Agriculture-driven deforestation in China
China: Agriculture-driven deforestation was 61,996 hectares in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
61,996 hectares
Change on year
up 27.8%
World rank
26th
of 187 countries
All-time high
75,166 hectares
in 2012
All-time low
23,896 hectares
in 2001
Years of data
24
2001–2024
Agriculture-driven deforestation in China, 2001–2024
Source: Global Forest Watch (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2024, agriculture-driven deforestation in China stood at 61,996 hectares.
That represents a change of up 27.8% on the previous year and up 22.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agriculture-driven deforestation in China peaked at 75,166 hectares in 2012 and was at its lowest, 23,896 hectares, in 2001.
That places China 26th out of 187 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
Agriculture-driven deforestation in China, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 23,896 hectares | — |
| 2002 | 27,899 hectares | +16.8% |
| 2003 | 26,170 hectares | -6.2% |
| 2004 | 40,396 hectares | +54.4% |
| 2005 | 38,051 hectares | -5.8% |
| 2006 | 49,654 hectares | +30.5% |
| 2007 | 65,264 hectares | +31.4% |
| 2008 | 53,393 hectares | -18.2% |
| 2009 | 70,206 hectares | +31.5% |
| 2010 | 69,368 hectares | -1.2% |
| 2011 | 61,983 hectares | -10.6% |
| 2012 | 75,166 hectares | +21.3% |
| 2013 | 38,244 hectares | -49.1% |
| 2014 | 50,462 hectares | +31.9% |
| 2015 | 48,554 hectares | -3.8% |
| 2016 | 73,946 hectares | +52.3% |
| 2017 | 69,431 hectares | -6.1% |
| 2018 | 55,921 hectares | -19.5% |
| 2019 | 43,602 hectares | -22.0% |
| 2020 | 35,206 hectares | -19.3% |
| 2021 | 36,693 hectares | +4.2% |
| 2022 | 42,747 hectares | +16.5% |
| 2023 | 48,495 hectares | +13.4% |
| 2024 | 61,996 hectares | +27.8% |
China compared with similar countries
- China's 61,996 hectares is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 460.26 hectares, 134.7× the median. (51 countries reporting)
- China's 61,996 hectares is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 1,101 hectares, 56.3× the median. (24 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 43,881 hectares | 23,896 hectares | 70,206 hectares | 9 |
| 2010s | 58,668 hectares | 38,244 hectares | 75,166 hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 45,027 hectares | 35,206 hectares | 61,996 hectares | 5 |
Countries ranked near China
More environment data for China
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.279 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.92 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.8065 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate -0.2517 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) (Mt CO2e), annual 0.9037 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agriculture-driven deforestation in China?
- Agriculture-driven deforestation in China was 61,996 hectares in 2024, according to Global Forest Watch (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest agriculture-driven deforestation recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 75,166 hectares in 2012.
- What is the lowest agriculture-driven deforestation recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 23,896 hectares in 2001.
- How does China rank for agriculture-driven deforestation?
- China ranks 26th out of 187 countries with data for 2024.
- Is agriculture-driven deforestation rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 22.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Global Forest Watch (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Agriculture-driven deforestation. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Long-term, permanent tree cover loss for small- to large-scale agriculture.