Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Canada
Canada: Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly was -2.52 Percentage change in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Canada, 1950–2025
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
Canada recorded -2.52 Percentage change for historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 756.0% on the previous year and down 3,003.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Canada peaked at 2.53 Percentage change in 1986 and was at its lowest, -4.18 Percentage change, in 2023.
That places Canada 81st out of 191 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Canada, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | -2.32 Percentage change | — |
| 1951 | -1.11 Percentage change | -52.2% |
| 1952 | -2.25 Percentage change | +103.2% |
| 1953 | 0.0006 Percentage change | -100.0% |
| 1954 | -0.4815 Percentage change | -86170.0% |
| 1955 | -0.2338 Percentage change | -51.4% |
| 1956 | -0.6013 Percentage change | +157.2% |
| 1957 | 0.7886 Percentage change | -231.1% |
| 1958 | 0.4224 Percentage change | -46.4% |
| 1959 | -0.129 Percentage change | -130.5% |
| 1960 | -0.1391 Percentage change | +7.8% |
| 1961 | -1.52 Percentage change | +993.2% |
| 1962 | -0.4781 Percentage change | -68.6% |
| 1963 | -0.161 Percentage change | -66.3% |
| 1964 | 0.4244 Percentage change | -363.6% |
| 1965 | -1.35 Percentage change | -418.5% |
| 1966 | -1.4 Percentage change | +3.6% |
| 1967 | -2.01 Percentage change | +43.7% |
| 1968 | 0.2527 Percentage change | -112.6% |
| 1969 | -1.3 Percentage change | -614.3% |
| 1970 | -0.0428 Percentage change | -96.7% |
| 1971 | -2.19 Percentage change | +5015.4% |
| 1972 | -1.11 Percentage change | -49.4% |
| 1973 | -1.15 Percentage change | +4.1% |
| 1974 | -0.2336 Percentage change | -79.8% |
| 1975 | -0.8125 Percentage change | +247.9% |
| 1976 | -0.6464 Percentage change | -20.4% |
| 1977 | -0.4892 Percentage change | -24.3% |
| 1978 | -0.2902 Percentage change | -40.7% |
| 1979 | -0.08 Percentage change | -72.4% |
| 1980 | -0.3718 Percentage change | +364.6% |
| 1981 | 0.127 Percentage change | -134.2% |
| 1982 | 0.6639 Percentage change | +422.5% |
| 1983 | -0.7449 Percentage change | -212.2% |
| 1984 | 0.2909 Percentage change | -139.1% |
| 1985 | 0.6229 Percentage change | +114.1% |
| 1986 | 2.53 Percentage change | +305.9% |
| 1987 | 0.9563 Percentage change | -62.2% |
| 1988 | -0.3025 Percentage change | -131.6% |
| 1989 | -3.2 Percentage change | +959.2% |
| 1990 | -2.07 Percentage change | -35.4% |
| 1991 | -0.7397 Percentage change | -64.3% |
| 1992 | -1.11 Percentage change | +49.7% |
| 1993 | 0.2951 Percentage change | -126.7% |
| 1994 | -1.31 Percentage change | -542.6% |
| 1995 | -0.0065 Percentage change | -99.5% |
| 1996 | 0.3331 Percentage change | -5213.2% |
| 1997 | 1.62 Percentage change | +385.0% |
| 1998 | -1.17 Percentage change | -172.5% |
| 1999 | 0.9389 Percentage change | -180.1% |
| 2000 | 0.4818 Percentage change | -48.7% |
| 2001 | -0.779 Percentage change | -261.7% |
| 2002 | 1.05 Percentage change | -234.4% |
| 2003 | 0.3358 Percentage change | -67.9% |
| 2004 | 1.4 Percentage change | +317.3% |
| 2005 | 2.04 Percentage change | +45.8% |
| 2006 | -0.3437 Percentage change | -116.8% |
| 2007 | -1.46 Percentage change | +323.7% |
| 2008 | -0.734 Percentage change | -49.6% |
| 2009 | 0.5412 Percentage change | -173.7% |
| 2010 | -0.2569 Percentage change | -147.5% |
| 2011 | -1.15 Percentage change | +348.3% |
| 2012 | -1.28 Percentage change | +10.8% |
| 2013 | -0.7525 Percentage change | -41.0% |
| 2014 | -0.4803 Percentage change | -36.2% |
| 2015 | -0.0813 Percentage change | -83.1% |
| 2016 | 1.34 Percentage change | -1750.8% |
| 2017 | -0.5345 Percentage change | -139.8% |
| 2018 | 0.2081 Percentage change | -138.9% |
| 2019 | 0.6062 Percentage change | +191.3% |
| 2020 | 1.27 Percentage change | +108.8% |
| 2021 | -0.4556 Percentage change | -136.0% |
| 2022 | -0.9831 Percentage change | +115.8% |
| 2023 | -4.18 Percentage change | +325.0% |
| 2024 | 0.3847 Percentage change | -109.2% |
| 2025 | -2.52 Percentage change | -756.0% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's -2.52 Percentage change is below the median for high income countries, which is -1.98 Percentage change, 1.3× the median. (65 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Canada 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | -86170.0% | 0.0006 Percentage change | -0.4815 Percentage change |
| 1996 | +5213.2% | -0.0065 Percentage change | 0.3331 Percentage change |
| 1971 | -5015.4% | -0.0428 Percentage change | -2.19 Percentage change |
| 2016 | +1750.8% | -0.0813 Percentage change | 1.34 Percentage change |
| 1961 | -993.2% | -0.1391 Percentage change | -1.52 Percentage change |
| 1989 | -959.2% | -0.3025 Percentage change | -3.2 Percentage change |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | -0.5914 Percentage change | -2.32 Percentage change | 0.7886 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1960s | -0.7684 Percentage change | -2.01 Percentage change | 0.4244 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1970s | -0.705 Percentage change | -2.19 Percentage change | -0.0428 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.0566 Percentage change | -3.2 Percentage change | 2.53 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1990s | -0.3218 Percentage change | -2.07 Percentage change | 1.62 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.2537 Percentage change | -1.46 Percentage change | 2.04 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | -0.2376 Percentage change | -1.28 Percentage change | 1.34 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | -1.08 Percentage change | -4.18 Percentage change | 1.27 Percentage change | 6 |
Countries ranked near Canada
- 78 Saint Lucia -2.19 Percentage change compare
- 79 Brunei Darussalam -2.26 Percentage change compare
- 80 France -2.44 Percentage change compare
- 82 Bangladesh -2.59 Percentage change compare
- 83 OECD -2.62 Percentage change compare
- 84 United States -2.64 Percentage change compare
More environment data for Canada
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -6.76 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.642 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 2.96 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 2.9 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 1.7 % 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 -0.3398 % 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 historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Canada?
- Historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Canada was -2.52 Percentage change in 2025, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 2.53 Percentage change in 1986.
- What is the lowest historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was -4.18 Percentage change in 2023.
- How does Canada rank for historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly?
- Canada ranks 81st out of 191 countries with data for 2025.
- Is historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3,003.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
The dataset provides annual anomalies in land and cropland soil moisture content of the top soil layer (0 to 7 cm) compared to the reference period 1981-2010. Exposure indicators to drought have been prepared by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Please see the working paper for a more complete description of the methods. The datasets span the period 1981-2024 and is the result of the use of a variety of geospatial data sources, including the ERA5-Land averaged monthly data of volumetric soil moisture and ESA CCI land cover data. Average anomalies have been calculated for both land and cropland exposure to drought. The dataset has a global coverage on a national level; on the sub-national TL2 level (i.e. large subnational regions) results are reported for all OECD countries as well as for Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia and South Africa. A number of aggregates are included: Euro area, European Union, Advanced economies, Emerging market economies, G7, G20, OECD, OECD Europe, OECD Asia Oceania, OECD Americas and the LAC region. Data source(s): Copernicus Climate Change Initiative land cover data and Copernicus Climate Data Store monthly soil moisture data based on the ERA5-Land reanalysis dataset. Contact: ENV.Stat@oecd.org