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What percentage of the world is wilderness?

Author

Matthew Martinez

Updated on February 26, 2026

What percentage of the world is wilderness?

46%

Also asked, how much of the world is still wild?

The Wildlife Conservation Society summarizes it in a news release: "23 percent of the world's landmass can now be considered wilderness, with the rest—excluding Antarctica—lost to the direct effects of human activities."

Additionally, is there any true wilderness left? Fortunately, the answer to that question is yes! Pursuant to the Wilderness Act, the U.S. now recognizes over 750 different wilderness areas totaling over 109 million acres of land. The largest U.S. wilderness area is the Wrangell-Saint Elias Wilderness in Alaska.

Keeping this in view, what percentage of the world is untouched?

Worldwide, the society found that 17 percent of land is still virtually untouched — mostly because it is inhospitable to humans. In areas capable of growing basic crops, and therefore most able to support people, untouched lands have diminished to 2 percent of the total.

What country has the most wilderness?

Russia

Which country has the most land in the world?

The 30 largest countries in the world by total area (in square kilometers)
Area in square kilometers
Russia17,098,242
Canada9,984,670
USA9,833,517
China9,596,960

What percent of Africa is wilderness?

'Disaster for conservation'

Wilderness - most of it in Australia, North America, North Asia and North Africa - currently totals 30.1 million square kilometers (11.6 million square miles), or 20 percent of the world's land area.

Is the ocean considered wilderness?

The ocean is barely wild anymore. A map of the wilderness left in global waters shows that only 13 per cent of the ocean remains undisturbed by human activity.

How much of the world is natural?

Just five percent of the world's land mass is untouched by humans, according to new study. J ust five percent of the world's land mass is untouched by human activity, according to a new study, highlighting the need to protect areas other than pristine wilderness.

Are humans bad for the planet?

Human activity is causing environmental degradation, which is the deterioration of the environment through depletion of resources such as air, water and soil; the destruction of ecosystems; habitat destruction; the extinction of wildlife; and pollution.

What percentage of the world's land is populated by humans?

Three centuries ago, humans were intensely using just around 5 percent of the planet, with nearly half the world's land effectively wild. Today, more than half of Earth's land is occupied by agriculture or human settlements.

What is the ratio of land to water on Earth?

In simplest terms, water makes up about 71% of the Earth's surface, while the other 29% consists of continents and islands.

Is there any wilderness left in Europe?

Europe's wilderness | WWF. Relatively little wilderness remains in densely settled Europe. The southern Carpathians represent one of Europe's very few remaining great wilderness areas. The area totals over 1 million ha and includes the last intact forest landscape in continental Europe.

What is considered the last great wilderness?

Antarctica is the coldest, highest, loneliest place on Earth, and for many it is the trip of a lifetime.

What human activities are not allowed in wilderness areas?

Examples of activities that are not allowed in Wilderness Areas:
  • Recreational activities that require a motorized/mechanized vehicle, such as off-highway vehicles, motorbikes, mountain bikes, snowmobiles, and motorboats.
  • Construction of new structures or roads.
  • Energy exploration and development.

How much of Alaska is wilderness?

approximately 54 percent

Does Georgia have regions of wilderness or undeveloped land?

The protected areas of Georgia cover almost one million acres (4,000 km2) of the state. These areas are managed by different federal and state level authorities and receive varying levels of protection. Some areas are managed as wilderness while others are operated with acceptable commercial exploitation.

What is considered wilderness?

Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. Even less wilderness remains in the ocean, with only 13.2% free from intense human activity.

What is wilderness tourism?

Wilderness is defined as undeveloped land with minimal human imprints (Nash 2001). The 1964 US Wilderness Act defines wilderness as places where one is a momentary tourist through it. Wilderness areas include conservation preserves, estates, national forests, and parks.