Tree cover loss in United Kingdom

United Kingdom: Tree cover loss was 22,786 hectares in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
22,786 hectares
Change on year
up 5.6%
World rank
68th
of 197 countries
All-time high
37,148 hectares
in 2009
All-time low
1,826 hectares
in 2003
Years of data
24
2001–2024

Tree cover loss in United Kingdom, 2001–2024

010.0k20.0k30.0k40.0k2001201220242001: 21.3k hectares2002: 19.3k hectares2003: 1.8k hectares2004: 24.5k hectares2005: 8.5k hectares2006: 20.4k hectares2007: 30.8k hectares2008: 12.1k hectares2009: 37.1k hectares2010: 27.8k hectares2011: 22.3k hectares2012: 35.1k hectares2013: 28.2k hectares2014: 30.0k hectares2015: 23.9k hectares2016: 28.7k hectares2017: 22.9k hectares2018: 26.2k hectares2019: 28.3k hectares2020: 22.8k hectares2021: 26.1k hectares2022: 34.1k hectares2023: 21.6k hectares2024: 22.8k hectares

Source: Global Forest Watch (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.

Analysis

United Kingdom recorded 22,786 hectares for tree cover loss in 2024.

That represents a change of up 5.6% on the previous year and down 24.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, tree cover loss in United Kingdom peaked at 37,148 hectares in 2009 and was at its lowest, 1,826 hectares, in 2003.

United Kingdom ranks 68th of 197 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 19,535 hectares 1,826 hectares 37,148 hectares 9
2010s 27,354 hectares 22,306 hectares 35,108 hectares 10
2020s 25,469 hectares 21,574 hectares 34,067 hectares 5

Countries ranked near United Kingdom

  1. 65 Gabon 28,942 hectares compare
  2. 66 Ethiopia 27,783 hectares compare
  3. 67 Austria 27,430 hectares compare
  4. 69 Lithuania 22,286 hectares compare
  5. 70 Panama 21,537 hectares compare
  6. 71 Romania 19,984 hectares compare

See the full ranking of 197 places →

More reference data data for United Kingdom

All data for United Kingdom →

Frequently asked questions

What is tree cover loss in United Kingdom?
Tree cover loss in United Kingdom was 22,786 hectares in 2024, according to Global Forest Watch (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest tree cover loss recorded in United Kingdom?
The highest recorded value was 37,148 hectares in 2009.
What is the lowest tree cover loss recorded in United Kingdom?
The lowest recorded value was 1,826 hectares in 2003.
How does United Kingdom rank for tree cover loss?
United Kingdom ranks 68th out of 197 countries with data for 2024.
Is tree cover loss rising or falling in United Kingdom?
Over the last ten years it is down 24.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
The figures come from Global Forest Watch (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Tree cover loss. 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

Indicator
Tree cover loss
Unit
hectares
Source
Global Forest Watch (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
197 places, 4,728 data points, 2001–2024
Last refreshed

Tree cover loss driven by all causes.