Palm Beach County

County of southeastern Florida, USA, bounded to the east by the Atlantic Ocean and to the west by Lake Okeechobee; area 5,162 sq km/1,993 sq mi; population (1990) 863,500. Its seat is West Palm Beach. Resort and residential communities line the coast and barrier islands of its eastern fringe, including Jupiter, Riviera Beach, Lake Worth, Delray Beach, and Boca Raton. The northwest section of the county, around Belle Glade and South Bay, is mainly agricultural, producing sugar cane and vegetables. The southern region is very sparsely populated. To the southeast lie the tip of the Everglades and the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge.