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THAILAND

@Thailand:Geography

Location: Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of
Thailand, southeast of Burma

Map references: Southeast Asia

Area:
total area: 514,000 sq km
land area: 511,770 sq km
comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of Wyoming

Land boundaries: total 4,863 km, Burma 1,800 km, Cambodia 803 km, Laos
1,754 km, Malaysia 506 km

Coastline: 3,219 km

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

International disputes: boundary dispute with Laos; unresolved
maritime boundary with Vietnam; parts of border with Thailand in
dispute; maritime boundary with Thailand not clearly defined

Climate: tropical; rainy, warm, cloudy southwest monsoon (mid-May to
September); dry, cool northeast monsoon (November to mid-March);
southern isthmus always hot and humid

Terrain: central plain; Khorat plateau in the east; mountains
elsewhere

Natural resources: tin, rubber, natural gas, tungsten, tantalum,
timber, lead, fish, gypsum, lignite, fluorite

Land use:
arable land: 34%
permanent crops: 4%
meadows and pastures: 1%
forest and woodland: 30%
other: 31%

Irrigated land: 42,300 sq km (1989 est.)

Environment:
current issues: air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution
from organic and factory wastes; deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife
populations threatened by illegal hunting
natural hazards: land subsidence in Bangkok area resulting from the
depletion of the water table; droughts
international agreements: party to - Climate Change, Endangered
Species, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection, Tropical Timber 83; signed, but not ratified -
Biodiversity, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea

Note: controls only land route from Asia to Malaysia and Singapore

@Thailand:People

Population: 60,271,300 (July 1995 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 29% (female 8,545,362; male 8,866,271)
15-64 years: 66% (female 19,733,773; male 20,185,392)
65 years and over: 5% (female 1,636,426; male 1,304,076) (July 1995
est.)

Population growth rate: 1.24% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 18.87 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate: 6.48 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate: