over six villages in the 'Al Buraymi Oasis and the sharing of the rich Zararah oil field. In return, Saudi Arabia obtained an outlet to the Persian Gulf through Abu Dhabi. Saudi Arabia's maritime claims include a twelve-nautical-mile (22 km) territorial limit along its coasts. The country also claims many small islands as well as some seabeds and subsoils beyond the twelve-nautical-mile (22 km) limit. Land boundaries: total: 4,415 km border countries: Iraq 814 km, Jordan 728 km, Kuwait 222 km, Oman 676 km, Qatar 60 km, UAE 457 km, Yemen 1,458 km Coastline: 2,640 km Maritime claims: contiguous zone: continental shelf: not specified territorial sea: exclusive economic zone: Water resources Until the 1980s, Saudi Arabia had lakes at Layla Aflaj and deep waterholes at 'Al-Kharj, fed by huge underground aquifers formed in prehistoric times and non-renewable. 'Al Kharj was a valuable source of drinking water in a barren terrain. In recent years, these aquifers have been drawn upon heavily, both for agricultural and domestic purposes, and no fresh water remain in the lakes or pits. In the absence of permanent rivers or bodies of water, streams and groundwater, desalinated seawater and very scarce surface water must supply the country's needs. In eastern Arabia and in the Jabal Tuwayq, artesian wells and springs are plentiful. In al-Ahsa a number of large, deep pools are constantly replenished by artesian springs as a result of underground water from the eastern watershed of the Jabal Tuwayq. Such springs and wells permit extensive irrigation in local oases. In the Hijaz, wells are abundant, and springs are common in the mountainous areas. In Najd and the great deserts, watering places are comparatively fewer and scattered over a wide area. Water must be hoisted or pumped to the surface, and even where water is plentiful, its quality may be poor. Modern technology has located and increased the availability of much of the underground water. Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco) technicians have determined that very deep aquifers lie in many areas of northern and eastern Arabia and that the Wasia, the largest aquifer in Saudi Arabia, contains more water than the Persian Gulf. The Saudi government, Saudi Aramco, and the United Nations (UN) Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have made separate and joint efforts to exploit underground water resources. In the past, improperly drilled wells have reduced or destroyed any good they might have served by