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Geography and Climate
Peru is located in
Western South America, bordering the Pacific Ocean, between
Chile and Ecuador. It also shares borders with Colombia, Brazil
and Bolivia.
The western coastal plains (costa) are separated
from the eastern lowland jungle of the Amazon Basin (selva)
by the high and rugged Andes in the center (sierra). On the
border with Bolivia lies Lake Titicaca, the world's highest
navigable lake at 3821 m.
The combination of
latitude and topography variations gives Peru a large diversity
of climates. To the east, the Amazon Basin has a tropical
climate which receives warm and rainy conditions all year
round. Temperatures vary from 19-24 during the night and 27-35
during the day. Rainfall varies from 2000 to 4000 mm/year.
The eastern slopes of the Andes lay among the wettest places
on earth. Annual rainfall ranges from 3000 to 15000 mm and
the temperatures from 14-20 C during the night and 24-32 C
during the day.
The Andes shelter the largest variety of
climates in the country. The climate is semi-arid in the valleys
and moist in higher elevations and towards the eastern flanks.
Rainfall varies from 200 to 1500 mm/year. The rainy season
starts in October and ends in April. The rainiest months are
January through March where travel can be sometimes affected.
The western slopes are arid to semi-arid and receive rainfall
only between January and March. Below 2500 m the temperatures
vary between 5 and 15 degrees Celsius in the night versus
18-29 C in the day. Between 2500 and 3500 the temperatures
vary from -5 to 12 C in the night and from 15 to 25 C during
the day. Between 3500 and 4500 meters the temperature varies
from -10 to 8 degrees Celsius during the night versus 10 to
20 degrees Celsius during the day.
The coast is desert with annual rainfall
that varies from 5 mm/year near the Chilean border to 200
mm/year in the northern coast and near the Andes. The Sechura
desert extends from the Chilean border to northern Peru, and
the Tumbes-Piura dry forests occupy the northwestern coastal
plain, extending into southern Ecuador. Summer (December through
March) is warm and sunny with temperatures that vary from
17 to 24 C during the night and 25 to 36 during the day. Winter
(June through September) is cool and cloudy with temperatures
that vary from 8 to 16 C during the night and 16 to 24 C during
the day.
Terrain: western coastal plain (costa), high
and rugged Andes in center (sierra), eastern lowland jungle
of Amazon Basin (selva)
Natural resources: copper, silver, gold,
petroleum, timber, fish, iron ore, coal, phosphate, potash,
hydropower
Land use:
arable land: 3%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 21%
forests and woodland: 66%
other: 10% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 12,800 km² (1993 est.)
Environment
Current issues: deforestation (some the result of illegal
logging); overgrazing of the slopes of the costa and sierra
leading to soil erosion; desertification; air pollution in
Lima; pollution of rivers and coastal waters from municipal
and mining wastes
International agreements: party to: Antarctic Treaty, Antarctic-Environmental
Protocol, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection,
Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands,
Whaling; signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Source: www.wikipedia.org
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