Wildfire area burned by land cover type, per square kilometre in Australia
Australia: Wildfire area burned by land cover type, per square kilometre was 0.002 hectares per square kilometre in 2023. ▲ Rising
Wildfire area burned by land cover type, per square kilometre in Australia, 2002–2023
Source: Statizoid (derived). Measured in hectares per square kilometre.
Analysis
In 2023, wildfire area burned by land cover type, per square kilometre in Australia stood at 0.002 hectares per square kilometre.
That represents a change of up 58.9% on the previous year and down 21.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, wildfire area burned by land cover type, per square kilometre in Australia peaked at 0.004 hectares per square kilometre in 2015 and was at its lowest, 0.0009 hectares per square kilometre, in 2010.
That places Australia 55th out of 206 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
Wildfire area burned by land cover type, per square kilometre in Australia, year by year
| Year | hectares per square kilometre | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 0.0034 hectares per square kilometre | — |
| 2003 | 0.002 hectares per square kilometre | -40.1% |
| 2004 | 0.0015 hectares per square kilometre | -24.2% |
| 2005 | 0.0018 hectares per square kilometre | +16.8% |
| 2006 | 0.002 hectares per square kilometre | +12.2% |
| 2007 | 0.0011 hectares per square kilometre | -44.6% |
| 2008 | 0.001 hectares per square kilometre | -10.7% |
| 2009 | 0.0029 hectares per square kilometre | +192.5% |
| 2010 | 0.0009 hectares per square kilometre | -69.7% |
| 2011 | 0.0017 hectares per square kilometre | +90.9% |
| 2012 | 0.0017 hectares per square kilometre | -1.6% |
| 2013 | 0.0026 hectares per square kilometre | +53.3% |
| 2014 | 0.003 hectares per square kilometre | +19.2% |
| 2015 | 0.004 hectares per square kilometre | +30.0% |
| 2016 | 0.002 hectares per square kilometre | -48.7% |
| 2017 | 0.0018 hectares per square kilometre | -12.0% |
| 2018 | 0.0023 hectares per square kilometre | +30.7% |
| 2019 | 0.0036 hectares per square kilometre | +55.4% |
| 2020 | 0.0031 hectares per square kilometre | -15.5% |
| 2021 | 0.0015 hectares per square kilometre | -50.2% |
| 2022 | 0.0013 hectares per square kilometre | -17.0% |
| 2023 | 0.002 hectares per square kilometre | +58.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 0.002 hectares per square kilometre | 0.001 hectares per square kilometre | 0.0034 hectares per square kilometre | 8 |
| 2010s | 0.0024 hectares per square kilometre | 0.0009 hectares per square kilometre | 0.004 hectares per square kilometre | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.002 hectares per square kilometre | 0.0013 hectares per square kilometre | 0.0031 hectares per square kilometre | 4 |
Countries ranked near Australia
- 52 Venezuela 0.0024 hectares per square kilometre compare
- 53 Italy 0.0024 hectares per square kilometre compare
- 54 Croatia 0.0023 hectares per square kilometre compare
- 56 Romania 0.002 hectares per square kilometre compare
- 57 Iraq 0.0018 hectares per square kilometre compare
- 58 Burundi 0.0017 hectares per square kilometre compare
More reference data data for Australia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.21 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 28.02 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 38.41 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 38.41 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 4.07 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 6.14 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 118.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 170.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 13.9 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is wildfire area burned by land cover type, per square kilometre in Australia?
- Wildfire area burned by land cover type, per square kilometre in Australia was 0.002 hectares per square kilometre in 2023, according to Statizoid (derived).
- What is the highest wildfire area burned by land cover type, per square kilometre recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 0.004 hectares per square kilometre in 2015.
- What is the lowest wildfire area burned by land cover type, per square kilometre recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0009 hectares per square kilometre in 2010.
- How does Australia rank for wildfire area burned by land cover type, per square kilometre?
- Australia ranks 55th out of 206 countries with data for 2023.
- Is wildfire area burned by land cover type, per square kilometre rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 21.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from Statizoid (derived), published as part of Wildfire area burned by land cover type, per square kilometre. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page.
How this figure is calculated
Wildfire area burned by land cover type divided by Land area (sq. km), matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.
Wildfire area burned by land cover type ÷ Land area (sq. km)
Computed from
- Wildfire area burned by land cover type Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
- Land area FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Statizoid computes this series; the underlying measurements belong to the publishers named above. The arithmetic is applied to every country and year where both inputs report, and nothing is estimated unless the page says so.
About this data
Wildfire area burned by land cover type divided by Land area (sq. km), matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.