Deforestation statistics for South Africa
South Africa: Demographic data
| Population (2022) | 59,308,690 |
| Annual population growth rate (2022) | 1.30% |
| Population density (people/sq km) | 49 |
| Net migration | 145,405 |
| Fertility rate | 2.4 |
| Median age | 28 |
| Urban population share | 67% |
South Africa: Land cover and land use change data
| Land area (sq km): 1,213,090 |
|
Tree cover (30%) Tree cover extent in 2000 (ha): 5,983,101 Tree cover extent as % of land area: 4.90% Tree cover loss from 2001-20 (ha): 1,477,972 Tree cover extent as % of 2000 tree cover: 24.70% |
|
Tropical primary forest Primary forest extent in 2001 (ha): 125,516 Primary forest extent as % of land area: 0.10% Primary forest extent as % of 2000 tree cover: 2.10% Primary forest loss from 2002-20 (ha): 11,224 Primary forest loss from 2002-20 as % of 2001 primary forest cover: 8.90% Primary forest extent in 2020 (ha): 114,292 Primary forest extent in 2020 as % of land area: 0.10% Primary forest extent in 2020 as % of 2000 tree cover area: 2% |
South Africa: Annual forest and tree cover data
South Africa: Tropical primary forest loss by year All figures in hectares
|
Year: Hectares 2002: 350 2003: 327 2004: 430 2005: 522 2006: 439 2007: 415 2008: 541 2009: 447 2010: 273 2011: 349 2012: 335 2013: 541 2014: 516 2015: 533 2016: 595 2017: 2,016 2018: 778 2019: 938 2020: 880 |
South Africa: Tree cover loss by year 30% tree cover threshold; all figures in hectares
|
Year: Hectares 2001: 77,645 2002: 47,680 2003: 92,572 2004: 72,602 2005: 104,652 2006: 104,943 2007: 47,105 2008: 81,375 2009: 67,278 2010: 61,759 2011: 69,617 2012: 84,896 2013: 56,369 2014: 69,667 2015: 70,157 2016: 73,546 2017: 94,056 2018: 63,667 2019: 76,140 2020: 62,247 |
Tree cover loss by year at the subnational level (administrative level 1)
| Sub-national admin area 1 | Tree cover extent (2001) ha | Tree cover loss (2001-05) ha | Tree cover loss (2006-10) ha | Tree cover loss (2011-15) ha | Tree cover loss (2016-20) ha | Tree cover loss (2001-20) ha | Tree cover loss (2001-20) % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Cape | 1,638,170 | 26,599 | 29,838 | 40,150 | 69,832 | 166,419 | 10.2% |
| Free State | 14,083 | 1,106 | 490 | 421 | 385 | 2,402 | 17.1% |
| Gauteng | 6,383 | 275 | 359 | 450 | 390 | 1,474 | 23.1% |
| KwaZulu-Natal | 2,234,042 | 177,609 | 148,264 | 139,720 | 121,870 | 587,463 | 26.3% |
| Limpopo | 400,384 | 9,495 | 13,694 | 16,881 | 22,023 | 62,092 | 15.5% |
| Mpumalanga | 905,910 | 150,173 | 130,071 | 107,023 | 77,783 | 465,050 | 51.3% |
| North West | 15,011 | 1,051 | 702 | 379 | 330 | 2,462 | 16.4% |
| Northern Cape | 4,595 | 165 | 126 | 62 | 13 | 366 | 8.0% |
| Western Cape | 764,538 | 28,680 | 38,918 | 45,619 | 77,030 | 190,247 | 24.9% |
Tree cover loss by year at the subnational level (administrative level 2)
| Sub-national admin area 1 | Admin area 2 | Tree cover extent (2000) ha | Tree cover loss (2001-05) ha | Tree cover loss (2006-10) ha | Tree cover loss (2011-15) ha | Tree cover loss (2016-20) ha | Tree cover loss (2001-20) ha | Tree cover loss (2001-20) % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Cape | Amathole | 32,750 | 228 | 277 | 413 | 1,098 | 2,016 | 6.2% |
| Eastern Cape | Buffalo City | 18,712 | 165 | 358 | 221 | 824 | 1,569 | 8.4% |
| Eastern Cape | Cacadu | 20,063 | 235 | 344 | 316 | 568 | 1,463 | 7.3% |
| Eastern Cape | Chris Hani | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Eastern Cape | Joe Gqabi | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Eastern Cape | Nelson Mandela Bay | 4,561 | 112 | 143 | 107 | 226 | 588 | 12.9% |
| Eastern Cape | O.R.Tambo | 10,908 | 15 | 40 | 91 | 93 | 239 | 2.2% |
| Western Cape | Eden | 38,521 | 874 | 952 | 1,126 | 2,397 | 5,349 | 13.9% |
Primary forest loss by year at the subnational level (administrative level 2)
| Sub-national admin area 1 | Primary forest extent (2000) ha | Primary forest loss (2001-05) ha | Primary forest loss (2006-10) ha | Primary forest loss (2011-15) ha | Primary forest loss (2016-20) ha | Primary forest loss (2001-20) ha | Primary forest loss (2001-20) % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Cape | 86,995 | 756 | 1,162 | 1,148 | 2,809 | 5,875 | 6.8% |
| Western Cape | 38,521 | 874 | 952 | 1,126 | 2,397 | 5,349 | 13.9% |
Primary forest loss by year at the subnational area (administrative level 2)
| Sub-national admin area 1 | Admin area 2 | Primary forest extent (2001) ha | Primary forest loss (2001-05) ha | Primary forest loss (2006-10) ha | Primary forest loss (2011-15) ha | Primary forest loss (2016-20) ha | Primary forest loss (2001-20) ha | Primary forest loss (2001-20) % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Cape | Amathole | 32,750 | 228 | 277 | 413 | 1,098 | 2,016 | 6.2% |
| Eastern Cape | Buffalo City | 18,712 | 165 | 358 | 221 | 824 | 1,569 | 8.4% |
| Eastern Cape | Cacadu | 20,063 | 235 | 344 | 316 | 568 | 1,463 | 7.3% |
| Eastern Cape | Chris Hani | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Eastern Cape | Joe Gqabi | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Eastern Cape | Nelson Mandela Bay | 4,561 | 112 | 143 | 107 | 226 | 588 | 12.9% |
| Eastern Cape | O.R.Tambo | 10,908 | 15 | 40 | 91 | 93 | 239 | 2.2% |
| Western Cape | Eden | 38,521 | 874 | 952 | 1,126 | 2,397 | 5,349 | 13.9% |
2019 forest data for South Africa | Archived forest data for South Africa | Forest data for South Africa
Data Source: Tree cover loss: Hansen/UMD/Google/USGS/NASA via Global Forest Watch. Administrative boundaries: Global Administrative Areas database (GADM), version 3.6.
Citation: Mongabay. "Deforestation statistics for [selected country name]". Accessed on [date] from worldrainforests.com.
Ads are placed on this page automatically by Google. Mongabay does not control what ads are displayed.