Ecuador

LOCATED ON THE Pacific Coast of South America, Ecuador is located on the equator (from where it takes its name), and has a land area of 98,985 sq. mi. (256,370 sq. km.). It has a population of 13,850,000 (2005 est.), and a population density of 122 people per sq. mi. (47 people per sq. km.). Six percent of the land is arable, 18 percent is used for meadows and pasture, mainly for cattle and sheep, and 40 percent of the country remains forested. Hydropower generates 75 percent of its electricity, with the remainder from fossil fuels. These contribute to a relatively low rate of per capita carbon dioxide emission, 1.6 metric tons per person were generated in 1990, rising slightly to a peak of 2.2 ...