New Zealand's forest cover rose from 36.3 % in 1994 to 37.8 % in 2023.
New Zealand · Environment
Forests, air quality, land, water and protected areas.
10 indicators · 10 with data
Land
New Zealand's forest area rose from 95,635 km in 1994 to 99,503 km in 2023.
Terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area)
% of land area
30th of 213 · 5th in East Asia & Pacific
New Zealand's terrestrial protected areas (% of total land area) rose from 27.3 % in 2013 to 33.4 % in 2025.
New Zealand's agricultural land (% of land area) fell from 50.5 % in 1994 to 36.9 % in 2023.
New Zealand's arable land (% of land area) rose from 1.5 % in 1994 to 2.0 % in 2023.
Air
New Zealand's air pollution (pm2.5) fell from 8.4 in 1994 to 6.9 in 2023.
Water
New Zealand's water stress rose from 0.8 % in 1993 to 3.0 % in 2022.
Renewable internal freshwater resources per capita
cubic metres per person
9th of 181 · 2nd in East Asia & Pacific
New Zealand's renewable internal freshwater resources per capita fell from 91,540 in 1993 to 64,349 in 2022.
Access
New Zealand's safe drinking water rose from 84.4 % in 2000 to 100.0 % in 2024.
New Zealand's safe sanitation rose from 80.4 % in 2000 to 88.8 % in 2024.