Annual PM2.5 emissions from wildfires in Australia
Australia: Annual PM2.5 emissions from wildfires was 506,605 tonnes in 2026. ▼ Falling
Annual PM2.5 emissions from wildfires in Australia, 2003–2026
Source: Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
Australia recorded 506,605 tonnes for annual pm2.5 emissions from wildfires in 2026. That is the lowest value across all 24 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 60.7% on the previous year and down 47.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual pm2.5 emissions from wildfires in Australia peaked at 3.11 million tonnes in 2012 and was at its lowest, 506,605 tonnes, in 2026.
That places Australia 8th out of 248 countries with data for 2026, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Annual PM2.5 emissions from wildfires in Australia, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 1.41 million tonnes | — |
| 2004 | 1.97 million tonnes | +39.2% |
| 2005 | 1.08 million tonnes | -45.1% |
| 2006 | 2.01 million tonnes | +86.2% |
| 2007 | 1.77 million tonnes | -11.8% |
| 2008 | 1.00 million tonnes | -43.5% |
| 2009 | 1.45 million tonnes | +44.9% |
| 2010 | 653,555 tonnes | -55.0% |
| 2011 | 2.87 million tonnes | +338.9% |
| 2012 | 3.11 million tonnes | +8.5% |
| 2013 | 1.14 million tonnes | -63.3% |
| 2014 | 1.62 million tonnes | +41.9% |
| 2015 | 1.49 million tonnes | -7.8% |
| 2016 | 957,297 tonnes | -35.9% |
| 2017 | 1.67 million tonnes | +74.2% |
| 2018 | 1.85 million tonnes | +10.9% |
| 2019 | 2.42 million tonnes | +30.9% |
| 2020 | 1.39 million tonnes | -42.5% |
| 2021 | 935,566 tonnes | -32.8% |
| 2022 | 921,779 tonnes | -1.5% |
| 2023 | 2.32 million tonnes | +152.0% |
| 2024 | 1.14 million tonnes | -50.8% |
| 2025 | 1.29 million tonnes | +12.8% |
| 2026 | 506,605 tonnes | -60.7% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 506,605 tonnes is above the median for high income countries, which is 221.26 tonnes, 2289.6× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Australia's 506,605 tonnes is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 301.22 tonnes, 1681.8× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 1.53 million tonnes | 1.00 million tonnes | 2.01 million tonnes | 7 |
| 2010s | 1.78 million tonnes | 653,555 tonnes | 3.11 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.22 million tonnes | 506,605 tonnes | 2.32 million tonnes | 7 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More climate change data for Australia
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 1.30 billion kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 118,578 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 34,162 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 84,416 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 128.91 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 3,015 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 12,473 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 10,966 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 1,507 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 41.38 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual pm2.5 emissions from wildfires in Australia?
- Annual pm2.5 emissions from wildfires in Australia was 506,605 tonnes in 2026, according to Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual pm2.5 emissions from wildfires recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 3.11 million tonnes in 2012.
- What is the lowest annual pm2.5 emissions from wildfires recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 506,605 tonnes in 2026.
- How does Australia rank for annual pm2.5 emissions from wildfires?
- Australia ranks 8th out of 248 countries with data for 2026.
- Is annual pm2.5 emissions from wildfires rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 47.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual PM2.5 emissions from wildfires. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
PM2.5 emissions represent the quantity of fine particulate matter (diameter less than 2.5 micrometers) released by wildfires, in tonnes. The 2026 data is incomplete and was last updated 18 September 2026.