Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in South Korea
South Korea: Annual area burnt by wildfires by region was 97,562 hectares in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in South Korea, 2002–2025
Source: Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2025, annual area burnt by wildfires by region in South Korea stood at 97,562 hectares. That is the highest value across all 24 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 20,559.1% on the previous year and up 1,500.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual area burnt by wildfires by region in South Korea peaked at 97,562 hectares in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0 hectares, in 2021.
That places South Korea 69th out of 225 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in South Korea, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 5,452 hectares | — |
| 2003 | 9,853 hectares | +80.7% |
| 2004 | 9,209 hectares | -6.5% |
| 2005 | 9,767 hectares | +6.1% |
| 2006 | 1,739 hectares | -82.2% |
| 2007 | 4,787 hectares | +175.3% |
| 2008 | 3,048 hectares | -36.3% |
| 2009 | 5,688 hectares | +86.6% |
| 2010 | 1,009 hectares | -82.3% |
| 2011 | 19,470 hectares | +1829.8% |
| 2012 | 987.43 hectares | -94.9% |
| 2013 | 3,907 hectares | +295.7% |
| 2014 | 7,878 hectares | +101.6% |
| 2015 | 6,096 hectares | -22.6% |
| 2016 | 2,619 hectares | -57.0% |
| 2017 | 8,758 hectares | +234.4% |
| 2018 | 21.47 hectares | -99.8% |
| 2019 | 4,680 hectares | +21699.9% |
| 2020 | 7,234 hectares | +54.6% |
| 2021 | 0 hectares | -100.0% |
| 2022 | 21,444 hectares | — |
| 2023 | 2,447 hectares | -88.6% |
| 2024 | 472.25 hectares | -80.7% |
| 2025 | 97,562 hectares | +20559.1% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 97,562 hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 85.86 hectares, 1136.3× the median. (79 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 97,562 hectares is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 665.44 hectares, 146.6× the median. (35 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in South Korea changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | +21699.9% | 21.47 hectares | 4,680 hectares |
| 2025 | +20559.1% | 472.25 hectares | 97,562 hectares |
| 2011 | +1829.8% | 1,009 hectares | 19,470 hectares |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 6,193 hectares | 1,739 hectares | 9,853 hectares | 8 |
| 2010s | 5,542 hectares | 21.47 hectares | 19,470 hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 21,527 hectares | 0 hectares | 97,562 hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More reference data data for South Korea
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.9638 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.9281 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 3.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.2074 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 3.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 3.23 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 4.37 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 5.17 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 19.85 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.13 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual area burnt by wildfires by region in South Korea?
- Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in South Korea was 97,562 hectares in 2025, according to Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual area burnt by wildfires by region recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 97,562 hectares in 2025.
- What is the lowest annual area burnt by wildfires by region recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 hectares in 2021.
- How does South Korea rank for annual area burnt by wildfires by region?
- South Korea ranks 69th out of 225 countries with data for 2025.
- Is annual area burnt by wildfires by region rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1,500.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual area burnt by wildfires by region. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total land area burnt by wildfires each year, in hectares, across all land cover types.