The coast of Venezuela, South America and Barbados
Barbados' total land area is 439 km2 (169.5 sq mi),[4] and it has a coastline of 97 km (60 mi) length.[5] The island is sometimes compared to a pear[6] or leg of mutton for its physical shape. Barbados has a maximum north–south length of 34 kilometres (21 mi) and a maximum east–west breadth of 23 kilometres (14 mi).
Physical characteristics
The physical characteristics of Barbados are its lowlands or gently sloping, terraced plains, separated by rolling hills that generally parallel the coasts.[7] Elevations in the interior range from 180 to 240 meters above sea level. Mount Hillaby is the highest point at 340 meters above sea level.[7] Farther south, at Christ Church Ridge, elevations range from sixty to ninety meters.[7] Eighty-five percent of the island's surface consists of coralline limestone twenty-four to thirty meters thick; Scotland District contains outcroppings of oceanic formations at the surface, however.[7] Sugarcane is planted on almost 80 percent of the island's limestone surface.[7] The soils vary in fertility; erosion is a problem, with crop loss resulting from landslides, washouts, and falling rocks.[7] Most of the small streams are in Scotland District.[7] The rest of the island has few surface streams; nevertheless, rainwater saturates the soil to produce underground channels such as the famous Coles Cave.[7] Also notable in the island is the rocky cape known as Pico Teneriffe[8] or Pico de Tenerife, which is named after the fact that the island of Tenerife in Spain is the first land east of Barbados according to the belief of the locals.
In Barbados forest cover is around 15% of the total land area, equivalent to 6,300 hectares (ha) of forest in 2020, which was unchanged from 1990. In 2020, naturally regenerating forest covered 6,300 hectares (ha) and planted forest covered 0 hectares (ha). Of the naturally regenerating forest 0% was reported to be primary forest (consisting of native tree species with no clearly visible indications of human activity) and around 5% of the forest area was found within protected areas. For the year 2015, 1% of the forest area was reported to be under public ownership, 0% private ownership and 99% with ownership listed as other or unknown.[9][10]
In 2009[11] and 2010, members of the upscale real estate industry in Barbados proposed the creation of artificial islands to be placed off the west coast. According to Paul Altman of Altman Realty the envisioned plan, would consist of two islands, one measuring 250 acres (1.0 km2) in size, and would house new tourism based developments and upscale boutique shops; while the second island would be 50 acres (200,000 m2) in size, and would serve as an open national park. Both proposed islands would be a short distance from the Deep Water Harbour in Bridgetown.[12][13]
The south-eastern part of the island has undergone small scale oil and gas capturing from possibly as early as 1919 when the British Union Oil Company acquired over 75% of the drilling rights in Barbados.[14] Similar to Trinidad and Tobago to the southwest, the territorial Atlantic Ocean surrounding Barbados has been found to contain fossil fuels, however ongoing research is being conducted to give estimates of actual quantities.[15][16]
Time zone
Barbados is in the Eastern Caribbean Time Zone. Barbados no longer observes Daylight Saving Time. It was last used between Sunday, 20 April 1980 at 2:00 AM and Thursday, 25 September 1980 at 2:00 AM. On 25 September of that year the clock was shifted from -3:00 to -4:00, where it has remained since.
Statistics
Location
Barbados, seen from the International Space StationBarbados's offshore coral reefs.Barbados's cities, towns, villages and road network
Infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides; periodic flooding, from storm surge and intense rainfall events; and occasional droughts, causing fires.
Environment - current issues
Pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers
Environment - international agreements
Party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
Signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note
Easternmost Caribbean island
Climate
Barbados is the twentieth most water stressed country in the world.
Barbados lies within the tropics.[7] Its generally pleasant maritime climate is influenced by northeast trade winds, which moderate the tropical temperature.[7] Cool, northeasterly trade winds are prevalent during the December to June dry season.[7] The overall annual temperature ranges from 24 to 28 °C (75.2 to 82.4 °F); slightly lower temperatures prevail at higher elevations.[7] Humidity levels are between 71 percent and 76 percent year round. Rainfall occurs primarily between July and December and varies considerably with elevation.[7] Rainfall may average 1,875 millimeters (73.8 in) per year in the higher central area as compared with 1,275 millimeters (50.2 in) in the coastal zone.[7]
Source 2: Meteo Climat (record highs and lows)[19]
Disputes
Guyana's and Barbados's offshore territorial claims overlap, and are also disputed with Venezuela,[20] which itself claims ownership of the waters overlapping the first two.[21] In 2008 Barbados sought to place the oil blocks on open market for oil exploration tender but faced a challenge by Venezuela's government in Caracas.[22]
In 2006 a local Barbadian group purporting to represent descendants of indigenous Caribbean peoples announced its claim to Culpepper Island, a small rocky outcrop on the eastern shore of Barbados.[23]
Oceanography
Due to the location of Barbados far east of Windward Islands chain it possesses an expansive Exclusive Economic Zone of about 185,000 km2 (71,000 sq mi)[24] extending predominantly to the east.
Notes
^"Windward Islands". Encyclopædia Britannica. a line of West Indian islands constituting the southern arc of the Lesser Antilles, at the eastern end of the Caribbean Sea, between latitudes 12° and 16° N and longitudes 60° and 62° W. They include, from north to south, the English-speaking island of Dominica; the French département of Martinique; the English-speaking islands of Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent, and Grenada; and, between Saint Vincent and Grenada, the chain of small islands known as the Grenadines. Though near the general area, Trinidad and Tobago (at the south end of the group) and Barbados (just east) are usually not considered part of the Windward Islands.
^Joseph, Cedric. "Border Controversies and their Implications for Stability and Security of the Caribbean Community". UWI-CARICOM Project. Archived from the original on 2014-10-22. The Bahamas, one of six CARICOM States to claim archipelago status, with a total coastline of 11,238 km, is reported to have the largest claim to EEZ of 369,149 sq km. Barbados, with a total coastline of some 97 km and a relatively small continental shelf of 213 sq km, reportedly has a claim to some 183,436 sq km of exclusive economic zone.
^Staff writer (8 August 2007). "BID Blocks carrying local names". Government of Barbados. Archived from the original on October 3, 2011. Retrieved 20 December 2010. Barbados is 341(TYPO?) square kilometres in size and 70,000 sq km of its marine territorial space has been made available for the offshore hydrocarbon exploration. This means that the acreage on the market is about 162 times the size of the island's land space.
^Pariser, Harry S. (October 2000). Explore Barbados. Vol. 3. Manatee Press. ISBN1-893643-51-4. Retrieved 2009-12-29. Forewords & Introductions: "Just 21 mi. long by a "smile" wide, Barbados is an island of dramatic contrasts and offers many picture-postcard terrains. The island's shape has been compared to that of a ham, a leg of mutton, a pear-shaped emerald, or a lopsided pear with the stem end pointing north.
^(PDF) Staff writer. "Barbados 2021 Update of the First Nationally Determined Contribution"(PDF). www.unfccc.int. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). p. 5. Retrieved 20 January 2023. The Barbados landmass has an area of 432 square kilometers, with 92 kilometers of coastline. The Barbados' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is some 430 times larger, at 185,000 square kilometers, and represents a significant potential resource.
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