Wildfires Burn Record Forest Area as Tree-Cover Loss Accelerates
New figures show wildfires burning near-historic highs worldwide, with around 135,000 km² lost and WRI confirming today’s fires erase twice the forest cover of early 2000s.
Forest fires burned about 135,000 km² in 2024, close to historic highs, with major damage reported across Russia, Canada, Brazil, Bolivia and Australia, according to World Resources Institute analysis using Global Forest Watch data. That single number has started popping up across climate feeds because it reads less like a bad season and more like a new baseline. Tough to accept, still.
Fire-Driven Loss Is Rising Faster Than Many Expected
WRI says fires now destroy more than twice as much tree cover each year as they did two decades ago, tracking long-term data through 2001–2024. The impact is not limited to forests on a map. Smoke travels, health risks rise, and carbon releases stack up when big forest regions burn.
Why the Worst Seasons Keep Repeating
Hotter, drier conditions stretch fire seasons, and deforestation leaves forests more fragile in South America, while boreal regions are burning in places once too wet to ignite. WRI flagged the trend publicly in this post.
