The desert landscape of Kuwait is a flat terrain with shallow depressions in the northern region. The major hills in the north are Jal Az Zor (145m above sea level) and Jal Al Liyah. The south central part is a sandy plain covered by active sand sheets with the exception of AlAhmadi Hill, 125m high. Wadi Al-Batin is the only dry river channel that constitutes the southwestern border of Kuwait.
Kuwait’s marine ecosystems, and their marine biological diversity, are core national assets. If they are well managed, they can meet an extensive range of economic, social and cultural aspirations. They also provide a range of essential environmental services that would be extremely costly or impossible to restore or replace if ecosystem functioning is impaired. With the development of the strategic plan, Kuwait is introducing a refinement of its commitment to ecologically sustainable development by implementing integrated ecosystem-based planning and management for multiple uses of Kuwait’s marine areas.
The coastal zone constitutes the northern part of the Arabian Gulf and can be categorized as: northern coastline extending around the Kuwait Bay and Khor Sabiya and the southern coastline extending along the Arabian Gulf. The coastal area around Kuwait Bay is characterized by sandy beaches while Khor As Sabiya has mudflats sand beaches, rocky outcrops, extensive intertidal mudflats, and saline marshes. The southern coast mainly consist of coastal dunes, cliffs, sandbars and tidal inlets.
The protected areas comprise a National Park and two Nature Reserves, all of which contain wetland habitat. The Park, which covers 25,000 ha, features the Jal Az-Zor escarpment and a section of the northern shore of Kuwait Bay with coastal mudflats and saline marshes and sand dunes. Two nature reserves include: the Jahra Pools Nature Reserve (250 ha),a man-made wetland comprising sewage lagoons and reed-beds in the extreme western end of Kuwait Bay, and the Doha Peninsula Nature Reserve in Sulaibikhat Bay (450 ha) which is remarkable for the great diversity of migratory birds.
Bubiyan is the largest island among the nine islands of Kuwait with an area of 863 km2 situated in the north-western corner of the Arabian Gulf. It is uninhabited and is separated from the mainland to the southwest by a narrow channel Khor as Subiyah that trends around the northern end of Bubiyan Island, separating it from Warbah island in the southernmost part. Bubiyan is linked to the mainland by a concrete bridge over the Khor as Subiyah channel.
Khiran is located at the southern part of Kuwait near the Saudi Arabian border about 85 km south of Kuwait City and adjacent to the Arabian Gulf. It has a complex of tidal creeks (Khors) and lagoons with adjacent sabkha. The major tidal creeks are: Khor Al-A'ama, in the north, a comparatively wide tidal creek with a maximum width of 1 km and a narrow channel connecting it with the open sea. Khor Al-Mufateh and Khor Al-Mamlaha comprise a branching system of creeks which are about 0.75 km wide and extend inland for 5.5 km. This system is connected to the sea by a single narrow channel with a maximum depth of about 7m at low tide.
There are two major farming areas in Kuwait, Abdali in the northeast and Wafra in the south. The former has agricultural area of 24,719 ha while the latter has a total area of about 9371 ha . Because of Kuwait's arid climate, artificial growing methods are used for sustainable crop production both in open fields and under green houses system.
An important component of Kuwait’s natural resources is the groundwater, which is largely brackish. It is frequently used for irrigation on private farms, landscaping, post-treatment of distilled water, livestock and construction. Fresh ground-water lenses are found at Raudhatain and Umm Al-Aish fields, in the northern part of the country while most of the brackish zones are located in the southwestern regions.
Kuwait is the Middle East's third largest oil producer and possesses the fourth largest proven reserves in the world. The oil industry in Kuwait is most profitable sector, accounting for around 90% of export revenues. Petroleum and petrochemicals accounts for nearly 95% of export revenues.