Protected area coverage of marine key biodiversity areas in Canada
Canada: Protected area coverage of marine key biodiversity areas was 41.7% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Protected area coverage of marine key biodiversity areas in Canada, 2000–2025
Source: BirdLife International, IUCN and UNEP-WCMC – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Canada recorded 41.7% for protected area coverage of marine key biodiversity areas in 2025. That is the highest value across all 26 years on record.
That represents a change of up 27.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, protected area coverage of marine key biodiversity areas in Canada peaked at 41.7% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 21.1%, in 2000.
That places Canada 103rd out of 190 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 26 years of available data.
Protected area coverage of marine key biodiversity areas in Canada, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 21.1% | — |
| 2001 | 21.1% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 21.4% | +1.5% |
| 2003 | 21.4% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 21.5% | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 24.9% | +16.0% |
| 2006 | 25.0% | +0.4% |
| 2007 | 25.0% | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 27.3% | +9.0% |
| 2009 | 27.8% | +1.9% |
| 2010 | 32.5% | +17.0% |
| 2011 | 32.6% | +0.2% |
| 2012 | 32.6% | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 32.6% | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 32.6% | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 32.8% | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 33.2% | +1.5% |
| 2017 | 35.0% | +5.1% |
| 2018 | 35.5% | +1.6% |
| 2019 | 37.9% | +6.8% |
| 2020 | 40.6% | +7.1% |
| 2021 | 40.6% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 40.9% | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 41.7% | +2.1% |
| 2024 | 41.7% | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 41.7% | +0.0% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's 41.7% is below the median for high income countries, which is 49.1%, 85% of the median. (74 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 23.6% | 21.1% | 27.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 33.7% | 32.5% | 37.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 41.2% | 40.6% | 41.7% | 6 |
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)
- 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)
Frequently asked questions
- What is protected area coverage of marine key biodiversity areas in Canada?
- Protected area coverage of marine key biodiversity areas in Canada was 41.7% in 2025, according to BirdLife International, IUCN and UNEP-WCMC – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest protected area coverage of marine key biodiversity areas recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 41.7% in 2023.
- What is the lowest protected area coverage of marine key biodiversity areas recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 21.1% in 2000.
- How does Canada rank for protected area coverage of marine key biodiversity areas?
- Canada ranks 103rd out of 190 countries with data for 2025.
- Is protected area coverage of marine key biodiversity areas rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is up 27.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from BirdLife International, IUCN and UNEP-WCMC – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Protected area coverage of marine key biodiversity areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Average proportion of Marine Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) covered by protected areas (%).