Mongolia until now has been one of the world's best-kept secrets. Three times the size of France and with more horses than people; it is one Asia's last unspoilt destinations.

Mongolia is a country in East Asia, landlocked between Russia and China. The country's capital and largest city is Ulaanbaatar (Ulan Bator), located in the heartland of Mongol civilization. For thousands of years Mongolia has been the homeland of ethnic Mongols, who make up 90 percent of the country's people today. Mongols are traditionally nomadic animal herders, with complete freedom of movement, and many continue this way of life on the steppe, a swath of rolling grasslands extending across the country. Mongolia is a sparsely populated country, and domesticated animals outnumber people. Wild horses and many other animals also roam free on the steppe.

Map Mongolia

Mongolia contains forests of larch, pine, and cedar in the mountains, but these are of little economic importance. Furbearing animals, especially marmot and squirrel, are abundant, and the country has a well-developed fur industry. Rich prairie land in the northeast and northwest supports large herds of cattle, sheep, and goats. Mineral resources such as coal, iron, copper, fluorspar, gold, uranium, and silver have not been fully exploited.

Deforestation and livestock overgrazing have made some areas of Mongolia prone to soil erosion in wind and rain storms. Overgrazing in pasturelands adjacent to the Gobi has led to desertification, a process whereby soils become degraded by vegetation loss. Some rivers and lakes receive pollutants such as agricultural runoff, industrial wastes, and untreated sewage. Only 87 percent of urban residents and 30 percent of rural inhabitants have access to safe drinking water (2002). The burning of soft coal and the concentration of factories in Ulaanbaatar cause severe air pollution in the valley of the Tuul River when the air is stagnant, especially in winter.

Awareness of these problems led the government of Mongolia to create the Ministry of Environmental Protection in 1987. Protecting Hovsgol Lake from industrial and shipping pollution were among its highest priorities. Since the early 1990s the government has created numerous nature reserves, and 13.5 percent (2004) of the country's land area is officially protected. The government also has ratified international environmental agreements on biodiversity, desertification, ozone layer protection, endangered species, and other issues.

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