Imported deforestation in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Imported deforestation was 2,303 hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Imported deforestation in Costa Rica, 2005–2023
Source: Singh et al. (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
The most recent figure for imported deforestation in Costa Rica is 2,303 hectares, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of down 8.0% on the previous year and down 32.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, imported deforestation in Costa Rica peaked at 4,008 hectares in 2012 and was at its lowest, 2,188 hectares, in 2005.
That places Costa Rica 96th out of 178 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 19 years of available data.
Imported deforestation in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 2,188 hectares | — |
| 2006 | 2,336 hectares | +6.8% |
| 2007 | 3,097 hectares | +32.6% |
| 2008 | 3,915 hectares | +26.4% |
| 2009 | 2,911 hectares | -25.6% |
| 2010 | 2,511 hectares | -13.8% |
| 2011 | 2,436 hectares | -3.0% |
| 2012 | 4,008 hectares | +64.6% |
| 2013 | 3,424 hectares | -14.6% |
| 2014 | 2,618 hectares | -23.5% |
| 2015 | 2,703 hectares | +3.2% |
| 2016 | 2,516 hectares | -6.9% |
| 2017 | 2,512 hectares | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 2,994 hectares | +19.2% |
| 2019 | 3,444 hectares | +15.0% |
| 2020 | 3,694 hectares | +7.3% |
| 2021 | 3,781 hectares | +2.3% |
| 2022 | 2,502 hectares | -33.8% |
| 2023 | 2,303 hectares | -8.0% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 2,303 hectares is below the median for high income countries, which is 2,937 hectares, 78% of the median. (59 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 2,303 hectares is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 3,121 hectares, 74% of the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 2,889 hectares | 2,188 hectares | 3,915 hectares | 5 |
| 2010s | 2,917 hectares | 2,436 hectares | 4,008 hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 3,070 hectares | 2,303 hectares | 3,781 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 imported deforestation in Costa Rica?
- Imported deforestation in Costa Rica was 2,303 hectares in 2023, according to Singh et al. (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest imported deforestation recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 4,008 hectares in 2012.
- What is the lowest imported deforestation recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 2,188 hectares in 2005.
- How does Costa Rica rank for imported deforestation?
- Costa Rica ranks 96th out of 178 countries with data for 2023.
- Is imported deforestation rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 32.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- 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 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.