Forest fires — Burned Area in Northern America
Northern America: Forest fires — Burned Area was 1.03 million ha in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Forest fires — Burned Area in Northern America, 1990–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in ha.
Analysis
The most recent figure for forest fires — burned area in Northern America is 1.03 million ha, measured in 2024.
The figure is down 65.8% on the previous year and up 154.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest fires — burned area in Northern America peaked at 3.02 million ha in 2023 and was at its lowest, 127,514 ha, in 2001.
That places Northern America 12th out of 31 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Forest fires — Burned Area in Northern America, year by year
| Year | ha | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 713,800 ha | — |
| 1991 | 713,800 ha | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 713,800 ha | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 713,800 ha | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 713,800 ha | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 713,800 ha | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 1.02 million ha | +42.8% |
| 1997 | 509,140 ha | -50.1% |
| 1998 | 1.64 million ha | +221.7% |
| 1999 | 908,368 ha | -44.5% |
| 2000 | 649,958 ha | -28.4% |
| 2001 | 127,514 ha | -80.4% |
| 2002 | 372,459 ha | +192.1% |
| 2003 | 506,718 ha | +36.0% |
| 2004 | 432,774 ha | -14.6% |
| 2005 | 309,283 ha | -28.5% |
| 2006 | 372,158 ha | +20.3% |
| 2007 | 433,315 ha | +16.4% |
| 2008 | 421,002 ha | -2.8% |
| 2009 | 304,247 ha | -27.7% |
| 2010 | 348,493 ha | +14.5% |
| 2011 | 460,587 ha | +32.2% |
| 2012 | 478,144 ha | +3.8% |
| 2013 | 519,651 ha | +8.7% |
| 2014 | 405,315 ha | -22.0% |
| 2015 | 1.09 million ha | +168.4% |
| 2016 | 460,234 ha | -57.7% |
| 2017 | 693,118 ha | +50.6% |
| 2018 | 1.03 million ha | +48.0% |
| 2019 | 523,455 ha | -49.0% |
| 2020 | 934,875 ha | +78.6% |
| 2021 | 1.19 million ha | +27.8% |
| 2022 | 513,451 ha | -57.0% |
| 2023 | 3.02 million ha | +487.8% |
| 2024 | 1.03 million ha | -65.8% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Forest fires — Burned Area in Northern America 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 | +487.8% | 513,451 ha | 3.02 million ha |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 835,760 ha | 509,140 ha | 1.64 million ha | 10 |
| 2000s | 392,943 ha | 127,514 ha | 649,958 ha | 10 |
| 2010s | 600,264 ha | 348,493 ha | 1.09 million ha | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.34 million ha | 513,451 ha | 3.02 million ha | 5 |
Countries ranked near Northern America
- 9 Canada 717,855 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
- 13 Nepal 363,091 ha compare
- 13 Türkiye 2,750 ha compare
- 14 Thailand 362,523 ha compare
- 14 Timor-Leste 171.01 ha compare
- 15 Iran (Islamic Republic of) 0 ha compare
- 15 Micronesia (Federated States of) 0 ha
- 15 Republic of Moldova 0 ha compare
- 15 South Sudan 289,236 ha compare
- 15 Syrian Arab Republic 0 ha compare
- 15 Wallis and Futuna Islands 0 ha
- 15 Micronesia 0 ha
- 15 Polynesia 0 ha compare
More climate change data for Northern America
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 13.03 billion kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 318,841 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 70,553 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 248,289 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 266.24 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 8,867 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 124,612 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 105,892 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 18,720 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 399.59 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest fires — burned area in Northern America?
- Forest fires — burned area in Northern America was 1.03 million ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest forest fires — burned area recorded in Northern America?
- The highest recorded value was 3.02 million ha in 2023.
- What is the lowest forest fires — burned area recorded in Northern America?
- The lowest recorded value was 127,514 ha in 2001.
- How does Northern America rank for forest fires — burned area?
- Northern America ranks 12th out of 31 groups with data for 2024.
- Is forest fires — burned area rising or falling in Northern America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 154.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Northern America 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.