Forest fires — Emissions (CO2eq) in South America

South America: Forest fires — Emissions (CO2eq) was 21,988 kt in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
21,988 kt
Change on year
down 3.4%
Rank
11th
of 32 groups
All-time high
52,510 kt
in 2010
All-time low
7,328 kt
in 2009
Years of data
34
1990–2023

Forest fires — Emissions (CO2eq) in South America, 1990–2023

10.0k20.0k30.0k40.0k50.0k1990200620231990: 26.0k kt1991: 26.0k kt1992: 26.0k kt1993: 26.0k kt1994: 26.0k kt1995: 26.0k kt1996: 26.1k kt1997: 31.4k kt1998: 45.1k kt1999: 45.9k kt2000: 12.3k kt2001: 13.7k kt2002: 27.2k kt2003: 22.1k kt2004: 36.5k kt2005: 33.0k kt2006: 20.1k kt2007: 43.9k kt2008: 16.1k kt2009: 7.3k kt2010: 52.5k kt2011: 12.9k kt2012: 17.7k kt2013: 7.5k kt2014: 9.5k kt2015: 18.9k kt2016: 16.2k kt2017: 21.3k kt2018: 9.0k kt2019: 30.3k kt2020: 33.6k kt2021: 22.8k kt2022: 22.8k kt2023: 22.0k kt

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

Analysis

In 2023, forest fires — emissions (co2eq) in South America stood at 21,988 kt.

That represents a change of down 3.4% on the previous year and up 191.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, forest fires — emissions (co2eq) in South America peaked at 52,510 kt in 2010 and was at its lowest, 7,328 kt, in 2009.

That places South America 11th out of 32 groups with data for 2023, putting it 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 South America, year by year

Annual values for Forest fires — Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) in South America, 1990 to 2023.
Year kt Change
1990 26,031 kt
1991 26,031 kt +0.0%
1992 26,031 kt +0.0%
1993 26,031 kt +0.0%
1994 26,031 kt +0.0%
1995 26,031 kt +0.0%
1996 26,103 kt +0.3%
1997 31,384 kt +20.2%
1998 45,068 kt +43.6%
1999 45,872 kt +1.8%
2000 12,282 kt -73.2%
2001 13,724 kt +11.7%
2002 27,247 kt +98.5%
2003 22,129 kt -18.8%
2004 36,459 kt +64.8%
2005 33,033 kt -9.4%
2006 20,110 kt -39.1%
2007 43,914 kt +118.4%
2008 16,080 kt -63.4%
2009 7,328 kt -54.4%
2010 52,510 kt +616.5%
2011 12,891 kt -75.4%
2012 17,706 kt +37.4%
2013 7,536 kt -57.4%
2014 9,482 kt +25.8%
2015 18,906 kt +99.4%
2016 16,163 kt -14.5%
2017 21,291 kt +31.7%
2018 8,992 kt -57.8%
2019 30,307 kt +237.0%
2020 33,614 kt +10.9%
2021 22,811 kt -32.1%
2022 22,751 kt -0.3%
2023 21,988 kt -3.4%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 30,461 kt 26,031 kt 45,872 kt 10
2000s 23,231 kt 7,328 kt 43,914 kt 10
2010s 19,578 kt 7,536 kt 52,510 kt 10
2020s 25,291 kt 21,988 kt 33,614 kt 4

Countries ranked near South America

  1. 8 Myanmar 9,658 kt compare
  2. 9 India 3,143 kt compare
  3. 10 Thailand 3,010 kt compare
  4. 11 Russian Federation 2,638 kt compare
  5. 12 Cambodia 1,997 kt compare
  6. 13 Mexico 1,907 kt compare
  7. 14 Sudan (former) 1,792 kt compare

See the full ranking of 273 places →

More climate change data for South America

All data for South America →

Frequently asked questions

What is forest fires — emissions (co2eq) in South America?
Forest fires — emissions (co2eq) in South America was 21,988 kt in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest forest fires — emissions (co2eq) recorded in South America?
The highest recorded value was 52,510 kt in 2010.
What is the lowest forest fires — emissions (co2eq) recorded in South America?
The lowest recorded value was 7,328 kt in 2009.
How does South America rank for forest fires — emissions (co2eq)?
South America ranks 11th out of 32 groups with data for 2023.
Is forest fires — emissions (co2eq) rising or falling in South America?
Over the last ten years it is up 191.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this South America 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 South America. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 26 August 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/stat/forest-fires-emissions-co2eq-ar5-fao-tier-1/south-america/

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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