Location:

Central Asia, northwest of China; a small portion west of the Ural River in eastern-most Europe

Geographic coordinates:

48 00 N, 68 00 E

Map references:

Asia

Area:

total: 2,717,300 sq km
land: 2,669,800 sq km
water: 47,500 sq km

Area - comparative:

slightly less than four times the size of Texas

Land boundaries:

total: 12,012 km
border countries: China 1,533 km, Kyrgyzstan 1,051 km, Russia 6,846 km, Turkmenistan 379 km, Uzbekistan 2,203 km

Coastline:

0 km (landlocked); note - Kazakhstan borders the Aral Sea, now split into two bodies of water (1,070 km), and the Caspian Sea (1,894 km)

Maritime claims:

none (landlocked)

Climate:

continental, cold winters and hot summers, arid and semiarid

Terrain:

extends from the Volga to the Altai Mountains and from the plains in western Siberia to oases and desert in Central Asia

Elevation extremes:

lowest point: Vpadina Kaundy -132 m
highest point: Khan Tangiri Shyngy (Pik Khan-Tengri) 6,995 m

Natural resources:

major deposits of petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, manganese, chrome ore, nickel, cobalt, copper, molybdenum, lead, zinc, bauxite, gold, uranium

Land use:

arable land: 8.28%
permanent crops: 0.05%
other: 91.67% (2005)

Irrigated land:

35,560 sq km (2003)

Total renewable water resources:

109.6 cu km (1997)

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):

total: 35 cu km/yr (2%/17%/82%)
per capita: 2,360 cu m/yr (2000)

Natural hazards:

earthquakes in the south, mudslides around Almaty

Environment - current issues:

radioactive or toxic chemical sites associated with former defense industries and test ranges scattered throughout the country pose health risks for humans and animals; industrial pollution is severe in some cities; because the two main rivers that flowed into the Aral Sea have been diverted for irrigation, it is drying up and leaving behind a harmful layer of chemical pesticides and natural salts; these substances are then picked up by the wind and blown into noxious dust storms; pollution in the Caspian Sea; soil pollution from overuse of agricultural chemicals and salination from poor infrastructure and wasteful irrigation practices

Environment - international agreements:

party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

Geography - note:

landlocked; Russia leases approximately 6,000 sq km of territory enclosing the Baykonur Cosmodrome; in January 2004, Kazakhstan and Russia extended the lease to 2050