Fires Drove Record-breaking Tropical Forest Loss in 2024 – publication
21 mei 2025
The Forest Pulse draws on the most recent data and analysis to reveal the latest trends in global forest loss and deforestation.
The Forest Pulse is updated annually using annual tree cover loss data, updates are released each year and cover the previous year’s trends. The tropics lost a record-shattering 6.7 million hectares of primary rainforest in 2024, an area nearly the size of Panama. Driven largely by massive fires, that’s more than any other year in at least the last two decades. According to new data from the University of Maryland’s GLAD lab and available on WRI’s Global Forest Watch platform, tropical primary forest disappeared at a rate of 18 football (soccer) fields per minute in 2024 — nearly double that of 2023. These are some of the most important forest ecosystems, critical for livelihoods, carbon storage, water provision, biodiversity and more. Their loss in 2024 alone caused 3.1 gigatonnes (Gt) of greenhouse gas emissions, equivalent to slightly more than the annual CO2 emissions from India’s fossil fuel use.
The Forest Pulse draws on the most recent data and analysis to reveal the latest trends in global forest loss and deforestation.
The Forest Pulse is updated annually using annual tree cover loss data, updates are released each year and cover the previous year’s trends. The tropics lost a record-shattering 6.7 million hectares of primary rainforest in 2024, an area nearly the size of Panama. Driven largely by massive fires, that’s more than any other year in at least the last two decades. According to new data from the University of Maryland’s GLAD lab and available on WRI’s Global Forest Watch platform, tropical primary forest disappeared at a rate of 18 football (soccer) fields per minute in 2024 — nearly double that of 2023. These are some of the most important forest ecosystems, critical for livelihoods, carbon storage, water provision, biodiversity and more. Their loss in 2024 alone caused 3.1 gigatonnes (Gt) of greenhouse gas emissions, equivalent to slightly more than the annual CO2 emissions from India’s fossil fuel use.
Links:
Fires Drove Record-breaking Tropical Forest Loss in 2024
Vorig jaar ging tropisch regenwoud ter grootte van Ierland verloren
RELEASE: Global Forest Loss Shatters Records in 2024, Fueled by Massive Fires
Meer tropisch oerbos verloren gegaan in 2024 dan ooit eerder gemeten, branden grootste oorzaak
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