Geography of Brunei

Geography of Brunei

Continent	Southeast Asia
Region	Asia
Coordinates	4°30′N 114°40′E
Area	Ranked 163rd
• Total	5,765 km2 (2,226 sq mi)
• Land	91.33%
• Water	8.67%
Coastline	266 km (165 mi)
Borders	None
Highest point	Bukit Pagon 1,850 metres (6,070 ft)
Lowest point	South China Sea 0 metres (0 ft)
Longest river	Belait River 32 km (20 mi)
Largest lake	Tasek Merimbun 7,800 ha (19,000 acres)
Exclusive economic zone	10,090 km2 (3,900 sq mi)

Brunei is a country in Southeast Asia, bordering the South China Sea and East Malaysia. Its geographical coordinates are 4°30′N 114°40′E. The country is small with a total size of 5,765 km² (2,226 sq mi). It is larger in size than Trinidad and Tobago. It is close to vital sea lanes through the South China Sea linking the Indian and Pacific Oceans. The country has two parts physically separated by Malaysia, making it almost an enclave within Malaysia.

Brunei shares a 266 km (165 mi) border with Malaysia and has a 161 km (100 mi) coastline.

Physical Geography

The terrain is a flat coastal plain that rises to mountainous in the east and hilly lowlands in the west. While earthquakes are quite rare, Brunei is located along the Pacific Ring of Fire.

Climate

See also: Climate

The climate in Brunei is tropical equatorial and humid subtropical at higher altitudes with heavy rainfall. The municipality of Bandar Seri Begawan's climate is tropical equatorial with two seasons. Dry season is extremely hot (24 to 36 °C or 75.2 to 96.8 °F). Wet or rainy season is generally warm and wet (20 to 28 °C or 68.0 to 82.4 °F). Most of the country is a flat coastal plain with mountains in the east and hilly lowland in the west. The lowest point is at sea level and the highest is Bukit Pagon (1,850 m or 6,070 ft). Brunei also experiences typhoons and flooding.

Climatic regions

• Brunei-Muara District and Bandar Seri Begawan are humid tropical on the coast and lower altitude north and Humid subtropical in central Brunei-Muara District. (20 to 36 °C or 68 to 97 °F)
• Tutong District is tropical, hot in the north and warm in the south. (22 to 32 °C or 71.6 to 89.6 °F)
• Belait District is tropical, hot in the north and slightly warm in the south. (25 to 37 °C or 77.0 to 98.6 °F)
• Temburong District is humid subtropical in the higher altitude south and humid tropical on the coast and lower altitude north. (18 to 29 °C or 64 to 84 °F)

Enlargeable, detailed map of Brunei

Statistics

Area:

• Total: 5,765 km² (2,226 sq mi)
• Land: 5,265 km² (2,033 sq mi)
• Water: 500 km² (190 sq mi)

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nmi (13.8 mi; 22.2 km)
exclusive economic zone: 10,090 km² (3,900 sq mi) and 200 nmi (230.2 mi; 370.4 km) or to median line

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Bukit Pagon 1,850 m

Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, timber

Land use:
arable land: 0.76%
permanent crops: 1.14%
other: 98.10% (2012)

Irrigated land: 10 km² (3.9 sq mi) (2003)

Total renewable water resources: 8.5 km³ (2.0 cu mi)

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)
total: 0.09 km³/yr (97%/0%/3%)
per capital: 301.6 m³/yr (2009)

Environment – current issues: seasonal smoke/haze resulting from forest fires in Indonesia

Environment – international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from The World Factbook. CIA.