Forest fires — Burned Area in Canada
Canada: Forest fires — Burned Area was 717,855 ha in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Forest fires — Burned Area in Canada, 1990–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in ha.
Analysis
In 2024, forest fires — burned area in Canada stood at 717,855 ha.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 73.9% on the previous year and up 386.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest fires — burned area in Canada peaked at 2.75 million ha in 2023 and was at its lowest, 19,774 ha, in 2001.
That places Canada 9th out of 219 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Forest fires — Burned Area in Canada, year by year
| Year | ha | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 391,690 ha | — |
| 1991 | 391,690 ha | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 391,690 ha | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 391,690 ha | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 391,690 ha | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 391,690 ha | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 687,322 ha | +75.5% |
| 1997 | 348,601 ha | -49.3% |
| 1998 | 1.33 million ha | +280.2% |
| 1999 | 549,203 ha | -58.6% |
| 2000 | 283,512 ha | -48.4% |
| 2001 | 19,774 ha | -93.0% |
| 2002 | 101,944 ha | +415.6% |
| 2003 | 230,304 ha | +125.9% |
| 2004 | 167,748 ha | -27.2% |
| 2005 | 97,542 ha | -41.9% |
| 2006 | 146,046 ha | +49.7% |
| 2007 | 67,697 ha | -53.6% |
| 2008 | 27,018 ha | -60.1% |
| 2009 | 82,929 ha | +206.9% |
| 2010 | 176,296 ha | +112.6% |
| 2011 | 192,659 ha | +9.3% |
| 2012 | 247,003 ha | +28.2% |
| 2013 | 252,612 ha | +2.3% |
| 2014 | 147,475 ha | -41.6% |
| 2015 | 593,948 ha | +302.7% |
| 2016 | 213,589 ha | -64.0% |
| 2017 | 240,883 ha | +12.8% |
| 2018 | 606,890 ha | +151.9% |
| 2019 | 296,517 ha | -51.1% |
| 2020 | 40,891 ha | -86.2% |
| 2021 | 575,039 ha | +1306.3% |
| 2022 | 172,379 ha | -70.0% |
| 2023 | 2.75 million ha | +1495.3% |
| 2024 | 717,855 ha | -73.9% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Forest fires — Burned Area in Canada changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | +1495.3% | 172,379 ha | 2.75 million ha |
| 2021 | +1306.3% | 40,891 ha | 575,039 ha |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 526,063 ha | 348,601 ha | 1.33 million ha | 10 |
| 2000s | 122,451 ha | 19,774 ha | 283,512 ha | 10 |
| 2010s | 296,787 ha | 147,475 ha | 606,890 ha | 10 |
| 2020s | 851,231 ha | 40,891 ha | 2.75 million ha | 5 |
Countries ranked near Canada
- 6 Lao People's Democratic Republic 481,396 ha compare
- 6 OECD 1.77 million ha compare
- 7 Myanmar 1.29 million ha compare
- 7 United Republic of Tanzania 414,900 ha compare
- 8 Russian Federation 723,318 ha compare
- 8 Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) 316,286 ha compare
- 10 Mexico 557,291 ha compare
- 10 Viet Nam 77,644 ha compare
- 11 Democratic People's Republic of Korea 10,553 ha compare
- 11 India 523,649 ha compare
- 12 Cambodia 470,662 ha compare
- 12 Melanesia 8,913 ha compare
More climate change data for Canada
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 2.27 billion kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 44,359 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 9,631 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 34,728 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 36.34 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 1,240 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 17,229 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 16,823 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 406.39 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 63.48 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest fires — burned area in Canada?
- Forest fires — burned area in Canada was 717,855 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest forest fires — burned area recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 2.75 million ha in 2023.
- What is the lowest forest fires — burned area recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 19,774 ha in 2001.
- How does Canada rank for forest fires — burned area?
- Canada ranks 9th out of 219 countries with data for 2024.
- Is forest fires — burned area rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is up 386.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Forest fires — Burned Area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).
About this data
The FAOSTAT domain on Emissions from Fires consists of estimates of methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O) and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions generated from biomass burning in a range of vegetation types and from fires in organic soils.