Imported deforestation in Canada
Canada: Imported deforestation was 20,090 hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Imported deforestation in Canada, 2005–2023
Source: Singh et al. (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2023, imported deforestation in Canada stood at 20,090 hectares. That is the lowest value across all 19 years on record.
That represents a change of down 7.7% on the previous year and down 32.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, imported deforestation in Canada peaked at 34,543 hectares in 2017 and was at its lowest, 20,090 hectares, in 2023.
That places Canada 14th out of 178 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 19 years of available data.
Imported deforestation in Canada, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 31,127 hectares | — |
| 2006 | 33,270 hectares | +6.9% |
| 2007 | 33,976 hectares | +2.1% |
| 2008 | 34,430 hectares | +1.3% |
| 2009 | 31,318 hectares | -9.0% |
| 2010 | 33,100 hectares | +5.7% |
| 2011 | 31,672 hectares | -4.3% |
| 2012 | 33,879 hectares | +7.0% |
| 2013 | 29,824 hectares | -12.0% |
| 2014 | 30,743 hectares | +3.1% |
| 2015 | 29,348 hectares | -4.5% |
| 2016 | 31,438 hectares | +7.1% |
| 2017 | 34,543 hectares | +9.9% |
| 2018 | 33,599 hectares | -2.7% |
| 2019 | 29,701 hectares | -11.6% |
| 2020 | 27,356 hectares | -7.9% |
| 2021 | 23,851 hectares | -12.8% |
| 2022 | 21,775 hectares | -8.7% |
| 2023 | 20,090 hectares | -7.7% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's 20,090 hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 2,937 hectares, 6.8× the median. (59 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 32,824 hectares | 31,127 hectares | 34,430 hectares | 5 |
| 2010s | 31,785 hectares | 29,348 hectares | 34,543 hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 23,268 hectares | 20,090 hectares | 27,356 hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Canada
More environment data for Canada
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -2.52 Percentage change (2025)
- 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)
- 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 imported deforestation in Canada?
- Imported deforestation in Canada was 20,090 hectares in 2023, according to Singh et al. (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest imported deforestation recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 34,543 hectares in 2017.
- What is the lowest imported deforestation recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 20,090 hectares in 2023.
- How does Canada rank for imported deforestation?
- Canada ranks 14th out of 178 countries with data for 2023.
- Is imported deforestation rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is down 32.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from Singh et al. (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Imported deforestation. 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
Imported deforestation is the amount of deforestation in other countries that is driven by the production of food and forestry products that are imported. This is measured in hectares.