Deforestation embedded in trade in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Deforestation embedded in trade was 1,037 hectares in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Deforestation embedded in trade in Costa Rica, 2005–2023
Source: Singh et al. (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2023, deforestation embedded in trade in Costa Rica stood at 1,037 hectares. That is the highest value across all 19 years on record.
That represents a change of up 44.9% on the previous year and up 186.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, deforestation embedded in trade in Costa Rica peaked at 1,037 hectares in 2023 and was at its lowest, -4,653 hectares, in 2011.
Costa Rica ranks 100th of 178 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Deforestation embedded in trade in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | -3,533 hectares | — |
| 2006 | -3,323 hectares | -5.9% |
| 2007 | -2,749 hectares | -17.3% |
| 2008 | -3,227 hectares | +17.4% |
| 2009 | -4,530 hectares | +40.4% |
| 2010 | -4,571 hectares | +0.9% |
| 2011 | -4,653 hectares | +1.8% |
| 2012 | -2,406 hectares | -48.3% |
| 2013 | -1,196 hectares | -50.3% |
| 2014 | -334.63 hectares | -72.0% |
| 2015 | 876.48 hectares | -361.9% |
| 2016 | 900.49 hectares | +2.7% |
| 2017 | 357.75 hectares | -60.3% |
| 2018 | 317.06 hectares | -11.4% |
| 2019 | 351.02 hectares | +10.7% |
| 2020 | 388.13 hectares | +10.6% |
| 2021 | 558.19 hectares | +43.8% |
| 2022 | 715.85 hectares | +28.2% |
| 2023 | 1,037 hectares | +44.9% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 1,037 hectares is below the median for high income countries, which is 2,387 hectares, 43% of the median. (59 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 1,037 hectares is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is -0.12 hectares. (34 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Deforestation embedded in trade in Costa Rica 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | +361.9% | -334.63 hectares | 876.48 hectares |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | -3,472 hectares | -4,530 hectares | -2,749 hectares | 5 |
| 2010s | -1,036 hectares | -4,653 hectares | 900.49 hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 674.84 hectares | 388.13 hectares | 1,037 hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More environment data for Costa Rica
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 2.9 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 2.71 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.257 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.61 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.09 % 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 -0.3048 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is deforestation embedded in trade in Costa Rica?
- Deforestation embedded in trade in Costa Rica was 1,037 hectares in 2023, according to Singh et al. (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest deforestation embedded in trade recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 1,037 hectares in 2023.
- What is the lowest deforestation embedded in trade recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was -4,653 hectares in 2011.
- How does Costa Rica rank for deforestation embedded in trade?
- Costa Rica ranks 100th out of 178 countries with data for 2023.
- Is deforestation embedded in trade rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 186.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from Singh et al. (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Deforestation embedded in trade. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 19 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Deforestation driven by imported goods minus exported goods from agriculture and forest plantations. Net importers of deforestation are countries who contribute to net deforestation in other countries – the deforestation that they cause in other countries is given as a positive value.