Geography & environment — Ireland
Location, land area, terrain, climate, and natural resources.
Profile updated 2026-06-02
⚡ Geography & environment at a glance
Location, land area, terrain, climate, and natural resources. Key figure for Ireland: Europe
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Location & size
- Geographic Location
Europe
- Geographic Coordinates
53 00 N, 8 00 W
- Total Area
27,132 Square Miles 70,273 Square Kilometers
- Land Area
26,596 Square Miles 68,883 Square Kilometers
- Water Area
537 Square Miles 1,390 Square Kilometers
- Land Boundaries
224 Miles 360 Kilometers
- Border Countries
UK 360 km
- Coastline
900 Miles 1,448 Kilometers
Physical geography
- Terrain
mostly level to rolling interior plain surrounded by rugged hills and low mountains; sea cliffs on the west coast
- Highest Point
1,041 Meters
- Highest Point Location
Carrauntoohil 1,041 m
- Lowest Point Location
Atlantic Ocean 0 m
- Natural Resources
Natural gas, peat, copper, lead, zinc, silver, barite, gypsum, limestone, dolomite
- Irrigated Land
4 Square Miles 11 Square Kilometers
Climate & time
- Time Zone
UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
- Daylight saving time
+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Climate
- Climate
- temperate maritime
- modified by North Atlantic Current
- mild winters, cool summers
- consistently humid
- overcast about half the time
- Terrain
mostly level to rolling interior plain surrounded by rugged hills and low mountains; sea cliffs on the west coast
- Location
Western Europe, occupying five-sixths of the island of Ireland in the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Great Britain
- Total Area
27,132 Square Miles 70,273 Square Kilometers
- Border Countries
UK 360 km
Environment
- Environment - Current Issues
Water pollution, especially of lakes, from agricultural runoff
- Environment - International Agreements
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Marine Life Conservation