Geography of French Polynesia

This article describes the geography of French Polynesia.

Location

Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about half way between South America and Australia

Geographic coordinates

15°00′S 140°00′W / 15°S 140°W / -15; -140

Map references

Oceania

Area

• Total: 4,167 km² (Around 130 islands)
• Land: 3,827 km²
• Water: 340 km²

Land boundaries

0 km

Coastline

2,525 km

Maritime claims

• Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
• Territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate

Tropical, but moderate

Terrain

Mixture of rugged high islands and low islands with reefs

Elevation extremes

• Lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
• Highest point: Mont Orohena ( Tahiti ) 2,241 m

Natural resources

Timber, fish, cobalt, hydropower

Land use

• Arable land: 0.75%
• Permanent crops: 5.5%
• Other: 93.75% (2005)

Irrigated land

10 km2 (2003)

Natural hazards

Occasional cyclonic storms in January

Environment - current issues

NA

Geography - note

Includes five archipelagoes; Makatea in French Polynesia is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Nauru