Forest fires — Burned Area in China
China: Forest fires — Burned Area was 85,701 ha in 2024. ▼ Falling
Forest fires — Burned Area in China, 1990–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in ha.
Analysis
In 2024, forest fires — burned area in China stood at 85,701 ha.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 23.1% on the previous year and down 37.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest fires — burned area in China peaked at 292,150 ha in 2008 and was at its lowest, 45,470 ha, in 2022.
China ranks 27th of 219 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Forest fires — Burned Area in China, year by year
| Year | ha | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 115,741 ha | — |
| 1991 | 115,741 ha | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 115,741 ha | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 115,741 ha | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 115,741 ha | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 115,741 ha | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 135,249 ha | +16.9% |
| 1997 | 141,024 ha | +4.3% |
| 1998 | 162,360 ha | +15.1% |
| 1999 | 149,814 ha | -7.7% |
| 2000 | 178,052 ha | +18.8% |
| 2001 | 108,931 ha | -38.8% |
| 2002 | 61,436 ha | -43.6% |
| 2003 | 199,301 ha | +224.4% |
| 2004 | 173,044 ha | -13.2% |
| 2005 | 103,522 ha | -40.2% |
| 2006 | 76,134 ha | -26.5% |
| 2007 | 106,887 ha | +40.4% |
| 2008 | 292,150 ha | +173.3% |
| 2009 | 131,697 ha | -54.9% |
| 2010 | 148,090 ha | +12.4% |
| 2011 | 90,894 ha | -38.6% |
| 2012 | 66,743 ha | -26.6% |
| 2013 | 71,130 ha | +6.6% |
| 2014 | 137,742 ha | +93.6% |
| 2015 | 78,782 ha | -42.8% |
| 2016 | 88,000 ha | +11.7% |
| 2017 | 45,712 ha | -48.1% |
| 2018 | 93,775 ha | +105.1% |
| 2019 | 95,286 ha | +1.6% |
| 2020 | 102,161 ha | +7.2% |
| 2021 | 76,006 ha | -25.6% |
| 2022 | 45,470 ha | -40.2% |
| 2023 | 111,387 ha | +145.0% |
| 2024 | 85,701 ha | -23.1% |
China compared with similar countries
- China's 85,701 ha is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 344.48 ha, 248.8× the median. (52 countries reporting)
- China's 85,701 ha is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 42.81 ha, 2001.9× the median. (27 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Forest fires — Burned Area in China 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | +224.4% | 61,436 ha | 199,301 ha |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 128,289 ha | 115,741 ha | 162,360 ha | 10 |
| 2000s | 143,115 ha | 61,436 ha | 292,150 ha | 10 |
| 2010s | 91,616 ha | 45,712 ha | 148,090 ha | 10 |
| 2020s | 84,145 ha | 45,470 ha | 111,387 ha | 5 |
Countries ranked near China
- 24 Honduras 115,054 ha compare
- 24 Caribbean 13,704 ha compare
- 25 Peru 112,510 ha compare
- 26 Cameroon 92,372 ha compare
- 27 China, mainland 85,701 ha compare
- 27 Côte d'Ivoire 1,154 ha compare
- 29 Cabo Verde 0 ha
- 29 Chad 83,816 ha compare
- 30 South Africa 68,512 ha compare
More climate change data for China
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 31.25 billion kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 604,831 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 191,478 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 413,353 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 722.56 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 14,763 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 342,069 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 200,605 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 141,464 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 757 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest fires — burned area in China?
- Forest fires — burned area in China was 85,701 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest forest fires — burned area recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 292,150 ha in 2008.
- What is the lowest forest fires — burned area recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 45,470 ha in 2022.
- How does China rank for forest fires — burned area?
- China ranks 27th out of 219 countries with data for 2024.
- Is forest fires — burned area rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is down 37.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this China 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.