Geography of Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea extends over , including a large mainland a number of islands. The country lies just south of the equator, and shares a land border with Indonesia, and maritime borders with Australia, the Solomon Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia. The island of New Guinea lies at the east of the Malay Archipelago. The country is separated from Australia's Cape York Peninsula by the shallow Torres Strait. To the west of this strait is the shallow Arafura Sea, while to its east is the much deeper Coral Sea. The total coastline is longer than , the largest fisheries zone in the South Pacific. The country covers two timezones, with the Autonomous Region of Bougainville an hour ahead of the rest of the country. Its mainland coastline is long. It lies where the north-moving Indo-Australian plate meets the west-moving Pacific plate. This has caused its highly variable geography both on the mainland and on its islands. Tectonic movement is also the origin of the country's active volcanos and frequent earthquakes. The country is situated on the Pacific Ring of Fire, with altogether 14 known active volcanos and 22 dormant ones. The Sepik river however is navigable for about half of its length. The 141° E meridian formed the entire eastern boundary of Dutch New Guinea according to its 1828 annexation proclamation. By the Treaty of The Hague (1895) the Dutch and British agreed to a territorial exchange, bringing the entire left bank of the Fly River into British New Guinea and moving the southern border east to the Torasi Estuary. In the Torres Strait it runs close to the mainland of New Guinea, keeping the adjacent North Western Torres Strait Islands (Dauan, Boigu and Saibai) under Australian sovereignty. Maritime boundaries with the Solomon Islands were confirmed by a 1989 treaty. Including all its islands, it lies between latitudes 0° and 12°S, and longitudes 140° and 160°E. The northernmost point is Mussau Island (1°23' S), southernmost point is Sudest Island (11°65' S), easternmost point is Olava, Bougainville (155°57' E) and the westernmost point is either Bovakaka along the Fly River border with Indonesia or Mabudawan (140°54' E). Papua New Guinea has several volcanoes, as it is situated along the Pacific Ring of Fire. Volcanic eruptions are not rare, and the area is prone to earthquakes and tsunamis because of this. The volcanic disturbance can often cause severe earthquakes, which in turn can also cause tsunamis. Papua New Guinea is also prone to landslides, often caused by deforestation in major forests. The mountainous regions of Papua New Guinea are the areas most susceptible to landslides causing damage. Offshore islands include the small, forested Admiralty Islands, the largest of which is Manus, to the north of the main island of New Guinea. These have a distinct plant and animal life from the main island but the natural forest has been cleared in places for logging and agriculture. A 2019 global remote sensing analysis suggested that there were of tidal flats in Papua New Guinea, making it the 25th ranked country in terms of tidal flat area. Rivers Soil Soil quality and composition in Papua New Guinea is highly varied, however the tectonic activity in the country means the soils are relatively young. On 25 February 2018, an earthquake of magnitude 7.5 and depth of 35 kilometres struck the middle of Papua New Guinea. The worst of the damage was centred around the Southern Highlands region. From March to April 2018, a chain of earthquakes hit Hela Province, causing widespread landslides and the deaths of 200 people. Various nations from Oceania and Southeast Asia immediately sent aid to the country. Another severe earthquake occurred on 11 September 2022, killing seven people and causing damaging shaking in some of the country's largest cities, such as Lae and Madang, it was also felt in the capital Port Moresby. On May 24, 2024, a landslide hit the village of Kaokalam in Enga Province, about 600 kilometers (372 miles) northwest of the capital, Port Moresby, at about 3 a.m. local time. The landslide buried more than 2000 people alive, caused major destruction to buildings, and food gardens and caused major impact on the economic lifeline of the country. The casualty figure surpasses the 2006 Southern Leyte mudslide tragedy where a total of 1,126 people lost their lives as the debris flow from a landslide followed 10 days of heavy rain. With over 2,000 reported dead by the Papua New Guinea government, this disaster has now emerged as the deadliest landslide of the 21st century. Climate change is leading to rising sea levels. It is expected that populations will soon be forced to move from some areas of Bougainville, such as the Carteret Islands. ==Climate==

As the country lies within the tropics, The wind generally blows southeast from May to October, and northwest from December to March. This drives overall rain patterns, however the large mountains and rugged terrain create local weather conditions and wide variations in annual rainfall. The area around Port Moresby receives less than per year, while some highland areas receive over . Lowland humidity averages around 80%, and the highest altitudes, especially of Mount Wilhelm and Mount Giluwe, can see snow. Climate change is expected to alter the temperature and precipitation of the country, with implications for wildlife, ecosystems and agriculture. Climate data }} }} ==Human geography==

Maritime claims: These are measured from claimed archipelagic baselines. • Continental shelf: : depth or to the depth of exploitation • Exclusive economic zone: :. nautical miles • Territorial sea: :12 nautical miles (22 km) ==Land use==

Natural resources: gold, copper, silver, natural gas, timber, oil, fisheries Land use: • arable land: 0.49% • permanent crops: 1.4% • other (forests, swamplands, etc.): 98.11% (2005 estimate) Classifications of land use can vary considerably depending on the methodology and definitions used. As of 1975, 69.5% of land was considered totally unused. This was mostly forest. 25.6% was cultivated to different extents, although half was at very low levels, including land left to fallow to the extent it may have secondary forest. The remaining 4.9% was uncultivated, including grassland and sago stands. From 1975 to 1996, the amount of intensely cultivated land increased, although the overall amount of cultivated land remained mostly the same, indicating land use changes were predominantly taking place in already used land. The region with the most intensely used land is the Highlands. Another hotspot is the area around Blanche Bay in East New Britain Province. ==Biodiversity==

Papua New Guinea is a megadiverse country, containing perhaps 5% of global biodiversity. It hosts 4.5% of known mammal diversity, and perhaps 30,000 vascular plant species. Different floral assemblages can be broadly delineated by altitude into lowland, lower montane, upper montane, and alpine. The official definition of "forest" as of 2014 is "Land spanning more than 1 hectare, with trees higher than 3 meters and the canopy cover of more than 10 percent", and these forests are officially classified into 13 natural types plus plantations. "Low altitude forest on uplands" makes up 31.30% of all forest, "Low altitude forest on plain and fans" 24.7%, and "Lower montane forest" 22.30%. Of all forest in 2018, over three-quarters was old-growth forest; 11.9% was heavily logged, and 0.2% had been logged at a small scale. 7.9% was affected by temporary farming or gardening. The country is part of the Malesia biogeographical area, with its plant species more similar to those of East Asia than Australasia, although there are exceptions, especially at higher altitudes. with new species being regularly described. Different taxa have centres of endemism and diversity in different areas. For example, insect and lizard diversity is high north of the central mountain spine, marsupial, snake, and freshwater fish diversity is highest in areas south of the mountain spine such as the Fly lowlands, and frog diversity is generally highest in mountainous areas on the mainland and Bougainville (an exception being the highly diverse Huon peninsula). One notable feature in common for the two landmasses is the existence of several species of marsupial mammals, including some kangaroos and possums, which are not found elsewhere. Three new species of mammals were discovered in the forests of Papua New Guinea by an Australian-led expedition in the early 2010s. A small wallaby, a large-eared mouse and a shrew-like marsupial were discovered. The expedition was also successful in capturing photographs and video footage of some other rare animals such as the Tenkile tree kangaroo and the Weimang tree kangaroo. The large islands to the northeast are oceanic islands that have never been linked to New Guinea. As a consequence, they have their own flora and fauna; Islands lying between the mainland Huon Peninsula and New Britain provide an avenue for some migration. The small islands to the southeast were possibly linked to the mainland in the past, and have similar wildlife. Nearly one-quarter of Papua New Guinea's rainforests were damaged or destroyed between 1972 and 2002, with around 15% being completely cleared. Up to a quarter of the forests are likely secondary forest, covering areas cultivated in the past. In these areas, cultivation cycles may include a fallow period of as long as 50 years. Clearing has turned a very small amount of forest area into savanna. Papua New Guinea includes several terrestrial ecoregions: • Admiralty Islands lowland rain forests – forested islands to the north of the mainland, home to a distinct flora. • Central Range montane rain forests of Papua New Guinea bears a sharp contrast to nearby arid Australia. • Huon Peninsula montane rain forests • Louisiade Archipelago rain forests • New Britain-New Ireland lowland rain forests • New Britain-New Ireland montane rain forests • New Guinea mangroves • Northern New Guinea lowland rain and freshwater swamp forests • Northern New Guinea montane rain forests • Solomon Islands rain forests (includes Bougainville Island and Buka) • Southeastern Papuan rain forests • Southern New Guinea freshwater swamp forests • Southern New Guinea lowland rain forests • Trobriand Islands rain forests • Trans-Fly savanna and grasslands • Central Range sub-alpine grasslands ==Environmental issues==

The rainforest is subject to deforestation as a result of growing commercial demand for tropical timber; forest clearance, especially in coastal areas, for plantations; pollution from mining projects. If the trend continues, more than half the forest that existed when Papua New Guinea became independent from Australia in 1975 will be gone by 2021. Environment - international agreements signed, but not ratified • Antarctic-Environmental Protocol signed and ratified • Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol == Extreme points ==

Extreme points • Northernmost point – Sae Island 0° 45' 22 S, 145° 18' 33 E • Northernmost point (main island) – Sandaun Province 2° 36' 11 S, 141° 03' 26 E • Southernmost point – Vanatinai Rewe Point 11° 39' 17 S, 153° 33' 04 E • Southernmost point (main island) – Near Suau, Samarai-Murua District 10° 42' 08 S, 150° 12' 07 E • Westernmost point – Border with Indonesia, Western Province 6° 36' 45 S, 140° 50' 37 E • Easternmost point – Nukumanu Islands, North Solomons 4°34' 39 S, 159° 29' 33 E • Easternmost point (main island) – East Cape, Milne Bay 10° 13' 41 S, 150° 52' 39 E • Highest point – Mount Wilhelm: • Lowest point – Pacific Ocean: 0 m (0 ft) ==See also==