Deforestation · 2001–2025
Deforestation in Romania
Since 2001, Romania has lost about 466,000 hectares of forest (about 4,700 km²): 6% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it was lost to logging, so much of it can grow back. About 7,300 hectares (1.6%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns.
- Forest in 2000
- 7.74 million ha
- Forest lost since 2001
- 466,000 ha6% of it, about 4,700 km²
- Cleared for good
- 7,300 hadeforestation, 1.6% of the loss
- Worst year
- 200737,400 ha lost
Map
Where Romania has lost forest
Every square kilometre of Romania as satellites saw it from 2000 to 2025. Yellow and green were forest; red to white marks where it has been lost since 2001, and when.
- Forest cover in 2000
- 0%25%50%75%100%How much of the land was forest: dark purple had little or none, yellow was dense forest.
- Year the forest was lost
- 200120132025Where forest was cut down, burned or cleared since 2001: red for the early years, through orange, to white for the most recent. Solid where a fifth or more of a place's forest went, fainter where 8% or more did.
- Cities
- The capital (the larger dot) and the biggest cities, to help you find your way.
Year by year
Forest lost in Romania, year by year
Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 19,500 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 19,800 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2007, when about 37,400 hectares of forest were lost.
Hectares of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 171 ha | 17,100 ha | 17,300 ha |
| 2002 | 204 ha | 16,100 ha | 16,300 ha |
| 2003 | 98 ha | 9,150 ha | 9,250 ha |
| 2004 | 437 ha | 17,900 ha | 18,400 ha |
| 2005 | 375 ha | 18,800 ha | 19,100 ha |
| 2006 | 375 ha | 12,500 ha | 12,900 ha |
| 2007 | 421 ha | 37,000 ha | 37,400 ha |
| 2008 | 441 ha | 16,800 ha | 17,300 ha |
| 2009 | 282 ha | 15,700 ha | 16,000 ha |
| 2010 | 296 ha | 17,100 ha | 17,400 ha |
| 2011 | 357 ha | 16,300 ha | 16,600 ha |
| 2012 | 689 ha | 29,300 ha | 30,000 ha |
| 2013 | 176 ha | 12,500 ha | 12,600 ha |
| 2014 | 328 ha | 18,700 ha | 19,100 ha |
| 2015 | 193 ha | 10,300 ha | 10,500 ha |
| 2016 | 307 ha | 22,300 ha | 22,600 ha |
| 2017 | 256 ha | 18,500 ha | 18,700 ha |
| 2018 | 274 ha | 18,300 ha | 18,600 ha |
| 2019 | 197 ha | 11,800 ha | 12,000 ha |
| 2020 | 262 ha | 26,800 ha | 27,000 ha |
| 2021 | 171 ha | 14,100 ha | 14,300 ha |
| 2022 | 260 ha | 15,800 ha | 16,000 ha |
| 2023 | 297 ha | 24,400 ha | 24,700 ha |
| 2024 | 235 ha | 19,400 ha | 19,700 ha |
| 2025 | 200 ha | 22,600 ha | 22,800 ha |
The satellite method improved in 2011, so compare recent years with each other rather than with the 2000s. Hover over or tap a year for its figures.
Causes
What is causing deforestation in Romania?
- 1.6%cleared for good (deforestation)
- 97%can grow back (fire, logging, storms)
- 1.7%cause unknown
- Logging96% · 447,000 ha
Can grow back. Trees cut for timber or paper. The land usually stays forest and grows back.
- Unknown causes1.7% · 7,760 ha
Cause unknown. The satellites saw the trees go, but not why.
Also, each under 1%: farms, pasture and plantations, storms, floods and other natural causes, mining and energy, towns and roads, wildfires.
Causes for 2025 are estimates, based on what caused forest loss in the same places up to 2024.
Is all forest loss deforestation?
No. When forest is cleared for farms, mines or towns, it is gone for good: that is deforestation. When it is logged or burned, it usually grows back. We count both as forest lost, but only the first as deforestation, so a country with a bad fire year isn't shown as clearing its forest for good.
Regions that lost the most
| Region | Forest lost | Share of its forest | Cleared for good |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maramureş | 28,100 ha | 7.9% | 455 ha |
| Cluj County | 23,100 ha | 10% | 254 ha |
| Arges | 21,300 ha | 6.3% | 197 ha |
| Bacău County | 19,800 ha | 6.5% | 248 ha |
| Bihor County | 18,000 ha | 7.1% | 121 ha |
| Neamț County | 18,000 ha | 6.6% | 187 ha |
| Mureș County | 14,500 ha | 5.8% | 108 ha |
| Sibiu County | 14,000 ha | 5.5% | 191 ha |
| Arad County | 13,600 ha | 5.1% | 324 ha |
| Brașov County | 13,300 ha | 5.6% | 226 ha |
| Timiș County | 6,240 ha | 4.8% | 97 ha |
| Buzău County | 6,140 ha | 3.4% | 72 ha |
Cities that lost the most forest around them
Forest lost within 10 km of each city centre since 2001.
| City | Forest lost | Share of its forest | Cleared for good |
|---|---|---|---|
| Piatra Neamţ | 1,120 ha | 6.3% | 28 ha |
| Baia Mare | 692 ha | 5.4% | 31 ha |
| Braşov | 600 ha | 6.2% | 87 ha |
| Brăila | 374 ha | 12% | 1 ha |
| Cluj-Napoca | 240 ha | 3.3% | 93 ha |
| Piteşti | 237 ha | 2.4% | 20 ha |
| Galaţi | 192 ha | 18% | 12 ha |
| Craiova | 175 ha | 5.7% | 19 ha |
| Bacău | 134 ha | 2.3% | 8 ha |
| Sibiu | 120 ha | 2.2% | 6 ha |
Frequently asked
Questions about deforestation in Romania
How much forest has Romania lost since 2001?
Since 2001, Romania has lost about 466,000 hectares of forest (about 4,700 km²): 6% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it was lost to logging, so much of it can grow back. About 7,300 hectares (1.6%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns.
Is deforestation in Romania getting worse?
Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 19,500 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 19,800 hectares a year in 2016–2020. These are five-year averages from 2011 on, the years the satellite maps were all made the same way.
What is causing deforestation in Romania?
The main causes of forest loss since 2001 are logging (96%), farms, pasture and plantations (under 1%), storms, floods and other natural causes (under 1%). About 7,300 hectares was deforestation, meaning forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns. Causes for 2025 are estimates, based on what caused forest loss in the same places up to 2024.
What was the worst year for forest loss in Romania?
The worst year was 2007, when about 37,400 hectares of forest were lost.
How is forest loss measured?
We use satellite maps from the University of Maryland (Hansen and colleagues) that show, for every 30 × 30 m patch of land on Earth, the year its trees were cut down, burned or died, from 2001 to 2025. We add up those patches in Romania, counting only places that were at least 30% covered by trees in 2000. The cause of each loss comes from a map made by the World Resources Institute and Google DeepMind. All figures are estimates.