Industrial water withdrawal in Canada
Canada: Industrial water withdrawal was 27.36 billion cubic meters in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
27.36 billion cubic meters
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
4th
of 180 countries
All-time high
36.00 billion cubic meters
in 1991
All-time low
27.24 billion cubic meters
in 2020
Years of data
33
1991–2023
Industrial water withdrawal in Canada, 1991–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in cubic meters.
Analysis
Canada recorded 27.36 billion cubic meters for industrial water withdrawal in 2023.
The figure is down 4.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, industrial water withdrawal in Canada peaked at 36.00 billion cubic meters in 1991 and was at its lowest, 27.24 billion cubic meters, in 2020.
That places Canada 4th out of 180 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 33 years of available data.
Industrial water withdrawal in Canada, year by year
| Year | cubic meters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 36.00 billion cubic meters | — |
| 1992 | 35.38 billion cubic meters | -1.7% |
| 1993 | 34.76 billion cubic meters | -1.7% |
| 1994 | 34.15 billion cubic meters | -1.8% |
| 1995 | 33.53 billion cubic meters | -1.8% |
| 1996 | 32.91 billion cubic meters | -1.8% |
| 1997 | 32.58 billion cubic meters | -1.0% |
| 1998 | 32.24 billion cubic meters | -1.0% |
| 1999 | 31.91 billion cubic meters | -1.0% |
| 2000 | 31.57 billion cubic meters | -1.0% |
| 2001 | 31.79 billion cubic meters | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 32.01 billion cubic meters | +0.7% |
| 2003 | 32.23 billion cubic meters | +0.7% |
| 2004 | 32.46 billion cubic meters | +0.7% |
| 2005 | 32.68 billion cubic meters | +0.7% |
| 2006 | 32.90 billion cubic meters | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 33.12 billion cubic meters | +0.7% |
| 2008 | 32.11 billion cubic meters | -3.0% |
| 2009 | 31.10 billion cubic meters | -3.1% |
| 2010 | 30.50 billion cubic meters | -1.9% |
| 2011 | 29.90 billion cubic meters | -2.0% |
| 2012 | 29.30 billion cubic meters | -2.0% |
| 2013 | 28.70 billion cubic meters | -2.0% |
| 2014 | 28.10 billion cubic meters | -2.1% |
| 2015 | 27.50 billion cubic meters | -2.1% |
| 2016 | 27.50 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 27.51 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 27.42 billion cubic meters | -0.3% |
| 2019 | 27.33 billion cubic meters | -0.3% |
| 2020 | 27.24 billion cubic meters | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 27.36 billion cubic meters | +0.4% |
| 2022 | 27.36 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 27.36 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's 27.36 billion cubic meters is above the median for high income countries, which is 668.45 million cubic meters, 40.9× the median. (58 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 33.72 billion cubic meters | 31.91 billion cubic meters | 36.00 billion cubic meters | 9 |
| 2000s | 32.20 billion cubic meters | 31.10 billion cubic meters | 33.12 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2010s | 28.38 billion cubic meters | 27.33 billion cubic meters | 30.50 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2020s | 27.33 billion cubic meters | 27.24 billion cubic meters | 27.36 billion cubic meters | 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)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.21 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) (Mt CO2e) 3.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) (Mt CO2e), per 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is industrial water withdrawal in Canada?
- Industrial water withdrawal in Canada was 27.36 billion cubic meters in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest industrial water withdrawal recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 36.00 billion cubic meters in 1991.
- What is the lowest industrial water withdrawal recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 27.24 billion cubic meters in 2020.
- How does Canada rank for industrial water withdrawal?
- Canada ranks 4th out of 180 countries with data for 2023.
- Is industrial water withdrawal rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Industrial water withdrawal. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Water withdrawn each year by self-supplied industries.