Total Area: 2,724,900 sq km
Land Area: 2,699,700 sq km Water Area: 25,200 sq km Climate Description: continental, cold winters and hot summers, arid and semiarid Terrain Description: vast flat steppe extending from the Volga in the west to the Altai Mountains in the east and from the plains of western Siberia in the north to oases and deserts of Central Asia in the south Arable Land Use: 8.28% Permanent Crop Land Use: 0.05% Irrigated Land: 35,560 sq km (2003) Total Renewable Water Resources: 109.6 cu km (1997) Total Fresh water Withdrawal: 35 cu km/yr (2%/17%/82%) Per Person Fresh Water Withdrawal: 2,360 cu m/yr (2000) Natural Hazards Description: earthquakes in the south; mudslides around Almaty Environmental Current Issues: radioactive or toxic chemical sites associated with former defense industries and test ranges scattered throughout the country pose health risks for humans and animals; industrial pollution is severe in some cities; because the two main rivers that flowed into the Aral Sea have been diverted for irrigation, it is drying up and leaving behind a harmful layer of chemical pesticides and natural salts; these substances are then picked up by the wind and blown into noxious dust storms; pollution in the Caspian Sea; soil pollution from overuse of agricultural chemicals and salination from poor infrastructure and wasteful irrigation practices Total Labor Force: 8.973 million (2012 est.) % of Labor Force in Agriculture: 25.9% Agricultural Products Description grain: (mostly spring wheat and barley), potatoes, vegetables, melons; livestock |