Forest fires — Emissions (CO2eq) in Latin America and the Caribbean

Latin America and the Caribbean: Forest fires — Emissions (CO2eq) was 25,372 kt in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
25,372 kt
Change on year
up 3.8%
Rank
9th
of 32 groups
All-time high
61,044 kt
in 1998
All-time low
10,366 kt
in 2009
Years of data
34
1990–2023

Forest fires — Emissions (CO2eq) in Latin America and the Caribbean, 1990–2023

20.0k40.0k60.0k1990200620231990: 29.8k kt1991: 29.8k kt1992: 29.8k kt1993: 29.8k kt1994: 29.8k kt1995: 29.8k kt1996: 29.6k kt1997: 35.4k kt1998: 61.0k kt1999: 53.5k kt2000: 21.3k kt2001: 14.7k kt2002: 29.4k kt2003: 30.4k kt2004: 37.3k kt2005: 38.6k kt2006: 22.7k kt2007: 46.3k kt2008: 18.6k kt2009: 10.4k kt2010: 54.1k kt2011: 17.0k kt2012: 19.1k kt2013: 11.5k kt2014: 10.5k kt2015: 21.0k kt2016: 18.6k kt2017: 24.2k kt2018: 10.5k kt2019: 33.9k kt2020: 38.1k kt2021: 24.7k kt2022: 24.4k kt2023: 25.4k kt

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in kt.

Analysis

Latin America and the Caribbean recorded 25,372 kt for forest fires — emissions (co2eq) in 2023.

That represents a change of up 3.8% on the previous year and up 120.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, forest fires — emissions (co2eq) in Latin America and the Caribbean peaked at 61,044 kt in 1998 and was at its lowest, 10,366 kt, in 2009.

Latin America and the Caribbean ranks 9th of 32 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 34 years of available data.

Forest fires — Emissions (CO2eq) in Latin America and the Caribbean, year by year

Annual values for Forest fires — Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) in Latin America and the Caribbean, 1990 to 2023.
Year kt Change
1990 29,828 kt
1991 29,828 kt +0.0%
1992 29,828 kt +0.0%
1993 29,828 kt +0.0%
1994 29,828 kt +0.0%
1995 29,828 kt +0.0%
1996 29,631 kt -0.7%
1997 35,379 kt +19.4%
1998 61,044 kt +72.5%
1999 53,525 kt -12.3%
2000 21,274 kt -60.3%
2001 14,693 kt -30.9%
2002 29,393 kt +100.0%
2003 30,412 kt +3.5%
2004 37,300 kt +22.6%
2005 38,561 kt +3.4%
2006 22,659 kt -41.2%
2007 46,304 kt +104.4%
2008 18,570 kt -59.9%
2009 10,366 kt -44.2%
2010 54,096 kt +421.8%
2011 17,001 kt -68.6%
2012 19,111 kt +12.4%
2013 11,484 kt -39.9%
2014 10,484 kt -8.7%
2015 20,972 kt +100.0%
2016 18,639 kt -11.1%
2017 24,194 kt +29.8%
2018 10,523 kt -56.5%
2019 33,882 kt +222.0%
2020 38,078 kt +12.4%
2021 24,668 kt -35.2%
2022 24,450 kt -0.9%
2023 25,372 kt +3.8%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 35,854 kt 29,631 kt 61,044 kt 10
2000s 26,953 kt 10,366 kt 46,304 kt 10
2010s 22,038 kt 10,484 kt 54,096 kt 10
2020s 28,142 kt 24,450 kt 38,078 kt 4

Countries ranked near Latin America and the Caribbean

  1. 6 Brazil 10,211 kt compare
  2. 6 Lao People's Democratic Republic 5,659 kt compare
  3. 7 Angola 10,149 kt compare
  4. 7 United Republic of Tanzania 4,124 kt compare
  5. 8 Myanmar 9,658 kt compare
  6. 8 Viet Nam 529.64 kt compare
  7. 9 India 3,143 kt compare
  8. 10 Thailand 3,010 kt compare
  9. 10 Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) 216.22 kt compare
  10. 11 Russian Federation 2,638 kt compare
  11. 11 Melanesia 101.84 kt compare
  12. 12 Cambodia 1,997 kt compare
  13. 12 Timor-Leste 7.77 kt compare

See the full ranking of 273 places →

More climate change data for Latin America and the Caribbean

All data for Latin America and the Caribbean →

Frequently asked questions

What is forest fires — emissions (co2eq) in Latin America and the Caribbean?
Forest fires — emissions (co2eq) in Latin America and the Caribbean was 25,372 kt in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest forest fires — emissions (co2eq) recorded in Latin America and the Caribbean?
The highest recorded value was 61,044 kt in 1998.
What is the lowest forest fires — emissions (co2eq) recorded in Latin America and the Caribbean?
The lowest recorded value was 10,366 kt in 2009.
How does Latin America and the Caribbean rank for forest fires — emissions (co2eq)?
Latin America and the Caribbean ranks 9th out of 32 groups with data for 2023.
Is forest fires — emissions (co2eq) rising or falling in Latin America and the Caribbean?
Over the last ten years it is up 120.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Latin America and the Caribbean data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Forest fires — Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Forest fires — Emissions (CO2eq) in Latin America and the Caribbean. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 05 September 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/stat/forest-fires-emissions-co2eq-ar5-fao-tier-1/latin-america-and-the-caribbean/

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About this data

Indicator
Forest fires — Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5)
Unit
kt
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
273 places, 9,061 data points, 1990–2023
Last refreshed

The FAOSTAT domain on Emissions Totals summarizes the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions disseminated in the FAOSTAT Climate Change domains of emissions from agrifood systems. Data are computed following the Tier 1 methods of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Guidelines for National greenhouse gas (GHG) Inventories (IPCC, 1996; 1997; 2000; 2002; 2006; 2014). Emissions from other economic sectors as defined by the IPCC are also disseminated in the domain for completeness. Methodological details can be found at: https://files-faostat.fao.org/production/GT/GT_en.pdf