Puerto Rico

Location	Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of the Dominican Republic
Geographic coordinates	18 15 N, 66 30 W
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean
Area	total: 13,790 sq km land: 8,870 sq km water: 4,921 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly less than three times the size of Rhode Island
Land boundaries	0 km
Coastline	501 km
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Climate	tropical marine, mild; little seasonal temperature variation
Terrain	mostly mountains with coastal plain belt in north; mountains precipitous to sea on west coast; sandy beaches along most coastal areas
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Cerro de Punta 1,338 m
Natural resources	some copper and nickel; potential for onshore and offshore oil
Land use	arable land: 3.69% permanent crops: 5.59% other: 90.72% (2005)
Irrigated land	220 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards	periodic droughts; hurricanes
Environment - current issues	erosion; occasional drought causing water shortages
Geography - note	important location along the Mona Passage - a key shipping lane to the Panama Canal; San Juan is one of the biggest and best natural harbors in the Caribbean; many small rivers and high central mountains ensure land is well watered; south coast relatively dry; fertile coastal plain belt in north