Location Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba

Geographic coordinates 18 15 N, 77 30 W

Map references Central America and the Caribbean

Area
total: 10,990 sq km
land: 10,830 sq km
water: 160 sq km

Area - comparative slightly smaller than Connecticut

Land boundaries 0 km

Coastline 1,022 km

Maritime claims measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior

Terrain mostly mountains with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain

Elevation extremes
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m

Natural resources bauxite, gypsum, limestone

Land use
arable land: 14%
permanent crops: 6%
permanent pastures: 24%
forests and woodland: 17%
other: 39% (1993 est.)
note: irrigated land - 3% (350 sq km)(1993 est.)

Irrigated land 350 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards hurricanes (especially July to November)

Environment - current issues deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions

Environment - international agreements
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for Panama Canal

NOTE: The information regarding Jamaica on this page is re-published from the 1998 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Jamaica Geography 1998 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Jamaica Geography 1998 should be addressed to the CIA.