Location:
Central South America, northeast of Argentina

Geographic coordinates:
23 00 S, 58 00 W

Map references:
South America

Area:
total: 406,750 sq km
water: 9,450 sq km
land: 397,300 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than California

Land boundaries:
total: 3,920 km
border countries: Argentina 1,880 km, Bolivia 750 km, Brazil 1,290 km

Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims - as described in UNCLOS 1982 (see Notes and Definitions):
none (landlocked)

Climate:
subtropical to temperate; substantial rainfall in the eastern portions, becoming semiarid in the far west

Terrain:
grassy plains and wooded hills east of Rio Paraguay; Gran Chaco region west of Rio Paraguay mostly low, marshy plain near the river, and dry forest and thorny scrub elsewhere

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: junction of Rio Paraguay and Rio Parana 46 m
highest point: Cerro Pero (Cerro Tres Kandu) 842 m

Natural resources:
hydropower, timber, iron ore, manganese, limestone

Land use:
arable land: 5.54%
permanent crops: 0.21%
other: 94.25% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land:
670 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
local flooding in southeast (early September to June); poorly drained plains may become boggy (early October to June)

Environment - current issues:
deforestation; water pollution; inadequate means for waste disposal present health risks for many urban residents; loss of wetlands

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements