Natural resources: limestone, iron ore, salt, water-surplus state in a water-deficit region, arable land

Land use: arable land: 16.62%--- permanent crops: 13.98%--- other: 69.4% (2001)

Irrigated land: 1,200 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: dust storms, sandstorms

Environment - current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; air pollution in Beirut from vehicular traffic and the burning of industrial wastes; pollution of coastal waters from raw sewage and oil spills

Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation

Geography - note: Nahr el Litani only major river in Near East not crossing an international boundary; rugged terrain historically helped isolate, protect, and develop numerous factional groups based on religion, clan, and ethnicity.

The land:
Lebanon is located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. Consisting of a narrow strip of territory approximately 135 miles (215 kilometres) long from north to south and 20 to 55 miles wide from east to west, The country is bordered on the west by the Mediterranean Sea, on the north and east by Syria and on the south by Israel. Lebanon is one of the world's smaller sovereign states.

As in any mountainous region, the physical geography of Lebanon is extremely complex and varied. Landforms, climate, soils, and vegetation undergo some sharp and striking changes within short distances. Four distinct physiographic regions may be distinguished: a narrow coastal plain along the Mediterranean Sea, the Lebanon Mountains (Jabal Lubnan), al-Biqa' (Beqaa) valley, and the Anti-Lebanon and Hermon ranges running parallel to the coastal mountains.

The coastal plain is narrow and discontinuous, almost disappearing in places. It is formed of river-deposited alluvium and marine sediments, which alternate suddenly with rocky beaches and sandy bays, and is generally fertile. In the far north it expands to form the 'Akkar Plain.

The snowcapped Lebanon Mountains are the most prominent feature of the country's landscape. The range, rising steeply from the coast, forms a ridge of limestone and sandstone, cut by narrow and deep gorges. It is approximately 100 miles long and varies in width from 35 to six miles. Its maximum elevation is at Qurnat as-Sawda' (10,138 feet [3,090 metres]) in the north, where the renowned cedars of Lebanon grow in the shadow of the peak. The range then gradually slopes to the south, rising again to a second peak, Jabal Sannin, northeast of Beirut. To the south the range gives way to the hills of Galilee, which are lower. The limestone composition of the mountains provides a relatively poor topsoil. The lower and middle slopes, however, are intensively cultivated, the terraced hills standing as a scenic relic of the ingenious tillers of the past. On the coast and in the northern mountains reddish topsoils with a high clay content retain moisture and provide fertile land for agriculture, although they are subject to considerable erosion.

Al-Biqa' valley lies between the Lebanon Mountains in the west and the Anti-Lebanon Mountains in the east; its fertile soils consist of alluvial deposits from the mountains on either side. The valley, approximately 110 miles long and from six to 16 miles wide, is part of the great East African Rift System. In the south, al-Biqa' becomes hilly and rugged, blending into the foothills of Mt. Hermon (Jabal ash-Shaykh) to form the upper Jordan Valley.

The Anti-Lebanon range (al-Jabal ash-Sharqi) starts with a high peak in the north and slopes southward until it is interrupted by Mt. Hermon (9,232 feet).

Drainage:
Lebanese rivers, though numerous, are mostly winter torrents, draining the western slopes of the Lebanon Mountains. The only exception is the Litani (90 miles long), which rises near the famed ruins of Baalbek (Ba'labakk) and flows southward in al-Biqa' to empty into the Mediterranean near historic Tyre. The two other important rivers are the Orontes (Nahr al-'Asi), which rises in the north of al-Biqa' and flows northward, and the Kabir.

Climate:
There are sharp local contrasts in climatic conditions. Lebanon is included in the Mediterranean climatic region, which extends westward to the Atlantic Ocean. The winter storms formed over the ocean move eastward through the Mediterranean, bringing rain at that season; in summer the Mediterranean receives no rain. The climate of Lebanon is generally subtropical and is characterized by hot, dry summers and mild, humid winters. Mean daily maximum temperatures on the coast and in al-Biqa' range from 90° F (32° C) in July to 60° F (16° C) on the coast and 50° F (10° C) in al-Biqa' in January. Mean minimum temperatures in January are 50° F (10° C) on the coast and 35° F (2° C) in al-Biqa'. At 5,000 feet, the altitude of the highest settlements, these are reduced by about 15° F (8° C).
Nearly all precipitation falls in winter and averages 30 to 40 inches (750 to 1,000 millimetres) on the coast, rising to more than 50 inches in higher altitudes. Al-Biqa' is drier and receives 15 to 25 inches. On the higher mountaintops, this precipitation falls as heavy snow that remains until early summer.

Plant and animal life:
Lebanon was heavily forested in ancient and medieval times, and its timber—particularly its famed cedar—was exported for building and shipbuilding. The natural vegetation, however, has been grazed, burned, and cut for so long that little of it is regenerated. What survives is a wild Mediterranean vegetation of brush and low trees, mostly oaks, pines, cypresses, firs, junipers, and carobs.
Few large wild animals survive in Lebanon, though bears are occasionally seen in the mountains. Among the smaller animals, deer, wildcats, hedgehogs, squirrels, martens, dormice, and hares are found. Numerous migratory birds from Africa and Europe visit Lebanon. Flamingos, pelicans, cormorants, ducks, herons, and snipes frequent the marshes; eagles, buzzards, kites, falcons, and hawks inhabit the mountains; and owls, kingfishers, cuckoos, and woodpeckers are common.

Settlement patterns:
Most of the population live on the coastal plain, and progressively fewer people are found farther inland. Rural villages are sited according to water supply and the availability of land, frequently including terraced agriculture in the mountains. Northern villages are relatively prosperous and have some modern architecture. Villages in the south have been generally poorer and less stable; their agricultural land is less fertile and, because of their proximity to Israel, many have been subject to frequent dislocation, invasion, and destruction since 1975. Most cities are located on the coast; they have been inundated by migrants and displaced persons, and numerous, often poor, suburbs have been created as a result. Before 1975 many villages and cities were composed of several different religious groups, usually living together in harmony, and rural architecture reflected a unity of style irrespective of religious identity. Since the civil war began, a realignment has moved thousands of Christians north of Beirut along the coast and thousands of Muslims south or east of Beirut, so that settlement patterns reflect the chasms separating sections of the Lebanese people from each other.