Grassland — Burned Area in South America

South America: Grassland — Burned Area was 11.92 million ha in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
11.92 million ha
Change on year
up 49.7%
Rank
12th
of 31 groups
All-time high
14.95 million ha
in 2007
All-time low
2.39 million ha
in 2000
Years of data
35
1990–2024

Grassland — Burned Area in South America, 1990–2024

05.0M10.0M15.0M1990200720241990: 8.6M ha1991: 8.6M ha1992: 8.6M ha1993: 8.6M ha1994: 8.6M ha1995: 8.6M ha1996: 3.0M ha1997: 2.9M ha1998: 3.7M ha1999: 3.2M ha2000: 2.4M ha2001: 10.1M ha2002: 10.6M ha2003: 9.9M ha2004: 11.1M ha2005: 10.3M ha2006: 8.2M ha2007: 15.0M ha2008: 9.4M ha2009: 7.0M ha2010: 14.5M ha2011: 8.2M ha2012: 9.0M ha2013: 7.1M ha2014: 8.5M ha2015: 9.0M ha2016: 9.3M ha2017: 10.3M ha2018: 7.7M ha2019: 9.5M ha2020: 12.3M ha2021: 8.5M ha2022: 9.5M ha2023: 8.0M ha2024: 11.9M ha

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

Analysis

In 2024, grassland — burned area in South America stood at 11.92 million ha.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 49.7% on the previous year and up 39.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, grassland — burned area in South America peaked at 14.95 million ha in 2007 and was at its lowest, 2.39 million ha, in 2000.

South America ranks 12th of 31 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.

Grassland — Burned Area in South America, year by year

Annual values for Grassland — Burned Area in South America, 1990 to 2024.
Year ha Change
1990 8.61 million ha
1991 8.61 million ha +0.0%
1992 8.61 million ha +0.0%
1993 8.61 million ha +0.0%
1994 8.61 million ha +0.0%
1995 8.61 million ha +0.0%
1996 3.02 million ha -65.0%
1997 2.89 million ha -4.4%
1998 3.67 million ha +27.3%
1999 3.20 million ha -12.8%
2000 2.39 million ha -25.3%
2001 10.05 million ha +320.5%
2002 10.55 million ha +5.0%
2003 9.94 million ha -5.8%
2004 11.08 million ha +11.4%
2005 10.31 million ha -7.0%
2006 8.18 million ha -20.7%
2007 14.95 million ha +82.9%
2008 9.38 million ha -37.3%
2009 6.96 million ha -25.8%
2010 14.49 million ha +108.1%
2011 8.19 million ha -43.5%
2012 9.03 million ha +10.3%
2013 7.06 million ha -21.8%
2014 8.54 million ha +20.9%
2015 8.96 million ha +4.9%
2016 9.28 million ha +3.6%
2017 10.31 million ha +11.1%
2018 7.65 million ha -25.8%
2019 9.54 million ha +24.7%
2020 12.28 million ha +28.7%
2021 8.46 million ha -31.1%
2022 9.49 million ha +12.1%
2023 7.96 million ha -16.1%
2024 11.92 million ha +49.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 6.44 million ha 2.89 million ha 8.61 million ha 10
2000s 9.38 million ha 2.39 million ha 14.95 million ha 10
2010s 9.31 million ha 7.06 million ha 14.49 million ha 10
2020s 10.02 million ha 7.96 million ha 12.28 million ha 5

Countries ranked near South America

  1. 9 Sudan 5.10 million ha compare
  2. 10 Chad 4.49 million ha compare
  3. 11 South Africa 3.83 million ha compare
  4. 12 Zambia 3.59 million ha compare
  5. 13 Madagascar 3.28 million ha compare
  6. 14 Burkina Faso 3.26 million ha compare
  7. 15 Senegal 3.12 million ha 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 grassland — burned area in South America?
Grassland — burned area in South America was 11.92 million ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest grassland — burned area recorded in South America?
The highest recorded value was 14.95 million ha in 2007.
What is the lowest grassland — burned area recorded in South America?
The lowest recorded value was 2.39 million ha in 2000.
How does South America rank for grassland — burned area?
South America ranks 12th out of 31 groups with data for 2024.
Is grassland — burned area rising or falling in South America?
Over the last ten years it is up 39.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this South America data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Grassland — Burned Area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Grassland — Burned Area in South America. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 28 August 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/stat/grassland-burned-area-fao-tier-1/south-america/

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About this data

Indicator
Grassland — Burned Area
Unit
ha
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
273 places, 9,329 data points, 1990–2024
Last refreshed

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.