famous
volcano and highest mountain is Mt.Fuji.
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Terrain
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mostly
rugged and mountainous
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Elevation
extremes
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lowest
point: Hachiro-gata
-4 m
highest point: Fujiyama 3,776 m
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Natural
resources
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negligible
mineral resources, fish
note: with virtually no energy natural resources, Japan is the world's
largest importer of coal and liquefied natural gas, as well as the second
largest importer of oil
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Land
use
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arable
land: 11.64%
permanent crops: 0.9%
other: 87.46% (2005)
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Irrigated
land
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25,160
sq km (2003)
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Total
renewable water resources
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430
cu km (1999)
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Freshwater
withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)
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total:
88.43
cu km/yr (20%/18%/62%)
per capita: 690 cu m/yr (2000)
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Natural
hazards
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many
dormant and some active volcanoes; about 1,500 seismic occurrences (mostly
tremors but occasional severe earthquakes) every year; tsunamis; typhoons
volcanism: both Unzen (elev. 1,500 m) and Sakura-jima (elev. 1,117 m),
which lies near the densely populated city of Kagoshima, have been deemed
"Decade Volcanoes" by the International Association of Volcanology
and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to their explosive
history and close proximity to human populations; other notable historically
active volcanoes include Asama, Honshu Island's most active volcano, Aso,
Bandai, Fuji, Iwo-Jima, Kikai, Kirishima, Komaga-take, Oshima, Suwanosejima,
Tokachi, Yake-dake, and Usu
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Environment
- current issues
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air
pollution from power plant emissions results in acid rain; acidification of
lakes and reservoirs degrading water quality and threatening aquatic life;
Japan is one of the largest consumers of fish and tropical timber,
contributing to the depletion of these resources in Asia and elsewhere
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Environment
- international agreements
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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, Tropical Timber
83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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Geography
- note
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strategic
location in northeast Asia
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