Location Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey

Geographic coordinates 43 00 N, 25 00 E

Map references Europe

Area
total: 110,910 sq km
water: 360 sq km
land: 110,550 sq km

Area - comparative slightly larger than Tennessee

Land boundaries
total: 1,808 km
border countries: Greece 494 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 148 km, Romania 608 km, Yugoslavia 318 km, Turkey 240 km

Coastline 354 km

Maritime claims
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM

Climate temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers

Terrain mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast

Elevation extremes
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Musala 2,925 m

Natural resources bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land

Land use
arable land: 39%
permanent crops: 2%
other: 59% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land 8,000 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards earthquakes, landslides

Environment - current issues air pollution from industrial emissions; rivers polluted from raw sewage, heavy metals, detergents; deforestation; forest damage from air pollution and resulting acid rain; soil contamination from heavy metals from metallurgical plants and industrial wastes

Environment - international agreements
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

Geography - note strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia

NOTE: The information regarding Bulgaria on this page is re-published from the 2002 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Bulgaria Geography 2002 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Bulgaria Geography 2002 should be addressed to the CIA.