Vietnam+Geography

Geography


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Vietnam stretches out long and arching along the South China Sea. Forming an ‘s’, it has a large patch of land at the northern end, and another at the southern tip, separated by a long, narrow strip of mountains and coastline. North to south, Vietnam is 1,023 miles long, but little more than 31 miles at it most slender east-west portion. Its widest spot in the north is 372 miles. (Willis, 2002)

It's geographic coordinates are 16 10 N, 107 50 E (Willis, 2002)

Vietnam’s total land mass is 127,242 square miles. That’s just a little bigger than the state of New Mexico. Though Vietnam is fairly small for a country, it contains great resources and a wonderful variety of environments and climates. (Willis, 2002)

Two major river deltas provide a wonderful environment for the rice paddies that help feed the country. Annual monsoons dump heavy rains on much of the country for months, yet at other times, Vietnam can be very dry. Vietnam has three different geographical regions. The northern region is known as Bac Bo, central Vietnam is Trung Bo, and the southern portion is Nam Bo. __(CIA Worldfactbook)__

Logging and slash-and-burn agricultural practices contribute to deforestation and soil degradation; water pollution and overfishing threaten marine life populations; groundwater contamination limits potable water supply; growing urban industrialization and population migration are rapidly degrading environment in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City __(CIA Worldfactbook)__